Griet Van Dorp Custom Tailoring
The Challenge
For 10 years, Griet Van Dorpe managed her successful sewing and retouching atelier using a completely manual "paper and gray box" system. This traditional approach reached a breaking point due to:
Administrative Overload: Bookkeeping required a dedicated full day of manual entry every month.
Status Blind Spots: Identifying which garments were physically in the shop versus ready for pickup relied on manual memory and paper tags, leading to a lack of clear overview.
Inefficient Communication: Reminding customers to pick up their items was a time-consuming manual task performed over the phone.
Complexity in Pricing: Managing different VAT rates (6% for retouches vs. 21% for custom work) and special requests without a unified system increased the risk of errors.
The Digifiers Approach
Digifiers acted as a strategic partner to modernize the atelier without losing the personal touch of the business. Utilizing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) strategy, Digifiers focused on high-impact features first, digitalizing the checkout and garment tracking, to ensure a smooth transition for Griet and her team. They provided hands-on support, including hardware research for compatible thermal printers and tablets to ensure the software lived comfortably in a physical shop environment.
The Solution Scope
The implementation successfully unified several business layers into one Odoo environment:
Point of Sale (POS): A visual, tablet-based interface for retail customers, allowing for quick selection of services and manual "free product" entries for unique repairs.
B2B Sales Management: A backend system for business clients (e.g., fashion boutiques) that allows for the creation of sales orders throughout the month, culminating in a single automated collective invoice.
Digital Atelier Instructions: A mobile feature allowing seamstresses to take photos of garments and draw digital annotations for repairs, replacing paper instruction booklets.
Integrated Logistics: Connection to an Epson TM-m30 III printer to generate physical identification tags at the moment of intake.
Accounting Export: Automated daily reception reports and VAT-split exports for seamless import into Exact Online.
The Result & Added Value
Digifiers transformed a traditional paper-based business into a modern, digitally-driven atelier.
Operational Efficiency: The "collective invoicing" and automated reporting features have reclaimed hours of administrative time.
Enhanced Traceability: The digital "rack status" (Waiting, In Processing, Ready, Picked Up) mirrors the physical shop, ensuring nothing is ever lost.
Future-Proofing: While starting with core POS and Sales features, the Odoo foundation allows Griet Van Dorpe to easily add modules like SMS reminders or a webshop as the business continues to grow.
