How Cotati Food Service Reduced Picking
Errors by 70%

Since 1938, Cotati Food Service has been providing quality products and premium service to its Northern California customers. Owned and operated by lifelong residents of Sonoma County, Cotati is a business built on reliability.

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BFC Software | Cotati Case Study

The Need

In 2018, CFS faced a common challenge many food distributors experience: manual warehouse operations reliant on spreadsheets. Amidst an industry where precision and speed are vital to maintaining their razor-thin margins, CFS needed to overhaul its 42,000-square-foot warehouse operations. The reliance on pen and paper was no longer viable in a landscape dominated by digital savvy competitors.

CFS handled both standard food distribution and 3PL, so they needed a better way to manage traceability within their operations. After visiting a BFC customer, CFS was sold as soon as they saw the BFC software in action.  

“BFC software saved us so much time and resources while giving us way more insights into the operations and efficiency of our business than we ever had manually."

- Ed Mayburn, President of Cotati Food Service

The Implementation

Cotati Food Service chose BFC for its non-complicated implementation process and the company’s unparalleled industry knowledge. "The choice was simple, BFC's reputation for having a fast and hassle-free implementation made this an easy decision for us,” Ed Maybrun, President of Cotati Food Service, commented. “Regardless of your size, or operational sophistication, BFC treats you the same.”  
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CFS started first by focusing on their inbound operations and, soon after, moved to optimizing their outbound operations with Ed remaining engaged throughout the project. They implemented Dakota WMS to help address product traceability with 3PL and improve overall warehouse operations. “The phased approach made the transition seamless,” Ed noted.
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Since implementation, Cotati Food Service’s operations have become more efficient. They've reduced their errors, reduced their warehouse labor, and improved traceability across their entire 3PL inventory.

“We wanted a solution that was user-friendly, could handle our 3PL business, and could scale with us.”

- Ed Mayburn, President of Cotati Food Service

3PL Improvements

The BFC Difference

For the past 20 years, we've been building software to meet the unique needs of the food distribution industry. We know what good looks like. Our sole focus is on making your warehouse work smarter, not harder, ensuring efficiency, traceability, and profitability at every step.​

70% reduction in errors BFC

CFS reduced their picking errors by 70%, outperforming industry norms.

25% labor reduction

CFS reduced picker labor by 25%,
despite higher volumes.