Électrimat, an independent electrical equipment distributor and wholesaler was bought in 2011 by two Quebec entrepreneurs. Their goal was clear: breathe new life into the company using a digital transformation. Électrimat saw record growth after choosing Fidelio ERP to develop its activities. Here is a look back on their success story.
In 2011, Christian Grenier and Mathieu Legris purchase Électrimat, a company specialized electrical equipment distribution. The two entrepreneurs see significant growth potential in the company.
It’s a risky bet: the market is very competitive and the company is falling behind technologically. Employees were working on old computers and an ageing management software that would be unable to meet the company’s growth goals.
For Christian Grenier, Électrimat’s development strategy would need to include the acquisition of a robust management system: “If we wanted to grow, we needed a suitable management tool.”
In 2015, Christian Grenier and Mathieu Legris decided to acquire an ERP system specialized in distribution. After comparing several solutions, they quickly chose Fidelio. This ERP was better suited to meet their management needs and provide the competitive edge they were looking for.
The two leaders were attracted by the three main advantages of the system:
It was important for Électrimat to work with a partner in Canada: "Other vendors did not have a local presence, we would have had to get people to come in from the United States" says Christian Grenier, President.
The advantage of working with a Quebec developer was twofold:
To better support its growth, they also needed to choose an intuitive solution that made it easy for employees to pick up. Done and done. Fidelio ERP uses a Windows interface that is familiar to most people.
“The learning curve was short and simple when we opened new branches”
- Mathieu Legris, vice-president of Sales and Marketing at Électrimat.
In addition, Fidelio ERP met all of the specific needs of the distributor such as inventory and sales price management. “Fidelio has all the features an electrical supply distributor like us needs” says Christian Grenier.
As a result of the investment in Fidelio and the two entrepreneurs’ other modernization efforts, success came quickly and they keep growing.
“Since we acquired Fidelio, we tripled our revenue and opened two new branches.“
- Christian Grenier, President of Électrimat
In only a few years, Électrimat tripled its revenue, opened two new branches and developed several new product ranges. The number of people using Fidelio also doubled and the system still performs the same. Rewards abound: in 2017, the company received the member prize for highest growth in Canada from Affiliated Distributors and the PWC Business Transfer Award.
Fidelio was a powerful ally that helped them effectively manage their inventory, follow their inventory in real time and keep costs down. It also allowed them accurately analyze profit margins and give the two entrepreneurs a clear vision of their company’s results which is core to their decision making.
In order to continue to grow under the best conditions, the team wants to take advantage of the flexibility and extent of Fidelio ERP’s features. "When we implemented Fidelio, we had a long way to go in terms of systems," says Christian Grenier. “We started with core modules, and now we’re in the second implementation phase. We want to add value to the system, use it to its fullest and get better data.”
For the next implementation phases, emphasis will be put on the Customer Relationship Management (CRM ), WMS (Warehouse Management System), Electronic Commerce modules and dashboards and KPIs (key performance indicators): a perfectly adapted set of features for the distribution sector.