Direct Product Sales Business Takes a Giant Leap to Productivity

Case

An independent sales manager for Arbonne International was struggling to get everything done in a day that was required to meet her career advancement goals. She called Calahan Solutions to help her with productivity and general stress relief. The space had very little floor room available to move and she spent significant amounts of time pulling together paperwork and product for sale or sample.

Challenges

Product! Arbonne International has 6 different lines of product that were all over the office-- some opened for sampling - some not. All required storage.
Very few items in the space had a "home."
A creative consultant, the business owner had over 11 different ways to wrap and package product.
The business owner required a large space to "stage" product for sampling or for sale.
The business owner required regular office space to run the operations portion of her business.

Before		After
Click on any of the images for a larger view or to download for story - using Calahan Solutions, Inc. as the source.
The conference table that was set up in this area of the office was not usable in its current state. Significant time was taken to locate any needed item.		The space was cleared out and new purposes were given to pre-exsisting organizers. The table is now free to put product packages together with no struggle.
The closet was a space that held unused clothing, furniture and baby items.		A "warehouse" was created that holds all retail products, packing and display bags and office supplies. All labeled and within easy reach.
The desk workspace was covered in product, reference material and other items and the printer was on the floor. It was difficult to find space to work.		The desk area was cleared and new homes were created for everything. The printer was moved to a new location much less dificult to reach.
The view from the hall caused the owner to feel stress long before ever entering the room.		The view from the hall is now portraying the business owners true personality - in control!

Getting Down to Work

We started with the closet. Emptying the clothing, baby items, furniture and personal gift wrapping items. Each piece either got a new home, or was placed in a bag for donation or trash.
Once the closet was empty, we measured and developed a plan to create a "warehouse" for all of the packing supplies, office supplies and products.
A "field trip" was next. We went to two stores and purchased the supplies that we needed to get the office space and "warehouse" functional.
Back in the office we sorted like items together and started identifying homes for each piece in the closet/warehouse. Everything that was not used on a daily basis belonged in the warehouse. We labeled everything when complete, so that the owner would not forget where things belonged.
We focused on the staging area next - it was necessary for the space to be clear for the owner to use it properly. A reference library was, recruiting packet assembly area and kit area were created.
The next and last step was the business zone. Papers were sorted, purged and filed. A file cabinet was purchased to hold the new files and the printer was placed on top of the cabinet vs. the previous location on the floor. Everything was positioned to match the owners flow of work.

Results

Decreased time getting ready to service clients (estimated savings of 7.5-12.5 hours per month)

Item	Est. Savings	Est. Monthly Savings
Pulling recruiting packets together	1 minute down from 15	1.5 -5 hours
Getting ready for an Arbonne party	5 minutes down from 20	1 hour
Managing sample kits out to potential clients	5 minutes down from 15 per kit	5 hours

Decreased time in conducting inventory because all products are together.
Decreased time for product sampling - Kits are easily put together in a matter of minutes since all items are together.
Saved Money - Duplicate items will not be purchased now that all like items are together.
Increased confidence - knowing where things are helps this individual feel even more confident that she is servicing her clients and team members in the best possible way.
The owner loves the room so much that she uses it more frequently and is now thinking about painting the walls and other improvements.

Testimonial

Cathy Greeneberg pleased organizing client!

Cathy wrote to us immediately following her organizing experience: “I can't tell you what this has done for me. I feel like I'm on top of the world. When my office was cluttered, my mind was cluttered and now I'm free! Love it!”

A few weeks later, she called our testimony line:

-Cathy Greeneberg, Bloomington, IL

Products

Our project required a field trip to the store. Here are some of the items that we used:


Six Pocket Hanging Organizer

We used this organizer in the closet to hold items not used on a daily basis

High-Capacity Stackable® Desk Tray, Side Load, Legal, Black

We used stackable trays for both the office area as well as the staging area. Items are out in easy view, but in an orderly way.

Pendaflex® Recycled Premium Reinforced Ready-Tab™ Hanging Folders, 1/5 Cut, Letter-Size, Assorted Colors, Box Of 25

We used great hanging file folders to organize all of the paper that was on the desk.

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