September 4, 2000

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Flower E-Retailer To Launch New Fulfillment System

Hallmark Flowers' system integrates Web business, call center, and inventory

By Beth Bacheldor

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wo days before Mother's Day this year, Hallmark Flowers made an alarming discovery: Its inventory-management system had failed to flag that its stock of yellow roses was too low to fulfill 80 orders already taken-including one from Hallmark Cards Inc. chairman Donald Hall.

Hallmark Flowers scrambled to get the flowers from other sources, and it was able to fill all of its orders. But the near-miss was the impetus for a five-month IT project now under way that will integrate Hallmark Flowers' Web business, call center, and ordering and inventory processes.

The Hallmark division is a new venture undergoing a trial run in five U.S. cities. When the IT integration work is complete early next year, Hallmark plans to roll out its flower-delivery service nationwide.

The integration will let the order-management system instantly check the inventory system when orders come-via the Web, Hallmark's toll-free phone number, or a Hallmark store-to verify that the order can be filled. "The key for us is a continuous, real-time inventory system so we don't take an order on the phone or over the Web that we can't fulfill that night," says Steve Bellis, president of Hallmark Flowers. "That's critical to our business, particularly during high-volume peaks." Hallmark Flowers will take orders until 8:30 p.m. daily and ship arrangements via FedEx service by midnight for next-day delivery.

At the heart of the project is warehouse and inventory-management software from Optum Inc. called Optum Move Demand Center. Hallmark Flowers is also using Yantra Corp.'s order-management software.

The Optum system will also help Hallmark Flowers achieve fast inventory replenishment. While some floral-delivery companies use local flower shops to fulfill orders, Hallmark Flowers has a central warehouse in Memphis, Tenn., and restocks its inventory from flower suppliers worldwide. "We can call on the world's best growers," Bellis says, "and we have ultimate control over the quality of the bouquet."

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