I cannot say enough good things about the team at JOOR. There’s so much engagement and the platform is really responsive. Clients are very involved with the product and it’s great to give feedback and work with the JOOR teams
Since using the JOOR platform, we have seen our wholesale business double. JOOR is an invaluable tool that has strengthened our relationships with our retail customers and makes our day-to-day tasks easier and faster.
Zulu & Zephyr is an Australian fashion brand founded in 2012 by sisters Candice and Karla Rose born in the coastal towns of Bondi Beach and Byron Bay. The brand is known for creating beautiful swimwear and ready-to-wear designs for modern women around the world. This case study delves into the impact of JOOR on Zulu & Zephyr’s business and how the digital wholesale platform’s technology extends beyond order management to provide clients with rich insights that drive business growth.
In addition to fundamental wholesale issues related to running a successful global wholesale business, in 2021, Zulu & Zephyr’s wholesale business had outgrown their operational capabilities and they decided to outsource day-to-day operations to an external wholesale sales agency. Zulu & Zephyr now faced the strategic question of whether to continue their partnership with JOOR, which had played such a significant role in their journey from a small, beachside boutique to a global fashion brand. Ultimately, they recognized JOOR’s immense value and decided to continue working with the platform in particular to leverage its powerful reporting capabilities, manage production orders, and optimize DTC assortment planning.
Zulu & Zephyr’s adoption of the JOOR digital wholesale platform allowed them to digitalize their ordering process, and JOOR swiftly became the catalyst that transformed their wholesale operations. Thanks to JOOR, Zulu & Zephyr has become an internationally recognized contemporary brand with over 100 retail partners worldwide.
"JOOR became our source of truth for all our product information. We were able to easily upload all our product images, style information, and sizes to JOOR and then export it to use in our ecommerce shopping experience on Shopify. This innovation not only saved us time but also made sure our offering was aligned across wholesale and DTC channels.” - Mel Colman, General Manager at Zulu & Zephyr
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When Zulu & Zephyr first joined JOOR in 2016, they worked with JOOR’s Data team to set up an integration with Cin7, their ERP warehouse. Establishing this data flow early in their business allowed Zulu & Zephyr to have end-to-end data visibility.
“JOOR's contribution to improving our speed to production has been invaluable. When we adopted JOOR, 80% of our retailers embraced the platform, replacing outdated order spreadsheets with a streamlined digital ordering process. JOOR not only replaced our cumbersome Excel-based system but also revolutionized our production reports, reducing the time taken to produce reports from a week to just a day. This efficiency allowed us to accelerate our production processes, enabling us to fulfill orders a staggering seven times faster than before." - Mel Colman, General Manager at Zulu & Zephyr
JOOR became Zulu & Zephyr's indispensable tool for understanding their market dynamics. By analyzing sales data split by country and retailer, they gained insights into the nuances of each market. The platform empowered them to compare seasonal sales, identify emerging trends, and tailor their offerings regionally.
“JOOR’s production reports gave us the speed and insights we needed to spot a surge in dress sales. These data points allowed us to swiftly make the decision to add more dress options for this season, which paid off big time. We saw a 38% increase in SKU depth from the previous year. Dresses are now our best-selling category, making up a whopping 20% of our buys, which is a significant jump considering we're primarily known for swimwear.” - Mel Colman, General Manager at Zulu & Zephyr
Although Zulu & Zephyr has outsourced their wholesale operations to an external sales agency, JOOR continues to play a pivotal role in planning the assortment for their DTC ecommerce sites and retail flagship store. Zulu & Zephyr’s buyer was able to create retail accounts for each of their doors and shop from their own brand as if they were a third-party retailer. JOOR’s integration with Zulu & Zephyr’s ERP system also allows their buyer to see which items are in stock as they are planning their buy.
The collaboration between Zulu & Zephyr and JOOR underscores the transformative impact of innovative technology for fashion brands.
“JOOR continues to be our essential partner. Our success with implementing JOOR early in our business and having the platform grow with us is a testament to the enduring impact of thoughtful technological investments in the fashion industry.” - Mel Colman, General Manager at Zulu & Zephyr
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