Ribbonwire Ranch Partners with Davinci Micro Fulfillment to Streamline eCommerce Orders, Expand Direct Consumer Sales.

Texas-based Ribbonwire Ranch partners with Davinci Micro Fulfillment to streamline eCommerce order fulfillment, cut processing time in half, and expand direct-to-consumer beef sales nationwide.

Ribbonwire Ranch, a family-owned ranching and organic beef products company, has partnered with Davinci Micro Fulfillment to deploy a fast-response, highly flexible eCommerce fulfillment solution that is strategically positioning inventory closer to the customer, has cut online order processing time in half, and is setting the foundation for sustained eCommerce growth.

Texas-based Ribbonwire Ranch raises and produces certified, all-organic beef. Its operations are situated in the northern part of the legendary XIT Ranch, a former cattle ranch in the Texas Panhandle dating back to 1885. Among its products is the Ribbonwire Ranch beef stick line, an all-natural, organic beef product which can be found in over 4,000 retail stores nationwide.

Ribbonwire selected Davinci Micro Fulfillment as its foundational partner to provide an integrated inventory management and fulfillment solution for eCommerce sales, including warehousing, inventory flow and control, merchandising support, eCommerce order fulfillment, last mile delivery, and performance analytics.

The Rural eCommerce Fulfillment Challenge

With its location in the rural Texas panhandle, Ribbonwire was faced with the challenge of rising eCommerce orders, which they were processing locally at the ranch. “We’re about 50 miles from the nearest town, which is about 8,000 people. We’d assemble and pack orders at the ranch and then drive into town twice a week to drop them off for shipping,” recalls Doug Lathem who co-owns and runs the business with Chad Schoonover and their families.

In this scenario, online customers were receiving their orders in some cases more than a week after being submitted, which was not an acceptable turn time to meet the expectations of eCommerce consumers. “As that became more of a burden and expense, we knew we needed to find a partner,” Lathem said. Consequently, they began looking for an alternative to their in-house approach, which as the business grew was outstripping their resources.

A Can-Do Attitude

That led them to Davinci Micro Fulfillment. What Lathem and his team found with Davinci “was a group with a can-do attitude where it was ‘what can we do to help you.’ They understood we were a small company, yet they were giving us their full attention as if we were a big company.”

Direct-to-consumer eCommerce orders that come into Ribbonwire Ranch’s system are now redirected into Davinci’s platform. As part of the start-up, Davinci and Ribbonwire selected Davinci’s micro-warehouse in Dallas, Texas as the most strategic location. It plans to add more Davinci micro sites as volumes grow in different geographical areas.

“Shipping direct to customers [ourselves] all over the country was a serious draw on our resources and time,” Lathem explained. “Now, Davinci ships the order out the day received, or next day at the latest,” adding that Davinci also manages transportation planning and selecting the most appropriate parcel delivery service. “So, it’s a much faster turn for the customer,” Lathem said. “And it freed up our team with more time to work on the product and other priorities. They took the whole fulfillment piece off of our hands.”

Davinci also has taken over Ribbonwire’s orders received over the Shopify platform as well as the custom customer sample boxes it sends out. “We personalize the packaging specific for the customer, to increase the uniqueness of their experience with us,” Lathem added. “Davinci is doing that for us now. We also expect them to help us expand our presence on Amazon, other online sales channels and more B to C.”

A Fulfillment Foundation for Direct-to-Consumer Growth

Ribbonwire has long had a presence in retail outlets, with its products today found in some 4,000 retail stores in the U.S. Ribbonwire continues to process those bulk order volumes in more traditional, larger-lot pallet loads, which typically are moved via commercial less-than-truckload carriers.

Nevertheless, it’s banking on accelerating its direct-to-consumer eCommerce growth from the foundation it’s built with Davinci and continuing to expand that part of the business. It has turned what was once an expensive challenge into a competitive advantage.

“It’s been positive, there is a real person [at Davinci] always in touch. We don’t have to hire another person to handle shipping, we eliminate the cost of doing it ourselves, and we’re getting consistent, quality service that’s helping improve customer satisfaction and the overall reputation of our brand.”
“This will pay for itself several times over,” Lathem concluded.