Fully integrated real-time business system gives California Pacific VW Parts & Accessories a competitive edge

When Gary Vogl went searching for an accounting package to help run his California Pacific VW Parts & Accessories company, he could turn to his sisters and father for advice. His sisters are all in the computer business and his father wrote the inventory control system that was later adopted by one of the largest department store chains in the United States. With that collective family knowledge at his disposal, Vogl ended up selecting Vigilant.

"When we bought this business, we installed a computer network the same day. Then I wanted an accounting package that was user friendly and required a minimum number of keystrokes to input info," Vogl explains. "Also, I wanted something that could handle purchase orders right at the cash."

California Pacific VW Parts for the most part sell Volkswagen parts and accessories to restore or customize old Volkswagen Beetles or Karmann Ghias. They offer the largest selection of VW interior restoration kits in the industry. It offers buyers a huge selection of colors and fabrics for seat upholstery, door panels, headliners and carpets. Exterior bumpers, "bras" to protect the hood, brake pedals, steering wheels, gearshifts, seat belts, and car covers are among over 8,100 items Vogl carries in stock. And as their Web site promises, customers who call in from anywhere in the nation for a part will have it shipped out to them that same business day. To aid him in this endeavor, Vigilant efficiently handles mail and phone orders through the Sales Order program that Vogl makes use of. When an order is taken, stock is committed and back orders are tracked, ensuring that no sale goes unfulfilled. Vogl is also contemplating his future with eCommerce using the Vigilant Web-interface to its Sales Order product.

Small wonder California Pacific needs an efficient purchase order system to keep its inventories current. And in Vigilant it has one. The Purchase Order gives Gary's business fine control over its purchasing and receiving. "From a bookkeeping point of view, Vigilant's auto-generation of purchase orders makes our business much more efficient," asserts Gary Vogl. "We can pick out specific vendors and a specific time we order from them, say once a week, or even on certain days like every Monday and Wednesday. And Vigilant automatically generates the order and inserts it into all the appropriate accounts in our books."

For each individual order, Vigilant will automatically display any discount the vendor offers. If the vendor sells something that is measured in foreign units, the amount is converted to California Pacific's accustomed units. It will add extra charges such as freight to the vendor's invoice and charge landing costs during receipt. Vigilant will print price labels to be placed on the goods as they pass into the parts inventory. At the same time, Purchase Order posts receipts to the accrued ayable account when the ordered items arrive, then reverses the account when California Pacific receives the vendor's invoice. It's just the kind of automated in-and-out processing that, according to Vogl, California Pacific VW Parts & Accessories needs to stay on track and a car length or two ahead of the competition. "The fact that with Vigilant we can also combine our order entry with our retail sales in one system is also a very great help," he states. "In our business we need fast processing of payments."

"Vigilant's Purchase Order has been a boon to our business."