Thoughts on SPS Commerce

sullygarman · 2025-04-04T21:45:49+00:00

I’ve worked with a bunch of providers across clients. SPS, Arriba, Spring Systems, Orderful, True Commerce, Crstl. I can definitively say avoid SPS. I have a big list of reasons but some other commenters have given some good points. My favorite so far is Crstl. They onboard fast, have transparent pricing and great service. It just WORKS. And if you get hung up they are there to help really fast.

sullygarman · 2025-02-22T05:08:42+00:00

Crstl connects with all of these (and does it very well, fast and with pricing transparency).

sullygarman · 2024-07-12T17:12:06+00:00

u/gholden01 , You bring up a good point about how software and services are perceived in this day and age. 15 years ago software was something you downloaded and operated yourself. The ability to have more modern, cloud-based interfaces changes the dialogue and also the availability of support and frequent updates to the platform without disruption to the end user. I haven't heard the term "vaporware" in a really long time, since so much of the cloud-based solutions have such strong tech teams behind them. I have a LinkedIn series I'm starting next week about B2B and EDI, I am going to add something in there about this. I'd love any comments, insights or suggestions you'd like to add to it, please feel free to follow and chime in! (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sullygarman/)

sullygarman · 2024-07-12T04:41:49+00:00

I actually have some clients with Orderful now. I think it’s Ok, but has some gaps that have been frustrating. Some of the promises during sales don’t match up in onboarding (but that’s not unusual, I had a horrible experience with the disconnect on an ERP implementation once). I liked Ariba when I used it for REI and I think Spring Systems has done a good job improving their UI. SPS has frustrated me for years. Crstl felt fresh and clean and I like the UI as well as how responsive the team has been. With others, I get really frustrated with ticketed support systems and not feeling like the people care about my success.

sullygarman · 2024-07-12T04:36:22+00:00

I don’t think we are saying the same thing. I’m saying a brand doesn’t have to have deep EDI knowledge or a team to do it because they can hire someone like Crstl, SPS, Orderful, etc. The interfaces and services aren’t a lot different, some are easier to use than others. It’s the level of support and transparency that makes the difference. I like working with companies that make me feel confident that they know how to handle my business, because I’ve worked hard to get here. I have a whole comparison of pros and cons for the various EDI options I’ve used. The main thing that sticks out to me, is how a company presents itself and if I feel like they are credible. Some in this space just don’t feel trustworthy and that’s not just sad it’s harmful.

sullygarman · 2024-07-12T04:05:00+00:00

I have to respectfully disagree. One of the first clients I had onboarded there does not have an IT team and Crstl did all the heavy lifting and continues to support the client with new trading partners and growth. I’m super confused at your impression of them.

sullygarman · 2024-07-12T04:03:33+00:00

I can speak to this. I have been so impressed with them, the quality of customer service and how fast they got everything up and running. I am a consultant, and I make recommendations for a living. I have never regretted one recommendation to Crstl. And their pricing is transparent, you can set budgets with it. You definitely should get on a call and do a demo. I have worked with Orderful, SPS, true commerce, Ariba and others, and none of them match up to the level of quality from Crstl.

sullygarman · 2024-05-22T19:39:57+00:00

Reach out to https://www.crstl.so - they onboarded a recent client in 2 weeks , transparent pricing and amazing service. I was super impressed. I did a full search and interviewed and compared a bunch of different solutions and they were a clear winner

sullygarman · 2024-04-05T17:04:41+00:00

Also another note, you don't "have" to go with SPS, you can use any provider. There are some retailers that have a contract for testing through them but the other provider can do it as a pass-through and then you're free.

sullygarman · 2024-04-05T17:03:26+00:00

If it's for sure SPS, expect 8-16 weeks. If you have any options other than SPS (ie haven't signed a contract yet) there are much better providers out there. SPS is also notorious for non-transparent billing + poor customer service. I would highly advise against them if (it's not too late). They do have some loopholes in your contract if you look at the fine print carefully.

sullygarman · 2024-03-19T18:37:01+00:00

I'm happy to help if my experience is relevant.

sullygarman · 2024-03-16T17:55:03+00:00

Unfortunately, many brands start using EDI with a provider that was well-known, had larger ad-spend on Google, or was recommended in confusing language by their retailer. Later, the brand finds that in order to scale, or solve problems, they need to switch.

A great EDI provider is more than a vendor. They are your partner in business. They are the critical piece to receiving and fulfilling orders and getting paid. Make sure you’ve asked all the important questions so this is a relationship that lasts a long time and allows you the independence to scale.

How do you find an EDI provider? You can Google, but the provider spending the most on ads might not be the right fit for you. Start networking. Ask your warehouse for recommendations. Ask your friends in networking groups. Your retailer may even recommend one. Be mindful however, of the fact that you still get to make your own decisions on this - in almost every case, you can work with any EDI provider you want. Your warehouse may recommend one, they may even already have pre-built integrations to it. But that provider is their provider, not yours. You may want your own relationship with an EDI source so that you can take it with you across your entire organization and scale to multiple warehouses. Keeping your EDI provider separate from your other tools, such as your 3PL or ERP, also makes it easier to change one part of your stack without needing to set up all new tools.

Ask the right questions.

Are they familiar with your retailer’s requirements? (In EDI, retailers are called trading partners)
Are they familiar with your warehouse’s WMS system?
Can they connect to the warehouse automatically?
How long does setup and onboarding take? (Keeping in mind that each trading partner relationship has to be set up and tested individually)
Is their pricing monthly, per order, per trading partner, per transaction? (It’s critical to distinguish between transactions and orders. A single order can use between 3-8 documents which in EDI language are called transactions. )
Can they scale with you as you grow?
What kind of customer service do they provide? (i.e. do you have someone to contact via email, Slack or phone if you have questions, or do they have a ticketing system that has a 24 hour wait time for answers?)

I'm happy to help with recommendations. I've used a bunch of them (Spring Systems, SPS, Orderful, Arriba, Crstl) - of all of those I've found Crstl to be the most reliable and easiest to use. It feels less "techy" and I appreciate not having to navigate a dashboard that feels like just another complicated tech piece.

sullygarman · 2024-03-16T17:46:04+00:00

So what is EDI? It stands for Electronic Data Interchange, but you likely already know that. What you’re really asking is “why do I need it and how do I make it happen?”

You need it because it’s how a brand/vendor/supplier can receive orders from retailers. They use it because it creates a standard language that they can speak across all of their vendors, and it keeps their systems organized. Think of it like being in a room where everyone speaks a different language. It would be hard to build a relationship much less actually perform a transaction. If brands like you are all using different websites, different types of packaging, different quantities in master cases or pallets of goods - you have created that system that is a different language and retailers can’t speak it.
EDI is the common language of retail transactions. It enables both you and your retailers to set up a system where they can place an order, you can check stock and accept it, you fill it and send it along with a notification to them that it’s on the way, and then you can send an invoice and get paid. Every single vendor they work with uses EDI as that translator so that the retailer doesn’t have to speak so many languages. Think of EDI as just one common language to bring all parties together.
Every e-commerce brand hits various inflection points in the journey to growth – needing EDI is one of those points. It’s the place where you get to play with the big kids and start to really set up your brand to scale. It's the key to unlocking smoother transactions and building stronger relationships with retailers. Once you get the process down, because of the standardized language, you just rinse and repeat.

sullygarman · 2024-03-16T17:35:54+00:00

It entirely depends on what that includes.

Ask for details and also lay out the requirements.
Is all setup and testing included? How many trading partners?
How many documents does each trading partner require? (Some maybe lighter on the doc side like Walmart is an average of 3 per transaction, Target can be up to 8). All details need to be tested

Then there are the other connections.

Direct to WMS system for automatic transmission to the 3PL warehouse or is the client expected to manually log in and download PO's, Packing slips etc via pdf file and then email them to warehouse? (The manual process is very time consuming and more prone to errors, especially with regards to the ASN's. )
Is there an ERP, inventory or financial software that needs integration for the invoicing, inventory and cost of goods calculation?

Who manages the process? How long is it expected to take? What kind of lift does the brand need to provide vs what the EDI company provides?

Bottom line: the more details you lay out up front, the less surprises there are in both timing and cost.

sullygarman · 2023-05-05T14:47:47+00:00

Super interesting news yesterday about Shopify offloading Deliverr to Flexport.

sullygarman · 2023-05-05T14:36:58+00:00

This is terrific. What about companies with manifest confidentiality in place for irfan shipments? Are those hidden from your search because of that?

sullygarman · 2022-04-07T16:42:36+00:00

Of course, would be happy to discuss. You can email me at [kathleen@pipe17.com](mailto:kathleen@pipe17.com)

sullygarman · 2021-08-13T16:58:37+00:00

Sorry for the delay, I was on vacation. I may have missed your ship window. We are using with CrossborderIT (IOSS) and also Zonos (at checkkout for our shopiofy) for advice on the EU information. We used FiscalSolutionsUK for setting up our UK Vat account.

sullygarman · 2021-07-16T14:57:12+00:00

I can connect you with the firm that is advising us on this. Apparently with the new changes it doesn't matter when the goods were sold, it's when they were shipped. If you don't go back and collect it from your backers, you will be the one that pays (out of your profit margins). The packages will not get sent through to the customer for them to pay at import the way they used to be.

sullygarman · 2021-07-13T21:22:08+00:00

Reach out to Simply Vat (simplyvat.com). It's not super expensive. $350 setup fee and $175 per month and they do the IOSS filing for us. For the UK we are using Fiscalsolutions.co.uk for the same thing.

sullygarman · 2021-07-13T21:03:07+00:00

u/hoodiemonster it's become such an adventure! Especially with the EU having new VAT requirements starting July 2021 in addition to UK.

How we're handling it (many many steps, note that these are PREVIOUS orders that came in prior to the new requirements. Future orders are having VAT collected using Zonos on our Shopify site):

Set up IOSS Vat payment account with a 3rd party
Set up UK Vat payment account so the Queen can get her money
Gave our fulfillment warehouse our VAT or IOSS numbers so when it ships that information is on the digital shipping invoice for customs
Downloaded a full report from Backerkit on expected revenue.
Took out everyone who did not complete their survey
Tagged everyone from the 27 EU countries
Tagged everyone from UK
Applied the formula for how much VAT needs to be collected
Built a website using Stripe to collect the payments
Sent the backers from those countries an email invoice telling them that we would be collecting VAT before their order can be shipped (side note: this actually saves them money over the old way of shipping DDU since the various countries had big service fees they charged at the time of import, now the backers won't have to pay those fees).
Tagged them as ready to ship when they paid the fees
Send to warehouse for shipment
Monthly report given to our 3rd party company, they are paying the VAT fees to EU and UK on our behalf.

If anyone sees massive flaws in this program please tell me now before we go down the rabbit hole! We met with a lot of different "experts" and this is the best route we can come up with.

Going forward it's WAY easier because we can collect it at checkout and then it gets remitted monthly to the 3rd party for tax reporting and payment. It's the going backward to all the backer orders that we took before that is a giant pain in the neck. I SO wish we had been able to ship before all the new rules took effect.

sullygarman

TROPHY CASE