CASE STUDY
Duckworth
Is it possible to have high quality apparel that is 100% made-in-USA, fair-trade and also environmentally friendly?
THE CUSTOMER
Duckworth, based in the Northern Rockies of Montana, prides itself on creating single-origin, Merino wool apparel for both men and women. Their “Sheep-to-Shelf” process ensures trust, high quality, and comfort in their products. In addition, as the company is 100 percent US-based – a rarity in the apparel industry – it also supports the local economy. Duckworth is the world’s only source-verifed, single-origin, Merino wool apparel company. 100% Made-in-USA. In their words: “Where your wool grows matters. Where your wool is made matters.”
THE PROBLEM
Prior to using Connex, Duckworth was hand-entering orders into QuickBooks, a cumbersome process that got in the way of expanding their business and serving their customers. To complicate matters further, Duckworth sells their products both on a Shopify site, and also through an Amazon storefront. After they discovered Connex, the team at Duckworth can now focus on what really matters: bringing their high-quality wool apparel to the market.
THE SOLUTION
Daniel’s favorite part of Connex is its trustworthiness. “Connex is like an accountant that you hired. I like that I don’t need to look at it, and I can trust the data that it pulls in. When you can trust your financial information, you can pursue growth in your business.” Daniel’s advice to business owners is to save time through automation. “Any opportunity to automate will pay off. There is no payoff in manual data entry. When you can automate, you can enjoy life. It allows you to work 15-20 hours less per week, and get the same amount of work done.” Thanks to simplifying their accounting, Duckworth has accomplished what few others have in their industry have. In their own words: “Making quality apparel is tough. Making it in the United States is even more difficult. Making quality apparel in the USA out of your own raw materials is so difficult that very few companies even attempt it. This is why we created Duckworth. We rmly believe that the wool we grow is too good to blend with other wool. Like a ne wine, we cultivate and produce a limited amount of wool every year, to be used exclusively for Duckworth apparel. This is Sheep-to-Shelf™” Simplifying accounting to help companies such as Duckworth to thrive in the e-commerce space is one the goals of Sync with Connex. Without automation, businesses would fail to expand sustainably, and locally sourced high-quality merino wool would be out of reach for many consumers. According to Connex CEO & Founder, Joseph Anderson, “No one should type several hundred orders into QuickBooks. We want to help you focus on what you do best: selling your products and services
THE RESULT
Since 2017, Duckworth has used Connex to integrate both their Shopify site and their Amazon storefront with QuickBooks Online. Daniel Mouw, controller at Duckworth, appreciates that he can make high level funancial decisions because he doesn’t need to manually enter data into QuickBooks. “Having Connex easily saves me 15-20 hours a week.” Duckworth takes pride in their Sheep-to-Shelf™ process, which ensures that every step of their supply chain is taken care of. Orchestrating all the steps involves challenges, but Duckworth is confident that it is the best way to deliver the highest quality products to their customers. Their 5th generation ranchers have become experts in creating some of the finest Merino wool in the world. Duckworth is built on a small and passionate team that cares about sustainability and quality. By using Montana wool and keeping their production in the United States, they take thousands of miles out of the conventional global supply chain. It’s not easy, but they take pride in their process, which makes streamline their operation. Automation of data entry into QuickBooks has allowed Duckworth to focus on high-level business decisions, such as designing new product lines and digital marketing strategies to expand their business. “Having proper sales numbers is extremely necessary for running marketing campaigns and working with influencers.
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