We regularly visit our customers to see how Picqer works in their warehouse. Recently, we were welcomed by SoundImports in Groningen. Their warehouse is filled with audio components for building your own sound systems. They started using Picqer in 2021, have grown significantly, and moved into a larger building.

We love these customer visits because they’re not just valuable for us—they’re probably valuable for you too. That’s why in this article, you can take a look behind the scenes at how another business runs their warehouse.

Planning the move

Before relocating, SoundImports took time to thoughtfully plan the layout of their new warehouse. That’s something we get excited about. A smart warehouse layout is the foundation for a strong process, and a strong process is essential for managing your warehouse with software. Software can’t fix process issues. SoundImports shared that they used tips from our book A warehouse to be proud of, which we were thrilled to hear. Our goal is not only to help with software, but also to share useful knowledge.

Warehouse layout

• SoundImports’ range includes everything from tiny cables and connectors to large amplifiers and speakers. Smaller items are stored in the front racks. Some are kept loose in small cardboard boxes for easy picking. Larger products are stored further back where there's more space, including pallet racks for bulky boxes.
• Fast-moving products are placed in a separate rack close to the packing stations, so staff don’t waste time walking back and forth.
• The racks are numbered like house numbers: even numbers on the left, odd numbers on the right. These location numbers are entered in Picqer, so the software knows exactly where each product is. This allows picklists to be automatically sorted in the right order for the most efficient route through the warehouse. If you’re not using software, you can sort locations in Excel to plan a good walking route.
• Locations are clearly marked with signs, making it easy to spot where you need to be.
• Separate packing stations and picking containers are used for B2C and B2B orders. Even the boxes and tape differ between the two, helping keep the workflows visibly separated.

How picking is done

• Every product has a barcode, so warehouse staff can scan items using mobile devices. No need to print paper picklists, which saves on paper and costs.
• Most picklists are processed in batches. This means many items can be picked during one round through the warehouse. Before picking starts, a batch is created in Picqer. The batch shows where each product is and how many to pick to complete all orders.
• The picking carts are adapted to product size. Large items are placed directly on the cart. Smaller items are picked using carts with bins. This makes batch picking easier, as each bin can hold the items for one order. At the packing table, the bins are processed one by one.

Making time to improve

Your warehouse deserves just as much attention as your webshop, marketing and customer service. At SoundImports, you can really see that philosophy in action. From the offices and meeting rooms, everyone can see the warehouse operations. That connection is important to them, because ideas from the office have to be executed in the warehouse.

To make sure promises to customers are realistic and achievable, they hold “Maga-Friday” every Friday. It’s a dedicated time when warehouse staff share feedback and ideas. This way, they consistently work on improvements, and everyone contributes to the business together.

Working with Picqer

Software can quickly become complex. That’s not what we want with Picqer. We focus on making it simple to use and easy to manage yourself. SoundImports is a great example of this. During the holiday season, the founder’s young daughter helped out in the warehouse. She understood Picqer so quickly that she was picking orders on her own within five minutes!

SoundImports has also built their own solutions for specific needs, such as a Chrome extension that provides automatic Picqer notifications. You can use our public API for this kind of customization. It gives you the freedom to create exactly what you need—with endless possibilities.

On Thursday, April 25, we’re hosting a special Picqer Session dedicated to fulfillment. This session will focus on invoicing for fulfillment companies.

Invoicing is one of the most crucial processes for a fulfillment business. You earn revenue from the services and extras you provide in the warehouse, and you want to invoice that accurately and efficiently.

But how do you determine the pricing for your services? What costs can you charge your fulfillment clients? How do you apply pricing tiers? And how do you invoice for storage usage?

During this Picqer Session, Bob from Centralized will share his insights and real-world experience around invoicing in fulfillment. After the talk, there will be time for questions.

Do you find it tricky to invoice your fulfillment services properly? Or are you looking for ways to spend less time on billing? Then this session is for you.

Where and when

This Picqer Session takes place on Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Utrecht at Restaurant Dengh.

We regularly visit our customers to learn how they work, how their warehouses are set up, how they use Picqer, and what challenges they face. These visits are valuable for collecting feedback and sharing knowledge and ideas. In this article, we’ve gathered highlights from four different conversations and explain briefly how Picqer fits into each situation.

Processing orders more efficiently with software

With Picqer, this process is automated. Once your webshop is connected to Picqer, orders appear directly in the warehouse software. You pick items using picklists—either one at a time or in batches. Back at the packing table, after the picked products are checked, the correct shipping label is automatically printed. This ensures the right product is sent to the right customer.

Read the full story with Go-in-style.nl here.

Organizing your warehouse by category

Most webshops earn 80% of their revenue from 20% of their products. Those products should be stored in easy-to-reach locations that minimize walking time. With the ABC analysis in Picqer, you can smartly divide your products across your warehouse. Based on sales volume, items are sorted into three categories: the top 5% bestsellers are category A, the next 15% are category B, and the remaining 80% are category C. Place A products close to the packing table, B a bit farther, and C in the back. It’s a simple way to save time and effort.

Read the full story with Scala XL here.

Why we don’t offer custom features

Our goal is to help every webshop run a professional warehouse, whether you handle 50 or 2,000 orders per day. That’s why we focus on stable, ongoing development that benefits all users. We also share detailed documentation in our Help Center and publish insights on our blog.

Every warehouse has unique processes, preferences and tools. Maybe you use a packing machine, conveyor belt or forecasting system. To work efficiently, you can connect other tools to Picqer using our API. We’ve made it as comprehensive and user-friendly as possible. Plus, we offer many ready-to-use integrations.

Read the full story with Nutcrackers here.

Making smart use of data from Picqer

In Picqer’s reporting, you can view and export a wide range of data. How old is your inventory? What’s your monthly revenue? What are your costs? Which products perform well, and which don’t? This information helps you make better strategic decisions.

Read the full story with IVOL here.

With 150 orders per day, that’s at least 150 sheets of paper. By the end of the day, they all end up in the recycling bin. That’s wasteful, and it’s not necessary. With warehouse software, you can pick orders entirely without paper. Less paper and ink saves unnecessary costs, and it's better for the environment too.

We see more and more warehouses making the switch to paperless picking—and we’re big supporters of that change. Here’s why.

Why go paperless when picking orders

• Digital workflows are much more flexible. While picking, you can view product information, make changes, and add comments. Your teammates can see updates right away. With paper, that’s not so easy. For example, if picklists are printed in the morning, it becomes difficult for customer service to make changes or leave a note later.
• When walking through your warehouse with a stack of picklists, you have to be careful not to mix them up or lose a sheet. With paperless picking, you don’t have to worry about that. Just make sure your battery is charged ;-)
• Tasks are presented step by step on your screen. You follow the instructions, without searching through paper. This makes it easy for anyone to get started—even if they’re new or not very tech-savvy. That said, we believe the software should be simple and guide users step by step.

What do you need?

The most important thing is a mobile device. It doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated. A phone or tablet that can open a picklist is often enough. If you want to verify products while in the warehouse, use a mobile scanner. In smaller warehouses where everything is within reach of the packing table, you could use a wireless barcode scanner connected to a computer. Just make sure your products have barcodes to scan.

A digital list of items to pick can be as simple as opening a webshop order on your phone. But if you’re using warehouse management software (like Picqer) or an ERP system, you unlock many more possibilities. You can not only generate digital picklists, but also guide your warehouse team from task to task.

Making the transition

It might not be realistic for every warehouse to quit using paper overnight. Reducing paper step by step works too. For example, group several orders into a single batch. That way, you print fewer picklists—and it also reduces walking distance. At the very least, make sure anything you do on paper is also recorded digitally. That way, your team stays in sync.

Picking paperless with Picqer

Paperless picking is easy with Picqer. You open the picklist in the Picqer app and collect the items in your warehouse. Back at the packing table, you check off the picked products on your computer, or scan each barcode to let Picqer verify the items. You can also use a mobile scanner to check products right at the shelf.

Want to try paperless picking with Picqer? Create a trial account and use Picqer free for 14 days.

Try Picqer for free

In recent weeks, we’ve introduced several improvements for date and time-based rules. Read more about these and other updates in this changelog.

Conditions based on order date and time

You can now set specific order dates or times as rule conditions. For both, you can choose from two options:

• The order was placed before the date or time
• The order was placed on or after the date or time

You can combine multiple conditions to trigger actions during a specific time frame. For example, you could offer a free gift for orders placed during a promotional period, or apply a different shipping method depending on the time an order was placed.

Snooze picklists for a set number of hours or until a specific date

When snoozing a picklist using a rule, you can now specify how many hours it should be snoozed. You can also set a specific date to resume the picklist. This is especially useful for pre-orders that should only ship on or after the product release date.

More control over printing packing slips

Previously, packing slips were always printed automatically if a packing slip printer was set up at the packing station. You can now decide whether to print packing slips at all. Using rules, you can override that default setting. This gives you full control and can save a lot of unnecessary paper.

Read more in the help article on printers and packing stations.

Other improvements

• Processing orders with many backorders and/or product compositions is now much faster.
• In the popup for creating a shipment, you now clearly see which shipping profile was preselected via a rule.
• We’ve added a new integration with Sendy.
• You can now quickly recognize which orders were placed via the fulfillment portal with a dedicated icon in the order overview.
• The shipping method “Small Parcel” from PostNL has been added to the MyParcel integration.
• When you turn a product into a virtual composition or mark it as having infinite stock, the ABC classification is removed.
• The graph on the customer page showing order history now always displays accurate data.
• A warning is shown if you try to leave a rule setup page without saving your changes.
• We now import QLS service points for orders from Shopify and Lightspeed, so the information is automatically passed to the carrier.
• When creating a purchase order via the API, you can now include a delivery_date.
• The track & trace URL for shipments to Belgian pickup points now works correctly again.
• The customer and supplier pages have been redesigned for improved organization and consistency with the rest of Picqer.
• The normal and singles batch pages have been updated for users who have enabled the experimental feature “Updated picklist and batch pages.”