CGS, a global provider of business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services, today announced that it saw growth in its business and expanded its service offerings in 2020. The disruption in the supply chain caused by the pandemic affected brands and retailers alike, accelerating a digital focus by its applications customers. This propelled CGS to launch enhancements to its solutions, add new partnerships and provide complimentary consulting services to clients. Several brands, manufacturers and retailers also selected its BlueCherry® Enterprise Suite of cloud-based solutions, providing end-to-end supply chain management capabilities for apparel, footwear and consumer lifestyle brands.
In 2020, more than 120 BlueCherry project implementations went live and the company released more than 100 major enhancements and updates across its suite of software offerings. This consisted of eCommerce platform integrations, B2B deployments to aid sales reps and wholesale customers working remotely, product distribution through third-party logistics integration and sourcing process with vendor collaboration tools. Nearly 75 percent of the enhancements were a result of direct feedback from the user community.
“The past year was extremely challenging for all businesses, but fashion, apparel and consumer brands across the retail and wholesale spectrum were confronted with unparalleled disruptions – throughout the supply chain and with the consumer,” said Paul Magel, president, Business Applications division, CGS. “With a focus on assisting our valued customers, we quickly pivoted to offer added benefits to them, providing weekly training sessions and one-on-one consulting at no charge to help them leverage existing features in the products they already were using. Through existing BlueCherry automated features and functions, we were able to assist companies navigate the challenging business climate”
In September, CGS launched its BlueCherry Next™ digital-first supply chain platform for consumer goods companies. Designed to enable intuitive, future-proof business applications for retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers, the omnichannel platform allows companies to accelerate digital transformation at an unmatched speed. The first solution on the platform, BlueCherry Next PLM, enables concept-to-consumer lifecycle to help brands be successful, especially during times of crisis and heightened activity.
CGS also added new partnerships to provide a fully connected supply chain, furthering value to the BlueCherry community. The platform added Island Pacific, BigCommerce, Browzwear, 3D Look,Threekit and Vizoo, among others.
Several of the global brands signing onto BlueCherry in 2020 include Luly Yang, Cambodian Textiles, Eastport Bangladesh, National Safety Apparel and direct-to-consumer brand Prive Revaux. In total, CGS added thousands of new users across its solutions. More than 65 percent of existing customers upgraded or added additional, complementary solutions within the BlueCherry portfolio.
The CGS BlueCherry® Enterprise Suite provides clients with comprehensive digital supply chain management solutions, available both in the cloud and on-premises, to drive their fundamental business processes. With a focus on the needs of high-growth organizations operating in consumer lifestyle products, retail and apparel, BlueCherry is a unified platform that provides supply chain visibility with the latest digital technologies. The BlueCherry Suite addresses the needs of the end-to-end supply chain, from planning and product development to manufacturing and sales.
