Café group to implement scalable Sage 200 software to support its growth ambitions
Café group to implement scalable Sage 200 software to support its growth ambitions
Family owned, West Country café chain Boston Tea Party Group is about to embark on the first steps of a migration to Sage 200 Financials, with the support of Sage Business Partner Datel.
The café group’s Bristol head office was seeking an alternative to its previous Sage 50 accounts system.
Shelley Wadey, Boston Tea Party finance director, explained: “While it had served us well in the early days, Sage 50 Accounts could no longer support our business requirements and was struggling to cope. Looking for a more powerful solution in the Sage range was a natural progression for our business.”
As a result of discussions with Datel, Boston Tea Party ordered Sage 200 Financials, and the Sage partner said it is now about to hold the first workshop to discuss exactly how the new system will align with the company’s business processes and needs.
Supporting essential processes
Other migration services will include data conversion and training for users in the finance team. The company is aiming to go live in early summer 2012 with a system that delivers reliable support for essential financial processes, such as purchase ledger management and financial reporting.
Wadey outlined the anticipated benefits of implementing Sage 200: “For a start, it will align much more closely with our business model. For example, we needed a system that can handle the 4–4–5 retail calendar and this is a standard option within Sage 200.”
Managing business growth
Looking ahead, Wadey added that business growth needs careful management: “Our business strategy is to expand our current 11 cafés to significantly more over time. As the scale of our business grows, Sage 200 will be able to handle a larger number of transactions than our previous system, providing a scalable solution that will support us into the future.”
Improved reporting will also enhance management information to maintain control of the expanding business. “Producing reports in Sage 200 will be much more efficient,” Wadey confirmed. “We will eliminate the manual processes and spreadsheets that can take you only so far in a business that is growing rapidly. We’re looking forward to having much more automated and more timely monthly management reports.”
Boston Tea Party first opened its doors in 1996, aiming to provide a refreshing contrast to the usual ‘cloned’ High Street dining experience. Each of its 11 cafés is designed to be a one-off, with close links to its local community.
