Introduction
Lazurd, a leading name in Kuwait‘s Food and Catering Industry, faced growing challenges as their business expanded. Managing operations across four companies – catering, pastry, diet centers, and food delivery – they needed a robust and unified system to improve efficiency and enhance data visibility. Their solution? Implementing Odoo Catering Solution and Odoo Diet Center Solution with the help of Azkatech – Odoo Gold Partner to revolutionize their operations and drive sustainable growth.
About Al Arbashi Group
Established in Kuwait, Al Arbashi Group is a comprehensive food and catering company serving both private clients and large-scale institutional contracts, such as government tenders. Their services include event catering, diet meal subscriptions, and daily food delivery, spanning across four major brands:
Abhar Catering: Specializes in institutional catering, event services, and large-scale meal preparation.
Lazurd: Offers premium chocolates, pastries, and sweet delicacies.
I Love Food: Provides personalized meal plans for health-conscious customers and diet center subscriptions.
Lazurd Express: Focuses on hot meal delivery, catering to daily online customer orders.
With over 32 users managing inventory, sales, procurement, manufacturing, and accounting, Al Arbashi Group aimed to bring all operations under one system.
Challenges and the Need for Change
Before implementing Odoo ERP, Lazurd used a combination of Foodics, a cloud-based PoS system, Excel sheets, and Paper records to track inventory, sales, and accounting. As their business grew, this led to several challenges:
Fragmented Processes: Managing multiple operations across different tools was inefficient and made decision-making slower.
Manual Data Entry: Data was spread across various systems, requiring time-consuming manual updates and reconciliations.
Lack of Real-Time Insights: Tracking inventory, sales, and finances was cumbersome, with limited visibility across divisions.
The company’s rapid growth called for an integrated system that could not only cover all business needs but also provide data visualization, enhance reporting, and improve department communication.
Choosing Odoo ERP Catering Solution
Al Arbashi Group chose Odoo ERP for its flexibility, user-friendly interface, and ability to handle end-to-end business needs within a unified platform. The primary goals for the ERP implementation included:
Centralizing Operations: Bringing inventory, procurement, sales, accounting, and manufacturing under one umbrella.
Enhancing Communication and Transparency: Improving interdepartmental collaboration and ensuring real-time data access.
Automating Workflows: Reducing manual effort and eliminating redundant processes.
Implementation Process
With Azkatech, an experienced Odoo Gold Partner, Al Arbashi Group embarked on their digital transformation journey, focusing on the following key processes:
1. Sales
Custom modules were developed to create printable sales orders tailored to Lazurd catering and diet center operations.
2. Procurement & Inventory
Implemented multi-location inventory management to separate procurement needs for the store (main ingredients) and the kitchen (daily production needs).
Enhanced stock management by allowing chefs to order missing ingredients directly from the store and tracking goods through stock transfer orders (STOs) and delivery orders (DOs).
Established efficient inventory tracking with sub-locations for each type of product (cold storage, hot kitchen, bakery), ensuring accuracy in stock availability.
3. Accounting & Finance
Automated the generation of financial reports in Arabic, tailored for the company’s needs.
Set up a single currency (Kuwaiti Dinar) accounting system, with divisions based on each brand’s financials (Abhar, Lazurd, I Love Food, Lazurd Express).
Implemented Bill of Materials (BOMs) and scrap operations to account for food waste, ensuring accurate inventory valuation and cost control.
4. Manufacturing
The manufacturing process was optimized by setting up BOMs for each product type, creating workflows for semi-finished items (ingredients prepared for use) and final products (ready-to-serve meals), with the ability to track and adjust based on changing production needs.
Results & Benefits
Since the Odoo ERP implementation, Al Arbashi Group has seen remarkable improvements in their business operations, including:
Unified & Streamlined Operations: All aspects of the business – from catering sales to diet plan subscriptions – are managed seamlessly within one platform, reducing manual errors and redundancies.
Enhanced Data Visibility & Reporting: Real-time insights into inventory, sales performance, and financials enable data-driven decision-making and better business forecasting.
Improved Efficiency in Procurement & Manufacturing: Centralized procurement processes, inventory sub-locations, and manufacturing workflows led to faster order fulfillment and better stock control.
Cost and Resource Optimization: Tracking profitability per project and minimizing waste through scrap operations have improved overall profitability.
What Made the Difference: Azkatech‘s Role
Azkatech’s deep expertise in business operations and Odoo solutions ensured that:
Customization was spot-on: All requirements were met with flexibility, creating a solution that not only met current needs but also anticipated future challenges.
Best Practices were Applied: Suggestions from the implementation team helped Al Arbashi adopt industry best practices and streamline processes they hadn’t initially considered.
End-to-End Problem Solving: Solutions were comprehensive, addressing any issues across the board without introducing new problems in other areas.
Effective Training: Staff were trained to confidently operate Odoo, ensuring quick adoption and smooth day-to-day usage.
Conclusion
The transformation with Odoo ERP Catering Solution has enabled Al Arbashi Group to scale their operations efficiently, provide exceptional service to their clients, and maintain their leadership in Kuwait’s food catering and diet center market.
Their journey showcases how the right ERP solution can not only solve immediate business challenges but also pave the way for future growth and success.
If your business is looking to transform its operations like Al Arbashi Group, consider Odoo ERP – the flexible, scalable solution for every business need. Contact Us Now
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