Summary: HC Foods brought its sales data, customer interactions and store visits into one platform with SimplyDepo. Its 10+ person sales team saved 40 hours per month through route optimization and automatic data logging, while merchandising became more efficient and customer retention improved. The company reported a 15% increase in revenue.
Company Overview
HC Foods imports and distributes Thai and Southeast Asian food products from Commerce, California. Founded in 1987 as a local distributor, it grew into one of California’s largest Asian food importers and distributors, serving customers across the United States and some international markets.
The company imports products from Greater China, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, France, Australia, Morocco and Malaysia. Its 10+ salespeople also handle merchandising in stores. Tim Sher, VP of Sales, manages the team, maintains customer relationships and sets long-term growth goals.
The Challenge
HC Foods wanted to expand into convenience and independent stores. To support that growth, Tim needed the team to deliver more personal customer service and build stronger partnerships. Scattered sales information made that difficult.
Operational Insight
The company’s accounting tool tracked transactions and inventory, but it did not bring every customer interaction into one view. Sales, promotions, calls, visits, merchandising activity and new product launches were often missing from the records or spread across spreadsheets.
- Missed leads and follow-ups: incomplete interaction histories made it harder to keep customer conversations moving.
- Fragmented account information: customer preferences and order histories were difficult for the whole team to access.
- Time lost on the road and in data entry: the team needed better sales-visit planning and less manual logging.
- Limited access in the field: salespeople needed to capture orders and send updates to the office from their phones, while supervisors needed web access.
The Solution
HC Foods adopted SimplyDepo to consolidate sales management in one place. Salespeople and supervisors use the mobile and web applications to organize sales, orders, customers, routes, calls, visits, promotions and contacts.
- One account history: the team can keep account, sales and product information together, including notes, preferences and previous orders for more personal follow-ups.
- Better route planning: optimized sales-visit routes reduce time spent driving between locations.
- Merchandising in the field: reps can capture shelf photos and access product information while working in stores.
- Connected field and office teams: mobile order capture and updates give supervisors visibility into field sales operations while the team is on the go.
SimplyDepo’s platform also brings together AI analytics and customizable automated reporting, helping brands and distributors organize bulk ordering, supervise their teams and automate sales operations.
For small and emerging brands, SimplyDepo is ideal. It helps streamline orders and deliveries, allowing them to grow their business.
Tim SherVP at HC Foods
The Results
With sales and customer activity in one place, HC Foods gave its team more time to work with buyers and a more consistent way to execute store visits. Route optimization and automatic data logging reduced administrative work, while mobile merchandising tools made product information and shelf photos accessible in the field.
40 hours saved per month
Optimizing sales-visit routes and automatically logging data freed about 40 working hours per month across the team. Tim chose to put that time into customer conversations and planned follow-ups.
120% more efficient merchandising
Using SimplyDepo’s merchandising module and mobile app, reps can take shelf photos on the go and access product data in stores. This improved merchandising efficiency and helped increase sales.
30% increase in buyer retention
With less time spent driving and entering data, the sales team could prioritize customer interactions and follow-ups. That stronger focus on existing buyers improved retention.
Summary Metrics
| KPI | Outcome with SimplyDepo |
|---|---|
| Time saved across the sales team | 40 hours per month |
| Merchandising efficiency | 120% more efficient |
| Buyer retention | 30% increase |
| Revenue | 15% increase |
Why It Works
Tim’s reasons for choosing SimplyDepo center on how well the platform fits a food distributor’s day-to-day work:
- A comprehensive view of business processes in one place.
- An intuitive interface that makes sales management easier.
- Pricing that gives small and midsize businesses access to the software.
- A feature set tailored to CPG brands and food distributors.
What’s Next
HC Foods’ goal is to expand into convenience and independent stores while strengthening customer service. With a shared record of sales activity, more efficient visits and time available for follow-ups, the team has a clearer foundation for working toward that goal.
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