Top-rated Warehouse Management System

I'm Matthew Norton and I'm the commercial manager here at TNS Logistics TNS Logistics is a fully integrated Port Logistics provider we've been operating from the port of Brisbane for the past 16 years. It was our vision to create a one-stop shop for our clients, so we could speak directly to Freight forwarders on their behalf, we could arrange with our own vehicles collection of containers from the port of Brisbane, bring them back to our facility to unpack store it, and then 3pl pick, pack, and fulfilment.

We came up with the idea that we wanted to streamline the logistics process for them. That meant that they could pick up the phone if you get the right person each time and they could handle either contact directly with a freight forwarder or a shipping agent right down to the final delivery to their clients front doors.

My mom and dad started the business 16 years ago, where they concentrated mainly on Port Logistics so they kind of got to the point where they had to concentrate on one side in the warehouse or the transport. They ultimately went towards the transport and they operate and grew that side of the business before my brother and I came on board.

So when we first started I think we had one rack. From that point, we are now at managing 4,000 square meters under roof, where we have the capacity to hold over five and a half thousand pallets within racking, and we made the decision that we wanted to concentrate on e-commerce Pick and Pack.

We quickly got our first client, this client brought a few new headaches. The first being that um how we're going to manage this on an Excel spreadsheet, how we're going to move forward with it, how we're going to charge the client, and how am I going to actually be able to add on these ad hoc charges and actually capture it, so we can make this warehouse what seems like a little hobby at the time for the business into a real business.

We needed something that had an app, something like that could upload our clients products, I could actually break it down onto different pallets into different locations, and then tell all the boys obviously where they're picking it from.

Where we are now holding kind of 5,000 pallets in racking it's really important that the boys know what they're picking but also being able to scan the product to ensure that it's correct - that's the way that we can offer same-day dispatch.

The second one was someone that I could also ring and go hey I've got this problem because remembering we're quite new to this warehousing space and the e-commerce side of things so we're going to need a little bit of assistance, and the third was someone that can actually pick up the phone and go how good is this?  They know what I want, they can actually be hands-on with it and help me with the integration side.  So having a team that could support us on that endeavor was really important for us.

One of the things I really liked about CartonCloud was the fact that the team had come from a warehouse background. They'd seen the operational difficulties from day to day and have created a product that was actually able to help us.

From day one to where we are now I think we're probably only using five to ten percent of the features and capabilities that CartonCloud offered us.  Where now each client that we bring on brings in different needs and requirements. We've learned and adapted and CartonCloud’s helped us kind of optimize that process throughout.

Using CartonCloud has given us the ability to reach International markets. We now have a client that's based in Canada and through easy Integrations we're able to receive orders live from overseas at any time so for all of our clients that come on board we spend probably two or three days on boarding each particular product, we then link that directly into CartonCloud from their Shopify and the CartonCloud team builds the integration from Shopify directly into CartonCloud.

Even with International clients the integration process allows clients from all over the world to be able to settle our orders to us live which ensures that we're still getting same-day dispatch which is really important for our clients.

Our clients love that the shipping feature is a part of CartonCloud so our staff and the client aren't having to use multiple platforms. Through our couriers we can print courier labels directly from the platform, which means that we're limiting time and mistakes. It's really important for our clients to also see when stock’s leaving our warehouse so if we're spending half the morning picking and packing we need to be able to provide proof to our clients that it's left on time and it's on route to the final delivery. 

We do that through the consignment feature we leave that dispatch where couriers are assigning on glass for multiple Consignments at once which then sends an automated email directly to our clientele letting them know that it's left and it's on its way that's what we're offering our clients now and I feel like we're doing a pretty good job.

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My name's Deanne, and I'm the founder of Lexington Logistics. I founded the business 3 years ago, and the reason why I did this was because, there was a gap in the market.

We actually work with a lot of boutique clients. They could be fashion brands, gift, homewares, or lifestyle brands.

From having 3 clients to over 30 clients,  we are an extension to their business. It's something that is really important to us, that we aren't a complete third party — we are part of their integrated process and an extension to their operation.

That's what drives us every single day.

To hand over your brand to a third party is a big thing, and we want to make sure that we can actually uphold their values, their brand messaging, their key themes — to be able to then ship out their product exactly the same way that they would do it in-house.

When we do partner with our clients, one of the key features is having this software system, for them to be able to see that yeah we are serious around how we actually function as a business.

We do have a broad spectrum of omnichannel clients, there is a portion that are e-commerce clients — so  they run their stores through software
systems like Shopify, or Woo Commerce.

When we onboard a client, the first part of that
is to ensure that we have CartonCloud set up,  to make sure that their integration is spot on.

Once we have everything connected, they actually
don't need to really touch what we do and how it operates. We're able to integrate our systems
together— so it's a complete, autonomous process.

For us to take them on board, and see them flourish and actually start to do 20, 30, up to 100 orders a day — that's actually why we do the work that we do.

We actually provide access for them into the
system so it brings them closer together,  they don't feel like they are completely separate from their brand.

So the transparency is there, they are  able to see our stock levels within the warehouse, with the orders that are being placed and processed.

It's simplified our business.

It's... yeah, it's been fantastic so far.

I've seen the retrospect, working with other businesses in implementing different software— they do it so late in the game, you know, and it's such a big catch-up.

So, working with the guys at CartonCloud, I was a little client. At the time, I only had probably 3 clients on board. They didn't see that as an issue.

It was just — ok, what can we do to make sure that we set up some really good systems and processes now,  enabling you to bring on clients quicker,
and much more effectively in the future.

There are so many different things that a system can provide you that you actually didn't think was possible.

That was such a crucial part in identifying what could we be doing differently or better — but also letting go of the things that we were doing that we may not have been doing as productively.

When you're actually looking for a software system, you have to make sure that it's right for your business.

By having CartonCloud come on board, it's been probably one of the best moves that I could have made, and I don't think we would have
won as much business as what we do.