fonQ
Business Objective
FonQ had difficulties communicating and transacting with multiple trading partners and were lacking a consistent platform through which they could organise transactions with trading partners on one easy-to-use interface, making it more time-effective and cost-efficient.
Business Benefits
Using B2BE’s EDI network, fonQ was able to achieve these ends, streamlining their interface and changing to a digital operation. They also reduced operating costs, human error, and operating time, while improving transaction security.
B2BE Solutions
fonQ reduce operating costs by tranding with partners on one easy-to-use interface
Established in the Netherlands in 2003, fonQ is an ambitious ecommerce service that champions aesthetic and functional furnishings, as well as providing competitive prices, decision aid, and excellent customer service. Their online stores offer products from over 750 leading brands related to design, wellness, household, and gardening in the Netherlands and Flanders, as well as web shops now in Belgium and Germany. Using Amazon, fonQ also do business in France and the United Kingdom. Their head office is in Utrecht and the company employs over 250 people.
In 2021, fonQ won two Shopping Awards (Netherlands), winning for Best Webshop in the Living category, as well as Best Webshop overall. Also, in 2021, they won an ABN AMRO Webshop Award (Netherlands) and a Salesforce Webshop Award (Belgium), both in the Living category. This marks the fourth time fonQ has received the ABN AMRO Webshop Award, winning in 2017, 2018, and 2019.
The Challenge
As an ecommerce platform, fonQ, not only benefited from, but relied on, smooth transactions between themselves and their suppliers. The objective for B2BE was to address several of fonQ’s crucial operational difficulties. As a business, FonQ had 1000 suppliers, but only 19 of them were connected to the old SPFI platform. They had one message type at the time, so we proposed using B2BE’s EDI Network to streamline incoming and outgoing transactions by automating the order to cash and cash to collection process.
They were also having difficulty in overseeing incoming and outgoing transaction messages with multiple trading partners. Many of fonQ’s trading partners were not using EDI, and, therefore, connecting with them and, ultimately, trading was a challenge.
The aim was to use EDI to allow fonQ to transact with multiple trading partners on one easy-to-use interface, reducing the time and effort required to carry out transactions.
Using EDI, fonQ would be able to link with any global trading partner and stay compliant, while making decisions with one source of real-time visibility.
The Solution
B2BE had to find a way to allow fonQ to transact with multiple trading partners from one easy-to-use interface.
By automating the usually manual processes, B2BE could also lower fonQ’s operating cost. One way this was achieved was by helping them to purchase at competitive prices so that the organisation can reduce costs and receive a better return on investment.
The automation aspect also eliminated the human error percentage.
This would also improve their business cycle speed. B2BE’s EDI network increased responsiveness and customer service levels, allowing fonQ to better meet customer demands and requirements or supplier engagement initiatives. B2BE’s automated notifications can let a client know as soon as an important event occurs. The EDI is also able to automatically validate documents from fonQ’s trading partners based on a set of defined business rules or for tax requirements. This automated system effectively eliminates slow delivery turnaround times.
The B2BE managed EDI network allowed fonQ to transfer their information to a secure and reliable communication platform that could safely transmit their electronic documents and data.
Finally, by optimising the transaction process from paper to an electronic format, B2BE reduced fonQ’s use of paper-based documents, thus reducing the financial cost of documents as well as the company’s overall environmental footprint.
The Result
By automating fonQ’s processes, fonQ has been able to realise a broad range of gains so interactions with their suppliers are now cleaner, faster, and smoother. B2BE was able to help fonQ achieve cost savings and significant process improvements.
Thanks to B2BE’s automation, fonQ’s improved and automated system has enabled 80 trading partners in their supply chain to trade electronically. Now automated, the exchange of purchase orders, order acknowledgement, dispatch advice, and invoices runs quicker and smoother than ever before. Using B2BE’s EDI network, fonQ handles over 5000 transactions per month automatically with their suppliers.
As a major and widely known e-commerce retailer in the Netherlands, this shift towards streamlined automation means fonQ is now able to grow exponentially with their supplier base. fonQ’s approach with B2BE solution has enabled them to expand their reach in terms of working with new trading partners and carrying out a greater number of transactions in a fraction of the time.
