ERP to eCommerce Integration for Multi-Brand and Multi-Channel Growth in Manufacturing

3 min read ● Silk Team

The reality is that most manufacturing companies grow in a multitude of ways – launching new brands, opening new channels to buy and selling to new segments of customers and creating unique buying experiences for those segments.

But growth rarely follows a simple pathway. If there isn’t an ERP-to-eCommerce integration in place, this rapid growth will quickly turn into a chaotic complex situation.

For manufacturers who have implemented multi-brand and multi-channel strategies, integration provides the means to manage growth digitally and expand their e-commerce platform(s) without duplicating processes, fragmenting data, or creating operational chaos.

This article will explain how ERP to eCommerce integration supports multi-brand and multi-channel growth and the reasons why ERP-to-Ecommerce integration becomes a “must-have” for all expansions after the initial expansion phase.

Challenges Associated With The Growth Of Multi-Brand And Multi-Channel Manufacturing Companies

Growing a manufacturing company using multiple brands and multiple channels presents several opportunities for overlapping complexity:

• Inventory shared among brands
• Pricing and product assortment per brand
• Customers purchasing products via multiple channels
• Differing fulfillment criteria based on brand and/or channel

If ERP and eCommerce systems are not integrated, many manufacturing companies will use various manual solutions to handle the increased complexity including:

• Maintaining duplicate product catalogs
• Manually managing inventory buffer levels
• Utilizing separate workflows for each channel

Although these methods work temporarily; they quickly break down as the number of channels grows.

The Role of ERP Systems in Supporting Multiple Brands and Multiple Channels

ERP systems such as SAP and Oracle NetSuite already provide the ability to operate multiple business entities (i.e., brands):

• Multiple brands/business units
• Common/segmented inventory
• Separate pricing rules
• Centralized financial reporting

By integrating your eCommerce platform with your ERP system, you can take the existing capabilities of your ERP system and apply them to the digital channels you are expanding to – without having to create duplicate logic for each individual storefront.

Supporting Multi-Brand Commerce Using Integration

Centralized Inventory Management – Logical Brand Specific Buying Experiences

Using integration:

• Inventory management is centralized within your ERP system
• Inventory availability is managed according to logical brand specific guidelines
• Each storefront displays a unique assortment of products based on brand
• Each brand competes for inventory independently and operations continue to be able to control the process

Brand Level Pricing – Customer Rule-Based Pricing

Using ERP driven pricing enables:

• Different brands to utilize unique pricing strategies
• Common customers view accurate pricing information for each brand
• Contract pricing remains consistent across all touch points
• Avoiding margin erosion due to duplicated pricing logic

Faster Time To Market For New Brands

Once integration has been completed, launching a new brand becomes a configuration task rather than rebuilding a system.

Integration enables faster time to market for new brands and lower incremental costs to launch.

Enabling Multi-Channel Sales Without Data Fragmentation

Many manufacturers now sell through a variety of channels including:

• Direct eCommerce web portals
• Sales Representatives and Inside Sales
• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
• Punch-out systems
• Marketplaces/Distributors

Without integration, each channel creates its own version of the truth regarding:

• Pricing and inventory levels
• Order history across channels
• Customer entitlements

Customers interact with the business, not the separate and unconnected channels.

Reducing Channel Conflict Via Integration

Channel conflict typically results from inconsistent data including:

• Prices being listed differently across channels
• Inventory being promised to two or more customers at once
• Orders being manually prioritized

Integration enables all of the channels to operate from the same base of data and therefore eliminates:

• Any advantage one channel may have by having out-of-date data
• Sales Teams trusting online orders
• All departments planning together for a holistic approach to the business

Growth becomes additive, not competitive within the organization.

Role of eCommerce Platforms in Enabling Multi-Brand/Multi-Channel Strategies

While eCommerce platforms such as Shopify and Adobe Commerce are suitable for multi-brand/multi-channel strategies, they require integration with an ERP system to achieve maximum benefit.

Without ERP integration:

• Each storefront becomes an island unto itself
• Data Reporting fragments
• Manual coordination increases

With ERP integration, eCommerce platforms can serve as a flexible front end for the business, providing a seamless experience to the customer while maintaining a unified operational core.

Why Integration Becomes Non-Negotiable Beyond the First Expansion Phase

Early stage growth can tolerate inefficiencies. However, as growth accelerates, inefficiencies cannot be tolerated.

As brands and channels grow:

• Manual labor grows exponentially
• Errors grow disproportionately
• Visibility diminishes

ERP to eCommerce integration can prevent this by enabling consistency throughout the business while also enabling the differentiation necessary at the experience level.

Best Practices for Implementing Multi-Brand/Multi-Channel Integration

• Keep ERP as the Single Operational Authority
• Design eCommerce as a Configurable Experience Layer
• Develop Logical Segmentation for Each Brand
• Establish Inventory Allocation Rules Early On
• Standardize Integration Patterns Before Expansion

Growth is much easier to implement when it is planned, not improvised.

Closing Thoughts

Multi-brand and multi-channel growth is a strategic advantage, but only if the proper systems are in place.

ERP to eCommerce integration enables manufacturers to scale brands and channels without scaling complexity. This integration centralizes control, maintains data integrity, and enables differentiated customer experiences while preventing operational fragmentation.