NJ Rising Stars
Client since: 2019
Uses: Sellercloud, Shipbridge, Skustack
Industry: General Merchandise, Electronics
Founded: 2019
Headquarters: Lakewood, NJ
Company size: 20 employees
Types of items sold: Non-profit organization working with at-risk youths to provide reverse logistics services to several marketplaces and private labels. They primarily handle electronics and consumer goods.
“Two and a half years and we’ve just about doubled our revenues.”
Jacob Stern, CEO, NJ Rising Stars
Before Descartes Sellercloud
NJ Rising Stars is a non-profit 501(c)(3) founded to help at-risk teens. The organization was founded by two fathers with sons outside the school system who wanted to find something different to motivate them. CEO Jacob Stern explains that the goal of NJ Rising Stars is to give teens mentorship, train them, and help them develop skills.
The organization works in the reverse logistics industry, servicing Amazon, Walmart, eBay, and private label sellers with their return needs. They also handle liquidations and resell products on marketplaces.
The Challenge
NJ Rising Stars struggled to manage its inventory. They used to have another inventory system, but it wasn’t suitable for the complexities of their reverse logistics business. The most significant challenge was that they had so many items in their inventory in various conditions. “We have so many items that we lose track sometimes of what we have because of the inventory, quality, and quantity,” explains Backend Manager Fabricio Cabezas. Stern adds that many items have individual SKUs because they are returns.
NJ Rising Stars also struggled to track bin contents. They frequently had to empty entire bins to know what they had and where. They needed a warehouse management system (WMS) to know where everything was at all times and reduce the need for manual inventory checks.
Another time-consuming challenge was cataloging the items they received. Cabezas explains how they needed to search for product information after a new item had been tested and processed. “Once that comes to our listings stage, we find any information that we need regarding what kind of item it is. We search through eBay, we search through Amazon, and we try to get as much information that we can,” said Cabezas.
The Solution
NJ Rising Stars overcame their challenges with Descartes Sellercloud, its WMS module Skustack, and its shipping solution Shipbridge. “We use Sellercloud for pretty much everything,” says Stern. With Descartes Sellercloud, they can manage inventory, create SKUs and listings, and generate reports. With Skustack and Shipbridge, they can pick orders and prepare them for fulfillment.
Descartes Sellercloud’s inventory management features made inaccurate inventory a thing of the past. “It’s amazing how many items you can have in the system, and we can keep and track everything that we need,” said Cabezas.
Descartes Sellercloud improved how NJ Rising Stars managed product information. Most importantly, it enabled them to grade items by quality and list them online in the correct condition. NJ Rising Stars could also use Descartes Sellercloud to copy Amazon listing information to automatically fill out product information, meaning they no longer needed to scour the internet for product information when adding a new item to their catalog.
Stern also told us how he appreciates how customizable Descartes Sellercloud is. “You are really able to pick different features and change things to your liking,” he said. One customization that has been especially useful for NJ Rising Stars is being able to provide clients with logins, enabling them to provide more transparency. Clients can see their inventory, sales reports, and the general workflow at all times. Stern added that clients can only access their own inventory.
NJ Rising Stars also benefited greatly from utilizing Skustack and Shipbridge to optimize warehouse and shipping operations.
“No question, Skustack has been a game changer to what we do here,” said Stern. With Skustack, NJ Rising Stars could now easily pick orders and scan every item in and out of the warehouse to maintain accurate inventory information. They could also finally conduct bin cycle counts and correct their inventory at a bin level.
Stern also praised how easy Skustack is to use, saying it’s “very straightforward.” He mentions how it features an image and basic information about the item on the screen, which makes it easy to find. Considering how many individual SKUs NJ Rising Stars handles, the visual element is very helpful. Cabezas adds that the team uses their Skustack scanners daily for various tasks.
Regarding Shipbridge, it enabled NJ Rising Stars to calculate shipping rates and pick the most convenient option. Furthermore, Stern said it helps prevent many issues by requiring SKUs to be scanned before shipping.
After Sellercloud
Deploying Descartes Sellercloud helped NJ Rising Stars grow their business. “Turning over our inventory, making sure it’s accurate at all times, as well as reports and giving the clients a lens to see what’s going on with their items has definitely helped us grow,” Stern summarized. He added that it has helped them diversify their business and expand to more revenue streams. “Two and a half years and we’ve just about doubled our revenues,” said Stern.
Stern lauded the support NJ Rising Stars has received from Descartes Sellercloud. He tells us how they were able to rely on their account manager when onboarding a big client to ensure they could meet their requirements. Being able to rely on Descartes Sellercloud’s support team is vital for their business. “Running a company the size that we do, things always come up,” said Stern before adding, “the sales support team has always been there for us.”
NJ Rising Stars is positive the business will continue to grow and is excited to see how much more Sellercloud can offer them now that it has joined forces with Descartes. “With all the resources that Descartes has, we’re very excited to see what’s next,” said Stern.
Cabezas cannot fathom how an ecommerce business could function efficiently without the help of Descartes Sellercloud. “I feel like their work is going to be a lot longer and it will probably be messy, and it won’t be organized,” he said.
