Fashion and apparel operate in a complicated environment, often creating and managing hundreds of thousands of Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) per year, or sometimes per season. Such work demands a robust Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) but few in the market support the specific nuances of fashion.

Dynamics 365 is one of the leading ERPs available to fashion brands, and while the platforms are incredibly powerful, they can be tailored further through Microsoft Dynamics 365 Partners and Independent Software Vendors like Nexer and K3 respectively.

Who are Nexer and K3?

Nexer Enterprise Applications (formerly Sigma) is a leading global digital transformation expert specialising in Microsoft Dynamics 365. As a strategic advisor with more than 500 business experts in the Americas, Europe and Asia, Nexer helps its clients’ transition their operations to the cloud. With 24/7 proactive support, brands all over the world choose Nexer as their implementation partner.

The K3 Fashion Portfolio, on the other hand, provides fashion-specific solutions that are natively embedded in the D365 technical landscape to enable brands to handle their entire operations from concept to consumer.

Together, Nexer and K3 have revolutionised ERP environments for countless clients… like The Regatta Group. Speaking on the collaboration between Nexer and K3, Colin Crow, Managing Director, Nexer Enterprise Applications UK, said:

“The partnership with K3 and specifically its retail ISV add-on to Dynamics has brought significant benefits to Regatta who can, for the first time, run their entire business on one integrated system. This gives them visibility of their business from all angles making buying, selling, stock quantity, and pricing decisions in a much more effective way.  Nexer really values the partnership with K3 and Regatta as a client.”

Sunsetting an Esoteric System

The Regatta Group has over 2,500 employees across 16 countries, and offices and distribution centres across the world. In recent years, it set out to level up its mission-critical IT infrastructure to match its status as an industry leader and elevate its business operations.

The business first embarked on its multi-million-pound digital transformation project with Nexer five years ago. After investing in a new distribution centre and head office, the business turned its attention to enhancing its ERP systems.

Prior to this, the business had been operating with a legacy system that was developed and managed by a small group of colleagues.

The historic system had gradually expanded, with new functionalities being built onto it to accommodate the evolving needs of the business. But as the Group continued to go from strength to strength, this patchwork system began to bring its own set of challenges.

To prevent the esoteric system from stalling business operations and inhibiting growth, it quickly became clear to The Regatta Group that it needed to overhaul its IT operations entirely and implement a system fit for the future of the thriving business. But with the Group operating on both a wholesale and direct-to-consumer basis, and changes needing to be adopted across 16 different countries, this was set to be a complex undertaking.

Engaging Nexer and K3

The Regatta Group commissioned Nexer in 2019 to business solution, managing the analysis, build, testing, and project management stages of software implementation. It was the Group’s first time working with external consultants on a transformation project, but the team was assured by Nexer’s global expertise and reputation.

Nexer implemented Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations, providing Regatta with a trusted, industry-standard solution that they could build upon and tailor to their unique business needs. The software delivered integrated ERP and CRM functionalities to help streamline and simplify Regatta’s processes across sales, customer service, marketing, finance, and operations. Nexer also introduced Microsoft Business Intelligence systems to facilitate cloud-to-cloud migration and align with Microsoft’s integrated software ecosystem.

Meanwhile, K3 Fashion was chosen to support Regatta’s outdoor clothing line as a concept-to-consumer solution seamlessly embedded in D365 Finance & Operations. With comprehensive support across the full fashion lifecycle, paired with its intuitive nature and ‘One Microsoft’ approach, it made sense to adopt a best-in-suite solution that would scale with Regatta.

Following the initial implementation, Nexer provided post-live support to The Regatta Group. Amid the peak of the 2023’s retail ‘golden quarter’, the Group chose to transition to Nexer’s Care365 service to receive seamless ongoing support and ensure they were maximising the new systems to their full potential.

Care365 takes a customised, people-first approach to delivering Microsoft Dynamics 365 post-live support, maintenance, and optimisation, helping to meet evolving operational needs and leverage new features to generate business benefits. By accessing the service, The Regatta Group can raise queries for quick resolutions, and Nexer also speaks directly to Microsoft on the Group’s behalf to handle more complex technical issues.

Doing More with Less

In the spirit of living up to Microsoft’s adage of “do more with less”, both Nexer and K3 firmly believe in empowering fashion brands with technology that facilitates smarter working – not harder.

Following the successful rollout of D365 Finance & Operations and K3 Fashion, legacy systems that limit access to valuable business insights and inhibit growth are a thing of the past for The Regatta Group. As a result of long-term collaboration with Nexer, the Group has successfully overhauled its IT ecosystem and transformed its operations to meet future demands.

Chris Bulmer, Consultant Director (AI and Automation) and former Group IT Director at The Regatta Group, who oversaw the project, commented:

“The Microsoft implementation project was a major milestone for The Regatta Group. Implementing Microsoft solutions has enabled us to consolidate our international operations, access more detailed reporting, and work smarter.

“We knew that Nexer had the expertise to execute the job, and working with the technical team in recent years has proven we made the right choice. It's clear that the team genuinely care and is invested in our business – they know our operations inside out and clearly want the best for us.”

Through Care365, Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power BI will continue to work hard for the Group and empower its employees to work smarter. The group is now also exploring other functionalities as part of the integrated freedom it now enjoys through the Microsoft ecosystem.

Speaking on the decision to choose K3, Chris added:

“The Regatta-centric positioning of K3 highlighted how the new system would benefit us, with particular focus on K3 Fashion’s purpose-built nature for fashion and apparel. K3 has a strong track record in the outdoor fashion market, and it was clear to us that there was only choice – especially with the solution being fully embedded in D365.”

Discover more about how Nexer and K3 can overhaul your brand’s IT infrastructure at www.k3btg.com