About Made by Mary
Made by Mary was founded in 2013 by Mary Moody with a vision to create beautiful, personalized jewelry that celebrates life's meaningful moments. Under the leadership of CEO Taylor Moody, the brand has grown from a passion project into a thriving business serving customers through both direct-to-consumer channels and wholesale partnerships with major retailers like Nordstrom.
Specializing in personalized jewelry—pieces customized with names, initials, dates, and meaningful symbols—Made by Mary faces unique operational complexity. Each order requires careful tracking of customization details, coordination of production workflows, and precise inventory management of interchangeable raw materials like chains, charms, stones, and clasps that can be combined in countless configurations.
This complexity, combined with ambitious growth plans and expanding wholesale partnerships, required Made by Mary to transform their operational infrastructure from disconnected spreadsheets and basic software into a sophisticated system capable of supporting their next phase of growth.
The Challenge: Complexity Threatening Growth and Profitability
As Made by Mary grew their personalized jewelry business, the operational complexity inherent in their made-to-order model created mounting challenges that threatened both growth and profitability.
Complex SKU Management Nightmare
Personalized jewelry requires tracking nested, interchangeable raw material SKUs—chains of different lengths and materials, various charm designs, multiple stone options, different clasp styles—all of which can be combined in thousands of potential configurations to fulfill customer orders.
The team attempted to manage this complexity manually using spreadsheets, but the approach quickly became unsustainable. SKU proliferation spiraled out of control as they created separate SKUs for every potential configuration. This explosion of SKUs made it nearly impossible to:
- Understand true inventory levels of raw materials
- Forecast purchasing needs accurately
- Analyze which components were truly popular
- Maintain data accuracy as SKUs multiplied
The lack of proper Bills of Materials (BOMs) meant there was no systematic way to track how finished goods related to their component raw materials. Sales data became increasingly inaccurate because it reflected finished product SKUs rather than the underlying components that actually needed to be purchased and managed.
Production Tracking Black Hole
Personalization orders moved through multiple production workstations—engraving, stone setting, chain assembly, quality control—but the team had no systematic way to track orders through this workflow. Without visibility into:
- Which workstation each order was at
- How long orders spent at each stage
- Which team members were working on which orders
- Overall production throughput and bottlenecks
The result was frequent personalization errors, missed orders that fell through the cracks, and an inability to prioritize rush orders or optimize production efficiency. The team worked hard but couldn't identify where improvements were needed because they lacked data about their production operations.
Inventory Management Chaos
Made by Mary's inventory management had become a patchwork of disconnected systems. Shopify tracked finished goods, QuickBooks held financial records, and spreadsheets attempted to bridge the gaps. But with no single source of truth, the team constantly struggled with questions like:
- How many gold chains do we actually have available?
- When should we reorder specific components?
- Which raw materials are allocated to pending orders?
- What inventory is available to promise for new orders?
The lack of reliable inventory visibility forced Made by Mary into a costly defensive strategy: they carried approximately 9 months of inventory to prevent stockouts. This massive inventory investment tied up working capital that could have been invested in marketing, product development, or business growth. The inventory carrying costs also hurt profitability.
Manual Processes Consuming Time
Without integrated systems, nearly every operational process required manual intervention. The team spent countless hours:
- Manually updating inventory counts across systems
- Reconciling discrepancies between platforms
- Tracking down order status for customer inquiries
- Creating and managing purchase orders in spreadsheets
- Generating reports by exporting and combining data from multiple sources
This manual work consumed time that could have been spent on strategic initiatives, and the constant data entry created opportunities for errors that compounded the operational challenges.
Wholesale Expansion Blocked
As Made by Mary explored wholesale partnerships with major retailers like Nordstrom, they encountered new requirements they couldn't meet with their existing systems. Retailers required EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) integration for purchase orders, advance ship notices, and invoices—capabilities their disconnected systems couldn't support.
The wholesale opportunity represented significant growth potential, but Made by Mary's operational infrastructure wasn't ready to support it. They needed to transform their systems before they could confidently pursue retail partnerships.
Cash Flow and Working Capital Constraints
The 9 months of inventory on hand represented a massive working capital investment that constrained Made by Mary's ability to invest in growth. The cash tied up in excess inventory wasn't available for:
- Marketing campaigns to drive customer acquisition
- Product development to expand the catalog
- Technology investments to improve operations
- Hiring to support expansion
The inventory burden didn't just hurt profitability—it limited strategic options and slowed growth.
The Solution: Comprehensive ERP for Production and Inventory Excellence
Made by Mary partnered with Fulfil to implement a comprehensive ERP platform that would bring structure to their complex operations, provide visibility into production and inventory, and enable the lean operations needed to grow profitably.
SKU Structure Overhaul with Bills of Materials
The first critical transformation was restructuring Made by Mary's SKU architecture using proper Bills of Materials (BOMs). Instead of creating separate finished good SKUs for every possible configuration, Fulfil enabled Made by Mary to:
- Maintain SKUs for raw material components (chains, charms, stones, clasps)
- Create BOMs that defined how components combined to create finished products
- Track inventory at the component level where purchasing decisions actually happen
- Reduce total number of SKUs dramatically while maintaining full product configurability
This BOM-based approach provided the foundation for accurate inventory management and meaningful sales analytics. Now when a finished product sold, the system automatically decremented the correct raw material components, providing real-time visibility into what actually needed to be reordered.
Production Management App for Workflow Visibility
Fulfil's production management capabilities brought unprecedented visibility to Made by Mary's personalization workflows. The system enabled:
- Order batching: Group similar personalization orders together to improve efficiency
- Workstation tracking: See exactly which orders were at which production stage
- Production prioritization: Identify and expedite rush orders or orders approaching SLA deadlines
- Productivity insights: Understand throughput at each workstation and identify bottlenecks
- Quality control workflows: Systematic inspection before orders ship to reduce errors
The production app transformed personalization from a black box into a transparent, manageable process. Team members could see their queue of work, managers could monitor overall production status, and customer service could provide accurate order status information.
Unified Inventory Management
Fulfil replaced Made by Mary's disconnected inventory systems with a single source of truth that integrated seamlessly with their sales channels. The platform provided:
- Real-time inventory visibility across all raw materials and finished goods
- Automatic inventory decrements when orders placed (at the component level based on BOMs)
- Inventory allocation to pending orders
- Available-to-promise calculations for new orders
- Multi-location inventory tracking
With accurate, real-time inventory data, Made by Mary could finally make informed decisions about purchasing and confidently promise delivery dates to customers.
Intelligent Purchase Order Management
Fulfil's purchase order management capabilities brought structure to Made by Mary's procurement operations. The system enabled:
- Automated reorder point alerts based on actual component usage
- Purchase order creation and tracking from request through receipt
- Vendor management and performance tracking
- Expected inventory arrival visibility
- Automated inventory receipt and reconciliation
The team could now proactively manage purchasing based on actual data rather than reactively scrambling to prevent stockouts.
Lean Inventory Strategy Enabled
With accurate inventory visibility, proper BOMs, and intelligent purchasing tools, Made by Mary could finally implement a lean inventory strategy. Instead of carrying 9 months of inventory as a safety buffer, they could:
- Right-size inventory levels based on actual demand patterns
- Reduce safety stock while maintaining service levels
- Free up working capital for growth investments
- Improve inventory turns and reduce carrying costs
The system gave them confidence to carry less inventory because they had visibility and control they'd never had before.
EDI Integration for Wholesale Growth
Fulfil's native EDI capabilities enabled Made by Mary to launch wholesale partnerships with major retailers like Nordstrom. The platform handled:
- EDI purchase order receipt and processing
- Advance ship notice (ASN) transmission
- EDI invoice generation and transmission
- Inventory allocation for wholesale vs. DTC channels
The EDI integration that would have been prohibitively complex with their previous systems became straightforward with Fulfil, unlocking the wholesale growth opportunity.
Seamless Shopify Integration
Fulfil's native Shopify integration meant Made by Mary's DTC operations continued smoothly while gaining the benefits of enterprise-grade inventory and production management. Orders flowed automatically from Shopify to Fulfil, inventory synchronized in real-time, and fulfillment status updated automatically.
Comprehensive Analytics and Reporting
Beyond operational execution, Fulfil provided Made by Mary with analytics capabilities that enabled data-driven decision making:
- Sales analysis by component rather than just finished goods
- Production efficiency metrics and bottleneck identification
- Inventory health reporting and slow-moving inventory alerts
- Purchase order performance and vendor analytics
- Financial reporting integrated with operational data
These insights enabled continuous operational improvement and informed strategic decisions about product mix, purchasing strategy, and resource allocation.
Results: Profitable Growth Through Operational Excellence
The implementation of Fulfil transformed Made by Mary's operations, enabling them to grow revenue while dramatically improving inventory efficiency and unlocking new wholesale growth opportunities.
50%+ Inventory Reduction While Growing Sales
The most impressive achievement: Made by Mary reduced inventory on hand by over 50%, dropping from 9 months of inventory to just 4 months—all while growing sales 7% year-over-year.
"We were able to reduce inventory on hand by over 50%, while growing sales 7% YoY."
— Taylor Moody, CEO, Made by Mary
This dramatic inventory reduction freed up substantial working capital that could be reinvested in growth initiatives. The inventory carrying cost savings dropped directly to the bottom line, improving profitability even as the business scaled.
7% Year-Over-Year Sales Growth
While reducing inventory by half, Made by Mary still achieved 7% sales growth. The operational improvements didn't just reduce costs—they enabled growth by freeing up resources, improving customer experience through more reliable fulfillment, and enabling wholesale expansion.
100% Raw Material Visibility
The BOM-based inventory management provided Made by Mary with complete visibility into their raw material components for the first time.
"Fulfil gave us 100% visibility into our raw materials and enabled us to launch EDI with Nordstrom."
— Taylor Moody, CEO, Made by Mary
This visibility enabled confident decision-making about purchasing, accurate promising to customers, and optimized inventory investment across all components.
Successful Nordstrom EDI Launch
The EDI capabilities enabled Made by Mary to successfully launch wholesale partnership with Nordstrom—a major retailer that represented significant growth potential. The wholesale channel opened up new customer acquisition opportunities and brand exposure that would have been impossible with their previous systems.
Dramatic SKU Reduction
By implementing proper BOMs, Made by Mary reduced their total SKU count dramatically while actually improving their ability to offer personalized products. The reduction simplified operations, improved data accuracy, and made inventory management tractable.
Production Workflow Transparency
The production management app eliminated the black box of personalization workflows. The team gained visibility into:
- Order location and status at any moment
- Production bottlenecks that needed attention
- Individual and team productivity metrics
- Quality control pass rates
This transparency enabled continuous improvement and eliminated the missed orders and errors that had plagued previous operations.
Eliminated Inventory Discrepancies
The single source of truth for inventory eliminated the constant discrepancies between systems that had consumed team time and created operational confusion. Inventory counts became reliable, and the team could trust the system data.
Freed Up Working Capital
The 50%+ inventory reduction freed up substantial working capital that Made by Mary could redirect to:
- Marketing campaigns to drive customer acquisition
- Product development to expand offerings
- Technology and operations improvements
- Strategic growth initiatives
The improved cash flow position gave Made by Mary strategic flexibility they hadn't had when capital was tied up in excess inventory.
Reduced Manual Work
The integrated platform eliminated the manual data entry, reconciliation, and reporting work that had consumed valuable team time. The operations team could focus on strategic improvements and customer experience rather than administrative data management.
Improved Customer Experience
The operational improvements translated directly to better customer experience:
- More accurate delivery date promises
- Fewer personalization errors
- Faster order processing
- Better order status visibility for customer service
Happy customers drive repeat purchases and positive word-of-mouth—both critical for DTC brand growth.
Foundation for Continued Growth
Perhaps most strategically, Fulfil provided Made by Mary with operational infrastructure that can scale as the business grows. The platform that enabled 50% inventory reduction while growing sales 7% can support their next phase of expansion—whether that's additional wholesale partnerships, expanded product lines, or continued DTC growth.
Data-Driven Decision Making
The comprehensive analytics capabilities enabled Made by Mary to make informed decisions about:
- Which products and components to focus on
- Where to invest in production improvements
- How to optimize inventory investment
- Which wholesale opportunities to pursue
Data-driven decision making reduces risk and improves the odds of successful growth initiatives.
Profitable Growth Model
By growing sales 7% while reducing inventory by 50%, Made by Mary demonstrated the power of operational excellence. They proved that growth doesn't require proportional increases in inventory investment—with the right systems and processes, you can grow profitably by becoming more efficient.
The partnership between Made by Mary and Fulfil demonstrates how the right ERP platform enables personalized product businesses to manage operational complexity while growing profitably. By bringing structure to SKU management, visibility to production workflows, and intelligence to inventory management, Fulfil gave Made by Mary the foundation to reduce inventory by half, grow sales, and unlock wholesale growth opportunities that were previously impossible.