CASE STUDY | July 31, 2023

Tapping into a double whammy of consumer trends—nostalgia and health-conscious foods—Magic Spoon has been experiencing a magical level of growth. Founded by two longtime friends, the company started selling its healthy, high-protein, low-carb versions of childhood-favorite cereals online in 2019 through its Shopify store. In the summer of 2022, it ventured into physical retail with Target and then Sprouts and closed an $85 million series B funding round.

With big growth plans, Magic Spoon needed to shore up its IT strategy to keep up the pace. The first order of business was to select an ERP that could meet its short-term needs and long-term goals. “Implementing an ERP system is like planting a seed for future growth,” says Josh Levy, systems admin at Magic Spoon. “It lays the foundation for efficient processes and data-driven decision making, enabling businesses to thrive and adapt in a rapidly changing world.”

With a small, busy team, Magic Spoon also needed a partner that could meet its specific ERP needs within a sixmonth implementation timeframe.

The requirements

Robust native integration with Shopify to support high-volume e-commerce

A flexible and efficient manufacturing operations base, including handling and tracking multiple units of measure

Significant EDI (electronic data interchange) requirements for working with big-box retailers and third-party warehouses

Live, high-transaction volume integration between ERP, e-commerce and warehousing

A six-month time frame for implementation

Meeting Magic Spoon’s needs—and then some

RSM and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central proved to be the winning combination. With native integrations to Shopify, Bill.com, and a native EDI integration through SPS Commerce, Business Central met Magic Spoon’s integration requirements.

“We spent many months evaluating multiple ERP solutions and ultimately decided on Business Central due to its natural fit with our business and processes,” says Jack Meyer, head of finance at Magic Spoon. “The platform allows for enhanced collaboration, streamlined workflows, and increased productivity across all departments. Additionally, Microsoft’s commitment to continuous innovation and robust support services provided us with confidence that we were making the right decision.”

RSM won its spot at the breakfast table because of its deep expertise in the food industry and ability to enhance Business Central to foster future growth. For example, RSM proposed a centralized solution for all of Magic Spoon’s inventory needs, bringing purchase and production planning into Business Central to reduce siloed information.

“RSM was extremely diligent in understanding the nuances of our co-manufacturing process and leveraged Business Central’s capabilities to fit our workflow,” says Mary Burke, operations and analytics manager for Magic Spoon. “As we transitioned out of a solely DTC business, RSM helped us configure our data into a system that could scale and adapt with us.”

Also critical to meeting the rapid implementation and deployment deadline of six months is the RSM rapid verification model (RVM), a model and philosophy that enables RSM to deliver consistent industry solutions for Business Central to reduce time to value. For Magic Spoon, this meant RSM could quickly front-load its customer’s Business Central accelerators, such as trade management and quality management, at the beginning of the implementation. Then, RSM could bring its focus to the 20 percent of processes that are unique to Magic Spoon, such as handling both single boxes and kitted bundles of cereal and ensuring systems work smoothly for both direct e-commerce sales and big-box wholesale.

A critical ingredient: fun

It was also important to the Magic Spoon team that their Business Central implementation partners be the type of people you’d want to bond with over a bowl of maple waffle cereal. During the implementation, the NYC-based Magic Spoon team met with RSM in Seattle for a unique and fun design meeting and a city adventure. Team happy hours in Manhattan were also a regular occurrence.

The results

RSM and Magic Spoon hit the six-month timeline, enabling Magic Spoon to continue its incredible growth, high volume of e-commerce transactions and wholesale expansion — now supported by the systems and data it needs. Business Central is supporting the company as it sells its nine flavors of keto-friendly, gluten- and grainfree cereal in Walmart, Kroger and Albertsons.

In additional to using its ERP system to manage the logistics of selling cereal in more than 7,000 locations, Magic Spoon uses data and insights on its performance and customer behavior to strengthen its partnerships with the giant retailers, helping them make informed decisions on how to market and promote the products.

“RSM was a communicative and invaluable partner from start to finish of the Business Central implementation,” says Sam Shpeen, controller at Magic Spoon. “Their expertise and guidance throughout the process ensured a seamless transition, and their commitment to understanding our unique business needs resulted in a tailored solution. Their diligence and dedication made the project a success.”

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