the challenge
Our client United Noodles, the largest Asian grocery store in Minnesota and its bordering states, faced the monthly burden of a long-standing tedious Accounts Payable (AP) process. The market bought the majority of its products from its vendor, Spartan Nash, which had around 30 invoices per electronic (ACH) transaction. Each invoice had numerous categories for each account (e.g., Dairy, General Grocery, Administrative, etc.). This required our client’s controller to spend numerous hours each week renaming all invoices and sorting them into their appropriate category.
the workflow
Taking a look at our client’s statements, we realized we needed to convert the statements provided by Spartan Nash into a format that could be uploaded and read by Quickbooks Online (“QBO”). Once we accomplished this, we eliminated the requirement for a human to transfer the data into the appropriate portions of QBO. We next recognized that each bill number needed to be unique so it could be distinguished within QBO.
The Bandicoot team created a simple solution to accomplish this: add an “A,” “B,” “C,” etc. to the end of any invoice with a similar invoice number, creating unique bill numbers that did not repeat. Bandicoot also converted the accounts in Spartan Nash’s bills to accounts used by our client. Finally, we added the sum of the invoices, which equaled the amount of the electronic transaction, to the memo for easier processing.
in conclusion
As a result of our simple but creative solutions, United Noodles’s controller spent approximately 15 minutes per week on their AP process. This freed up countless hours in our client’s bookkeeping process, allowing them to just focus on their business. Bandicoot’s expert team of accountants and bookkeepers can do the same for you. It is a creative process that we enjoy, tailored to your unique needs.
