Building Systems for the Future (and Saving a Few Bucks Along the Way)
We’ve been making a lot of flavour forward decisions lately, and not just in the kitchen.
Behind the scenes at Wild West Gourmet, we’ve quietly been implementing a new system to help us run our business smarter, more sustainably, and in a way that sets us up for long-term growth. The system is called Odoo, and while that might sound a little dry, what it’s doing for our food business is anything but.
We didn’t go into this looking to reinvent the wheel, but we did want to simplify how we manage everything from compliance to marketing campaigns. For those who don’t know, Odoo is an open-source suite of business apps, kind of like having your own digital control centre, and for us, it’s helping to streamline:
- Food safety and traceability (our top priority)
- Supplier management (no more paper trails!)
- Accounting and invoicing
- Email marketing and campaign tracking, and
- Social media scheduling.
We’re rolling it out bit by bit, starting with the essentials (like compliance), and gradually adding in tools as we go. It’s not a mad dash, more like a well paced trot. But even early on, it’s been well worth the effort.
Why now?
With the cost of living still a huge pressure for households and businesses alike, we understand how it might seem counterintuitive to invest in new systems. But here’s the thing: for us, this isn’t a short term spend, it’s a long-term saving.
When we sat down and looked at all the subscriptions we were juggling — Mailchimp, Xero, POS systems, various digital tools — it became clear very quickly that consolidating them under one platform would save us thousands per year. And that’s before we even migrate our website, which we’ll be doing soon.
It’s not just about saving money though. It’s also about reducing mental load, simplifying our workflow, and being able to see the whole picture of our business in one place. We’re a small team (read: two people and three cats, and the latter aren’t much help), so having smart systems behind us is like having another set of hands — just without the need to feed it lunch, and open, and close, and open, and close the door (IYKYK – cats, am I right?!).
Thinking ahead
While Wild West Gourmet is very much a passion project for us now, we also know the importance of building a business that’s appealing to others. That could be future investors, future collaborators, or even a future buyer down the track.
Putting good systems in place now means that we’re not just making our lives easier, we’re creating something that is structured, scalable, and saleable. It also means that when growth opportunities come knocking, and they do, we’re ready.
And most importantly?
We’re enjoying the process. Yes, even the tutorials (Jose Ignacio is one of our faves), and troubleshooting. There’s something really satisfying about learning new things that make your business better, especially when it gives you back time to focus on what you really care about, which is of course making delicious things that people love.
So, if you’ve been thinking about tightening up your systems or exploring more efficient tools for your business, consider this your gentle nudge. It doesn’t all have to be done at once. But a few small changes now can lead to big wins later.
If you’re interested in knowing more about Odoo and how it might fit your business, click here to contact Graeme. He can talk with you to see if it’s right for you!