How BrandMuscle helped Badger Liquor manage its warehouses with a streamlined inventory management system

Badger Liquor is the largest alcoholic beverage distributor in Wisconsin. Owned and operated since 1935 by the Sanoff family, the company has grown into Wisconsin’s most respected wholesale beverage-alcohol distributor.  

With three large warehouses covering the state, Badger Liquor keeps an enormous inventory of promotional materials to support sales for the on- and off-premises accounts they work with.  

In 2017, they worked with BrandMuscle to streamline their print production. A few years later, they reached out to us for more help, this time managing their POS (point of sale) inventory. 

Massive warehouses are maze-like spaces. Rows and racks stretch in every direction. Wine and liquor suppliers send pallets of products, branded promotional items, marketing assets, and signage — the sheer volume can be overwhelming.  

Some materials show up on the shipping docks and require operations managers to sift through boxes, identify items, and catalog them to prep for sales reps. It can be a bit disorganized (and quite inefficient), to say the least.  

When marketing assets are not utilized, sales opportunities get missed. In addition, housing all this inventory creates a huge expense… especially when materials go unused! 

Even more challenging? Inventory management. Some sales reps request promotional items through email and phone; others through sticky notes! Some reps pull items from racks without logging quantities or notifying the warehouse manager. 

From an inventory and control standpoint, operations needed more visibility and a streamlined control process. 

Badger Liquor implemented BrandMuscle’s POS Warehouse solution, which immediately provided a single-source option for warehouse managers to:  

• Automate inventory, distribution, and tracking 
• Improve planning, management, and utilization 

Since partnering with BrandMuscle, Badger Liquor can easily track and manage inventory and identify where each item is stored within the warehouse. Sales reps can easily see what’s available, place orders, and tie orders directly to accounts and reps. 

Detailed reports break down orders by category, including supplier, brand, and item type. Reports keep Badger Liquors’ supplier partners informed about inventory and allow them to put approvals on certain items. 

A few other improvements include:  

• Timestamping: Warehouse managers see when items enter the system, in what quantity, how many remain, and which items moved (and which did not). 
• Transparency: Badger Liquor saves money on storage and has eliminated waste thanks to proactive conversations with suppliers.  
• Data-driven decisions: Warehouse managers are now empowered to make data-driven decisions. For example, placing limited or seasonal items on hold or only allowing orders during specific dates. 

And the Badger Liquor team loves BrandMuscle. 

“Initially, the team was apprehensive about change, but after training everyone on BrandMuscle, they loved it. The success of the program in our South Warehouse made it easy to scale companywide. Our managers and suppliers leverage the reports to determine how POS items are performing. Visibility into what POS is in stock, and having pictures of each item, really help the sales force present our programs to customers.” — John Heinan, Badger Liquor Operations Manager/POS Coordinator