Fast-growing fashion merchandising company 99K Limited has selected Centric Software‘s Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solution for emerging brands, Centric SMB. Centric Software provides the most innovative enterprise solutions to plan, design, develop, source and sell products such as apparel, footwear, sporting goods, furniture, home décor, cosmetics, food & beverage and luxury to achieve strategic and operational digital transformation goals.
Founded in 2018 under parent company Momokrom — an independent online denim brand and wholesaler — Manchester-based 99K Limited is a fashion merchandising company supporting various large clothing retailers worldwide with product design, development and production. Thanks to its ethos of tireless commitment and passion, the company has grown exponentially in the relatively short time it has been operating.
Product Manager Mo Lin explains that one of the company’s biggest business challenges is keeping up with the fast-paced, ever-changing fashion industry, in particular the complications associated with the global pandemic. “Like all industries, manufacturing, freight and sales have been greatly affected by COVID-19,” she says. “Planning is almost impossible, and we are now forced to learn to adapt and react quickly to a constantly changing macro environment.”
As 99K Limited outgrew its existing systems, it became clear that a PLM tool was necessary to ensure smooth, efficient product development and to enable all team members to be clear on their duties and responsibilities. “Without PLM, we constantly came across miscommunication issues that led to poor products and service,” says Lin.
Many of 99K Limited’s customers seek solutions to leave a smaller carbon footprint, and the company responds to this by lessening its environmental impact with sourcing organic and recycled cotton; moving a large ratio of its production to sustainable cotton mills; and sourcing recycled polyester and nylon. With the introduction of Centric SMB, the business will gain greater visibility across product ranges that will help it to track projects such as its Organic Cotton Range, and PLM will also aid the business to track material surplus and aim for zero waste.
As well as expecting to see its production rejection rate to drop to 0 and its design rate increase by 20-30%, the company predicts that it will save hours of staff time per week by replacing outdated communication and data storage methods.
“We hope to smooth out a lot of obstacles along the way with Centric SMB. The managerial aspect of PLM will be of great help and we look forward to saving time on communication with suppliers and reducing errors in the production,” explains Lin.
As a forward-thinking business, 99K Limited is constantly striving to find the newest systems and the best platforms to ensure the most efficient communication. The company was drawn to the sophistication of Centric SMB as a PLM platform covering every aspect it would need, as well as the impressive customer base of Centric Software.
“We are delighted to be working with 99K Limited to support its exciting company growth,” comments Chris Groves, President and CEO of Centric Software. “We are thrilled to have teamed up with such a fast-growing and entrepreneurial business and look forward to partnering with them on their transformation journey.”
