Sunday Afternoons, designer and manufacturer of technical and lifestyle headwear, has selected Centric Cloud Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) to streamline its design and production process.
Sunday Afternoons will be using Centric Cloud, specifically designed with small businesses in mind and available as subscription-based Software as a Service (SaaS). Centric Cloud uses proven industry best practices and intuitive technologies developed from Centric's extensive experience with implementing PLM solutions for larger businesses.
Since 1992, when founders Robbin and Angeline Lacy invented their first product, the Adventure Blanket, Sunday Afternoons has produced an expanding range of hats and accessories for the whole family. Now, more than 20 years later, with rapidly growing distribution in 20 countries, more than 80 unique products and an ongoing transformation in branding, Sunday Afternoons is a family business entering a new phase of growth.
Joey Fallon, Chief Operating Officer at Sunday Afternoons said, “We were living in spreadsheets and email threads, and we needed to streamline efficiencies. Every year it became more complex. We needed to share information in a more friendly and easy-to-use way. We realized that our product developers were spending a lot of time chasing information, and that the problem was the tools we were using. We decided it would be best to put a foundation in place that would allow us to scale the business and support future growth.”
Sunday Afternoons considered a number of PLM solutions, but after hearing of Centric through other satisfied customers, the company investigated further and found that Centric's innovative cloud-based PLM solution would fit its growing business.
“We wanted an economical, turn-key solution,” said Fallon. “Our business is growing into new geographical areas with more distribution points and more products. We knew we needed a PLM solution – but without the cloud, PLM would have been far out of our reach. Additionally, the onboarding process was very straightforward because the Centric platform is so spot-on. It has a really intuitive interface that's based on the web,” said Fallon. “It seemed like a daunting transition for us, but we're looking at the long-term benefits, not a band-aid solution. We know that Centric can scale up as we do.”
Chris Groves, CEO of Centric Software, said, “We're delighted to be working with Sunday Afternoons as one of the pioneer clients of Centric Cloud. We are happy to have innovated an inclusive PLM solution that would give small businesses like Sunday Afternoons access to the same technology and best practices as the big players. We're honored that Sunday Afternoons has chosen us to help streamline its business in this exciting new era of growth.”
Based in Southern Oregon, Sunday Afternoons is a family-owned design and product development house that manufactures hats and accessories. It was one of the first companies in the nation to manufacture SPF-rated sun blocking products. Known for its innovative products, the company expands the boundaries in headwear technology, design, and application. Founders Angeline and Robbin Lacy came up with first product idea, the Adventure Blanket, in 1992, followed by the Adventure Hat—all while doing what they love: being outdoors with their family on Sunday afternoons. The Sunday Afternoons business model includes healthy living, supporting an ecological environment, assisting in third-world improvements, and upholding a positive (and dog-friendly) work environment.
