In a new collaboration, AgVend is offering CHS wholesale customers connectivity to deepen their digital connection. Starting in September, ag retailers who are CHS wholesale crop protection customers and AgVend network members can place orders, view transaction and invoice history, and reorder products within the AgVend platform.
“This gives our ag retailer customers a line of sight through the supply,” says Gary Halvorson, executive vice president, enterprise customer development at CHS. “They will have the ability to see real time inventories and place orders against those inventories. It’s the level of transparency and ease of use functionality that they need.”
The goal of the collaboration is to provide streamlined workflows, increased visibility, and improved timeliness.
“I tell my team that simple things get done. If we want a tool to provide value, it has to be easy to use and simple. This gives them that,” Halvorson says.
Halvorson shares in the beta phase they were able to see thousands of invoices generated flawlessly and dramatically reduce the reliance on a physical paper trail.
“AgVend has a track record in this space. This integration is logical for our business because it gets us integrated with our customers quicker and accomplishes our goals,” Halvorson says. “Right now, our customers are looking for us to step in as a supplier of choice.”
The trend of simplifying workflows and increasing accuracy via digitization is increasing, says Alexander Reichert, CEO and co-founder of AgVend.
“CHS approached us with a desire to create a differentiated experience for their retail customers in the AgVend network, and they have successfully executed on it,” Reichert says. “At AgVend we are working toward a digitally connected supply chain that puts the retailers and their grower customers at the center of the equation.”
At first, the collaboration will focus on crop protection products with expansion for energy products, crop nutrients and more.
“From an industry perspective, in terms of a digitally enabled distribution channel I believe we are in the opening innings,” Reichert says. “But it is through integrations like this one here with CHS where we lay the foundation for the channel to most efficiently get the right products in the right place, at the right time.”
