Mann Lake Bee & Ag Supply Improves Efficiency, Empowers Expansion

Mann Lake Bee & Ag Supply Improves Efficiency by Automating Accounting and Order Management Processes

When a pair of beekeeping hobbyists started selling supplies out of their garage in the 1980s, they probably didn’t imagine Mann Lake Bee & Ag Supply would be buzzing like it is today. The manufacturer and retail distributor sells to both individual hobbyists and commercial beekeepers and recently expanded into poultry, offering supplies and live birds. Mann Lake aims to become a one-stop shop for everything related to hobby farming.

Company

Mann Lake Bee & Ag Supply

Location

Hackensack, Minn.

Industry

Manufacturing
Retail
Wholesale Distribution

Revenue

$400M

EMPLOYEES

500 to 999

NUMBER OF SUBSIDIARIES

NETSUITE PRODUCTS IMPLEMENTED

NetSuite OneWorld
NetSuite Advanced Manufacturing

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“One of the top reasons we went with NetSuite was to invest money in a system that will continue to grow with us, looking 10-plus years out.” Shana Rowlette, CFO, Mann Lake Bee & Ag Supply

New Workflows for New Ventures

Acquisitions and growing demand fuel growth: Three years ago, Mann Lake kicked off a string of growth initiatives: It partnered with a private equity firm, which provided capital to acquire three businesses and buy a new distribution facility. In 2020, there was an onslaught of interest in beekeeping as a hobby. Mann Lake’s sales orders leaped to 12,000 per week in its busiest season.

Painfully slow processing: To keep up with demand and pursue more acquisitions, leadership determined that Mann Lake needed to move off of its Adagio accounting system. The newly-acquired poultry business involved drop shipping live birds. Running the new workflow in Adagio required receiving purchase orders, creating sales orders and billing customers by hand. Meanwhile, it took 23 team members to manually process customer invoices when demand peaked.

Automating order management and invoicing: When it implemented NetSuite, Mann Lake automated order management. The system automatically generates POs, bills customers, receives invoices and pays vendors, while teams simply enter sales orders and import vendor tracking numbers. The process which once required four people now takes just one. And with accounts receivable automation, the system processes invoices and charges customer credit cards as soon as an order is fulfilled, occupying just three employees.

Perfecting inventory and making acquisitions: Mann Lake plans to sharpen its demand forecasting with NetSuite. With less cash tied up in inventory, the team will invest in product development, manufacturing equipment and employee engagement. With a stronger business system, it also plans to get back into acquisition mode in the next year or so, cementing Mann Lake as the one-stop shop for hobby farmers.