At Voxel we have been helping hundreds of companies to digitise their value chain for over 20 years. If in addition to using the calculator you want to see how other companies have done it, access our success stories. In these stories, you will also be able to see the tangible benefits that other companies have achieved.

Efficient stock management is vital in the foodservice and hospitality sectors, yet until recently it remained one of the industry’s biggest challenges. As a study published by Storyous in 2018 showed, the majority of stock management solutions implemented in Spanish foodservice companies had barely been updated in the last 20 years, and this prevented technological innovation from really translating into competitive advantages.

Two years later, we have seen how digitalisation has positioned itself as one of the main levers to emerge stronger from the crisis, as explained by representatives of leading companies in the sector in a previous article on the trends we will see this year in the hospitality and distribution sector.

Fortunately, there are many companies that have already opted for the latest technological innovations to improve their stock management and related processes. Below we will look at some of the challenges that restaurants, hotels and other companies in the sector have faced, how they have solved them and what results they have obtained in relation to the digitisation of stock management.

Inventory management: challenges, solutions and benefits

One of the main challenges that businesses face when it comes to stock management is stock control: managing incoming goods and dealing with the associated documentation (delivery notes, orders), as well as resolving any discrepancies that may arise in the process.

The manual receipt of goods was one of the main problems UDON wanted to address before digitising the process. “The workers in the establishments had to check and register the new goods manually and from the paper delivery notes, a process that, in addition to requiring time, led to errors and incidents causing setbacks in the day-to-day running of the restaurants”, explained the Asian restaurant chain.

To overcome these setbacks, UDON digitised the issuing of orders and the receipt of delivery notes and invoices with baVel. With all these transactions 100% digitised, they were able to easily digitise and automate stock management through a proprietary portal.

Find all the information about automated stock management in UDON restaurants here.

Selenta has implemented something similar, which thanks to the combination of three technology partners – baVel, SAP and MOBBA – even avoids discrepancies in goods returns, which are done in real time. This is how Selenta Group digitalises its procurement process.

Sighore-ICS, a company that has been offering IT solutions for the hotel and catering industry for more than 25 years, has observed that the poor management of delivery notes has a direct impact on the control of raw materials in restaurants and hotels. This mismanagement can have an impact of up to 4% on the cost of the final product, which in these sectors can mean profit or no profit.

With the aim of offering a solution for all its clients, Sighore has teamed up with baVel to achieve a 100% digitised front and back office in the catering and hotel sector. In addition to an exhaustive control of their stocks, it has been observed that thanks to the technology, companies can register savings of up to 8% of their purchasing volume.

Reference control is also important

In companies with a high volume of products, the manual equivalence of references is a distorting element for efficient stock management. This is the case of Dino, a distributor of cleaning, hygiene and industrial maintenance products and articles made up of 26 independent franchisees operating in different parts of Spain. Before embarking on a digitalisation project, its team had to carry out manual equivalence work on more than 4,000 references, which, in addition to taking time, also meant errors and discrepancies.

After digitising the communication between customer – distributor – franchisee with order, delivery note and invoice through baVel, Dino not only managed to automate the manual work, but can now also carry out exhaustive analyses of the weight of each customer, for subsequent price negotiation. Read all the details of the digitisation of the supply chain of the Dino distributor and its franchisees here.

Modular solutions to digitise your back office

Inventory management is only one part of the entire value chain. Other processes that are often manual and the result of inefficiencies and ineffectiveness are orders, scandals, invoicing (issuing, reception, reconciliation…), internal invoice approval flows, electronic payments, connection with public administrations…

baVel is a technological solution that offers 100% digitisation of the back office of catering businesses through modular solutions that adapt to the reality of each business.

If you want to know how we can help you to digitalise your business, please contact us at info@voxelgroup.net.

Discover how Novum Hospitality has digitized 100% of invoices through baVel

Novum Hospitality is one of the largest hotel chains in Germany with more than 180 hotels and 24,900 hotel rooms. In 2017, Novum Hospitality realizes that its invoicing process has inefficiencies mainly derived from manual invoice management.

The administrative team faces a heavy manual workload to process invoices, which often results in errors, poor time management and even lost invoices.

Facing this situation, Novum Hospitality decides to automate and digitize the submission of 100% of invoices via baVel, the electronic invoicing platform of Voxel Group. Its main objective is to be able to send all invoices automatically to all their clients, B2B and B2C, and with the public administrations (B2G), complying with the legal requirements of each of them in each country.

Thanks to the digitization of baVel, Novum Hospitality has been able to increase the invoicing volume without the need to increase the management team. In addition, reconciliation and automation have allowed them to eliminate manual tasks, reduce errors, losses and shorten the average collection time.

baVel also has allowed them to comply with the legislation of each country and maintain a digital archive for each of them, contributing to saving paper.

Discover all the benefits that baVel has brought to Novum Hospitality reading the complete case study:

You can find out more success stories of leading companies in the sector with baVel here.

Discover how RIU Hotels & Resorts has digitized its supply process in Spain and the Dominican Republic via baVel

After digitizing the issuance of B2B invoices with baVel, RIU’s team decided to streamline its supply process in Spain. The hotel chain wanted to eliminate the repetitive work derived from managing purchase orders, delivery notes and invoices manually. A process that often results in errors and a non-value-added workload for the administrative team.

Facing this situation, RIU decides to digitize the issuance and reception of purchase orders and the reconciliation of invoices via baVel, the electronic invoicing platform of Voxel Group. Its main objective is to connect electronically with suppliers and automatically reconcile the invoice with the delivery note, without the need for manual intervention.

Thanks to baVel, RIU was capable of increasing the number of suppliers and the volume of transactions processed, without the need to increase the administrative team. In addition, automation has made it possible to eliminate errors and redistribute the functions of the management team to tasks with more added value.

Currently, RIU and baVel are working together to digitize the supply chain of their hotels in the Dominican Republic.

Read the full success story and find out the savings figures here:

You can find more success stories of leading companies in the sector with baVel here.

In 2016, UDON, the Asian restaurant chain leader in Spain and Portugal, decides to redefine the internal processes to centralise and streamline the stock control of its restaurants. 

UDON realises that the stock management needs more traceability and digitization, as up until now the merchandise control is done manually and using a physical delivery note. 

Facing this situation, UDON decides to digitize the submission of purchase orders and invoice and delivery notes reception via baVel, the electronic invoicing platform of Voxel Group. The main objective is to electronically connect with its suppliers and automatically manage the stock. 

Thanks to baVel’s automation and digitization, UDON is capable of managing purchase orders, delivery notes and invoices without manual intervention. The electronic connection with its suppliers allowed them to dramatically reduce errors and incidents and, at the same time, improve the relationship with its users. 

Do you want to know how UDON opened 12 new businesses without increasing the team? Read the case study here:

Also, you can find more examples of process digitization with leading companies in the sector on our website.

Find out how RIU Hotels & Resorts digitized the emission of B2B invoices via baVel 

When RIU decided to centralise the management process of its hotels, the need for a global solution to manage the huge volume of invoices in an efficient manner got exposed. 

Until now, and with a manual invoicing management system, workers had to do repetitive tasks manually and in the case of making a mistake, the invoice could be paused and delayed. An invoice containing multiple services made the situation worse. 

At this point, RIU Hotels & Resorts decides to work next to baVel, the electronic invoicing platform of Voxel Group, and automate its invoicing process digitizing the issuance of invoices to its B2B clients. 

Thanks to baVel, RIU is capable of issuing invoices automatically, gaining traceability and obtaining better visibility through the platform. The hotel chain could reduce the delivery time and, because of that, cut the average collection time. Furthermore, the adaptability of baVel has allowed RIU to comply with the distinct legislations of the countries where they operate, contributing to international growth. 

Check all the details of the process and the savings figures of RIU, downloading the full case study: 

Find all case studies here.

UDON, the Asian restoration group leader in Spain and Portugal has partnered with baVel, the electronic transactions platform of Voxel leader in the HORECA channel in Spain, to digitalise and automate the back-office processes, in particular, the purchase orders, delivery notes and invoices.

At the moment, and after the baVel integration with UDON management systems, 90% of purchase orders and invoices from private establishments and franchises of the restoration group are processed through baVel. In absolute numbers, it represents tens of thousands transactions in 2019.

This initiative, as part of the People, Product, Planet campaign driven by UDON, not only has represented mitigation of paper in their back-office processes and its ecological impact but also has streamlined these processes, which are the origin of multiple errors and inefficiencies. This implies the automation of manual processes – the reconciliation of invoices and delivery notes – mitigation of errors, productivity rise, centralized digital archive, traceability and dematerialises your processes.

Advantages for UDON

In this line of work, baVel also contributes to a better relationship with providers, as having a digitalised and automated supply chain helps to accelerate the payments cycle and hence the treasury of the provider. Currently, the baVel network connects with the main restoration chains and hotel groups of Spain with more than 1,000 service providers.

This partnership is an example of UDON’s commitment to sustainability, which wants to reduce the company’s impact on the environment. These values are also shared with baVel, which aims to generate a positive impact on the business ecosystem and society through Conscious Capitalism.

Pedro Mellinas, Marketing Area Director at UDON, said: “being responsible with the environment is a behaviour that we have in our gens. We take care of all the details to make our food and the management of our restaurants as sustainable as possible and one of our main purposes is to go paper-free in all our processes. Thanks to baVel, it is now a reality”.

To Àngel Garrido, CEO at Voxel Group: “Digitalise and automate the supply process marks a milestone in restaurant chains like UDON. It provides efficiency, better productivity in the administrative department and they can grow and expand quickly and efficiently”.

baVel at HIP

baVel has presented its technological solutions at the HIP, the professional fair dedicated to the innovation of the hotel sector in Madrid. Currently, baVel solutions digitalise the supply chain from the catalogue to the purchase order, delivery note, invoice and payments. It also offers automatic reconciliation, invoicing approval flow solutions, B2B and B2C e-commerce portals and technology solutions for VAT recovery.

Frictions between Sales and Finance departments is known to be one the oldest in business history. While one’s goal is to maximize conversions and sell as much as possible and do not pay attention to resources, the other’s focus is in the company’s solvency and look after expenses and income in each operation.

In the travel sector, like in other highly transactional sectors, these discrepancies gain importance when talking about hiring B2B payments methods. Because of the various actors involved in the process — hotels, travel agencies, PMSs, CRSs, GDSs, Tour Operators, etc — as well as the different aspects of the transactions — commissions, discounts, payment time, exchange rates, etc — choosing the right payment method is crucial to keep the company’s cash flow. 

In order to debate about it, representatives of both departments gather together to talk about the different B2B payment methods most used nowadays and how these impact the companies. The debate took place during the baVel Travel Summit, reference event in the travel sector held in Barcelona last may. 

The different profiles provided a wide view of the travel industry where both departments agreed that one of the biggest challenges is to compensate the cash flow between the different actors involved. According to Peter Dorner, President at New World Travel, a tour operator can have more than 3 third parties involved from the time the customer pays and the travel companies wanting to receive the money.

To Dorner, finding the balance between clients, hotels and banks is the most difficult challenge. And, especially, when hotels offer different rates. “We have flexible rates, prepayments rates, closed rates and specific rates depending on the policy. But, in the case of prepayment rates, we want to have the money, the same day the reservation has been confirmed”, explained Olga Delgado, Director of Global e-Commerce at Melià Hotels International. 

Furthermore, there are the differences between profiles in the sector when hiring payment methods. While a Tour Operator does not include the payment method in the equation when signing a contract with a third party service, a hotel such as Melià Hotels International defines everything in the contract. “Sales and Finance need to be aligned. The sales team to know what kind of payment methods exist on the market and their conditions and finance need to know the strategy and what we are going to achieve if signing the contract with a specific OTA”, added Delgado.

From the financial point of view, Gaspar Llabrés, Credit & Insurance Senior Director at Melià Hotels International, affirmed: “we have to take in mind the security to get paid and, especially, fraud prevention. We focus on the cost that will represent to accept a payment method”. According to Llabrés, conversions are important, but it is necessary to secure the payments to make sure they will be paid and not cancelled at the last minute.

Because of this, Melià Hotels International started to convert their non-refundable rates into non-refundable pre-payments rates so the properties can have the money immediately in order to prevent massive cancellations. 

Because of all the fluctuations of the sector, the Sales and Finance departments need to be aligned and coordinated. On one hand, the sales department need to focus on conversion but taking into consideration security and fraud prevention, whereas the finance department need to keep updated on the commercial strategy of the company and their long-term objectives. As Gaspar Llabrés said, “it is not a matter of education but complicity between departments”. 

If you missed the baVel Travel Summit, you can check out this summary:

Digitalisation of invoicing processes is rising. Companies tend to automate these procedures and issue electronic invoices, as much in the public sector as in the private one. In fact, Europe is starting to implement the enforceability of issuing electronic invoices in the public sector and consequently in the private one. Italy is the most advanced country on this matter, followed by Spain and Greece.

An electronic invoice is the same as a paper one but in digital format. Therefore, it has the same legal validity as a traditional invoice, but with more benefits.

Benefits of an electronic invoice

The most common uses of an electronic invoice are:

• Reducing the cost of processing invoices. Electronic invoicing reduces up to an 80% of the processing costs.
• Less manual work with no added value.
• Mitigate manual processing errors and consequently reduction of chargebacks.
• Better documentary control.
• Paper free. Tendency to reduce paper as invoices are kept in digital format.

In highly transactional sectors, as in the travel industry, the usage of electronic invoices makes more sense. Nowadays, there are big hotel chains, tour operators, travel agencies… that process millions of invoices per month. baVel is the leading platform specialised in electronic transactions for the travel industry at a global scale. As it was designed for this specific sector, the benefits are adapted to the travel world:

• Automatisation: issue and receive invoices directly from your PMS, mitigating manual processing errors.
• Traceability: issuer and receiver will know at all times the state of an invoice.
• Digital archive: storage of all your documents for 10 years so that you can easily search for any invoice in case of a dispute.
• Automatic reconciliation: set up error messages and reconciliation notices.
• Universal compatibility: connection with your PMS or ERP and customisation of our platform to meet your requirements.
• Eliminate dependence on archaic systems such as the telephone or fax.
• Electronic payments: close the billing cycle with payments automation.

If you would like to know how to start eBilling in your company and start saving money and time in your administrative procedures, you can get in touch at info@voxelgroup.net.