Exotic Food Thailand, a prominent name in the world of Thai seasoning and ingredients, has significantly boosted its global reach and operational efficiency by adopting the RISE with SAP cloud ERP solution. This strategic move has propelled the company’s growth and innovation on the international stage.
Established in 1999, Exotic Food Thailand has grown to distribute over 800 products across 80 countries, becoming synonymous with authentic Thai flavors worldwide. This impressive expansion has recently seen a remarkable 73% increase in year-over-year sales, largely attributed to the deployment of the RISE with SAP package. The comprehensive solution, which includes AI-driven cloud ERP capabilities, has enabled Exotic Food to manage its rapid growth and large transaction volumes seamlessly.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the surge in home cooking led to an increased demand for Exotic Food’s products. However, this demand exposed the limitations of their existing on-premise ERP system, which struggled to scale effectively. In response, the company transitioned to RISE with SAP on Amazon Web Services (AWS) in January 2023. The migration to SAP S/4HANA Cloud has integrated key business functions, streamlined processes, and enhanced real-time decision-making, while AWS hosting has improved performance and reliability.
Enhanced Efficiency and Real-Time Decision Making
The adoption of RISE with SAP has been a transformative step for Exotic Food. According to Vasana Jantarach, Co-Founder and Managing Director, the cloud ERP system has optimized operational workloads and maintained staff capacity. The integration of financial processes across departments now provides a centralized view, automating tasks such as sales order computation, inventory management, and order fulfillment. This real-time handling of diverse product configurations allows Exotic Food to reach more customers globally in a shorter time.
The SAP S/4HANA Cloud has significantly reduced manual workloads, leading to faster and more accurate financial closings. Previously, month-end closings required extensive verification and correction of source data, resulting in lengthy delays. With real-time data recording and verification, financial reports are now generated more quickly and with fewer errors, reducing the time required for monthly closings from 18 days to just eight.
Automation and Data Traceability Using SAP Cloud ERP Solution
In the food industry, data traceability, production planning, and automation are critical. Previously, Exotic Food relied on paper-based transaction records, which made financial audits cumbersome. Now, with digitalized and centralized data on SAP S/4HANA Cloud, efficiency has markedly improved. Tasks that once took hours are now completed in minutes, providing a 99 percent reduction in time spent on traceability.
Automation has also streamlined operations, significantly reducing stocktaking time from two days to just half a day. This reduction in manual processes has freed up staff to focus on more strategic and business-critical tasks, thereby boosting overall productivity and innovation.
Kulwipa Piyawattanametha, Managing Director of SAP Indochina, emphasized the transformative impact of SAP solutions on Exotic Food’s operations. The company’s shift to the cloud has resulted in enhanced information management, increased data transparency, and more efficient decision-making processes. With the flexibility to add new solution extensions and leverage AI-powered capabilities, Exotic Food is well-positioned to continue its innovative trajectory.
The success of this migration is attributed to a clear ERP scope, experienced SAP implementation partners, and robust post-go-live support. Wisit Wirayagorn, Managing Director of NTT DATA Business Solutions (Thailand) Ltd., highlighted the importance of expertise in both the manufacturing and food industries. As the implementation partner, NTT DATA has worked closely with SAP and Exotic Food to ensure a smooth transition and ongoing optimization of business operations both in Thailand and globally.
