Halti is a Finnish outdoor and sportswear manufacturer, renowned for its practical design, clothing tailored for northern conditions, and high quality.
Previously, Halti's product information management process was labor-intensive and complex. The company used two production management systems (ERP and PDM), each containing unique product information. In Halti's four online stores, product information was largely maintained and updated manually.
| Challenge | Halti wanted to modernize its product information management and eliminate the majority of manual work. |
| Solution | Crasman designed and implemented an integrated PIM system for Halti, which automatically generates the product information and reports needed by various stakeholders. |
| Results | The modern PIM system significantly reduces the time spent on sales, marketing, and production tasks each year |
Halti distributes enriched product information to over 20 retailers through various spreadsheets, which were previously compiled manually. Each year, sales catalogs are created based on a marketing information spreadsheet. For a long time, updates to the catalog were made manually in Excel and then manually updated in InDesign.
It became clear that managing product information in this way was unsustainable in the long term. A centralized system was needed where all product information could be enriched, stored in one place, and easily utilized.
Crasman thoroughly mapped Halti's processes and both current and future needs during the definition phase. Integrations were created between the ERP and PDM systems and the Product Information Management system (PIM), bringing all necessary product data into one place. This data is utilized within Halti's organization and for customer communications.
The PIM system provides a central repository for all product information required by marketing communications. Enriching product data is straightforward, thanks to a predefined template that is easy to complete. Product information and its management were localized into four languages: Finnish, English, Swedish, and German.
As a result of the implementation, enriched product data can be synchronized with just one click to Halti's online store. The PIM system formats product information for e-commerce as completely as possible through automation, freeing up Halti's resources from manual tasks.
With the PIM system, CSV files of products are created for retailers. The specific product data templates required by retailers were implemented directly into the PIM, along with several internal product data reports for Halti's own use. Producing materials for sales catalogs is quick and efficient, as product information is exported from the PIM into CSV format for use in the layout software.
The system also automatically generates printable PDF files based on the catalog templates. Halti uses these PDFs in their sales activities.
Halti's product information management has been elevated to a modern level, with all necessary data available from a single source. The new system allows the company to focus on essential tasks—saving significant time annually in sales, marketing, and production. Additionally, both internal and external communications are now more consistent, as product information is always drawn from the same centralized system for various needs.
Halti's sales team has particularly praised the faster and easier process of creating sales proposals. The PDF proposals include key product details, inventory availability, and product images.
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