Novanty

The primary requirement for this system was to allow one group of users to post inventory that they were hoping to have manufactured.

Instead of fronting the manufacturing bill themselves, they could pre-sell these units to another group of users.

It was required to permit the second group of users to either buy directly from the first group or from other users who had already purchased products.

Since the first group of users had to ensure they could meet manufacturing quantities, no sale could be considered complete unless all units had been sold.

After the units were manufactured, the first group of users would then buy back all of their units. This provided the second group of users with a profit.

Since both the manufacturing and buy-back processes could take up to 1 year, the second group of users were required to be able to sell products between themselves.

Purchased inventory could be sold back at any price between the buying price and the buy-back price.

Throughout the development process, we had to work to ensure the system was in compliance with various laws. Since the system was bordering on the securities world, a lot of precautions were required to ensure the system met all legal requirements.

Since users were allowed to buy from either companies or other users, a multi-vendor marketplace fit the bill.

Using WooCommerce and Dokan, we could allow all users to buy and sell units.

Neither of these plugins permit the exact functionality required, which only custom development could deliver.

Given that companies needed to meet manufacturing minimums, we needed a solution to ensure the right number of units were purchased.

WooCommerce Pre-Orders helped facilitate this functionality. Companies would sell their units initially through a pre-order.

If enough units were bought, then the pre-order was considered complete. If not, all orders were automatically cancelled.

Once a pre-order was considered complete, the inventory was automatically converted to be sold by the buyer.

With some adjustments to the Seller List, units were displayed in order from lowest to highest.

Secondary buyers could see the difference between the sale price and the buy-back price.

Once a Cross-Sell purchase was completed, the new buyer would have that inventory converted for sale.

After the company had the units manufactured and found actual buyers, they needed to buy-back the inventory.

As the inventory was bought back, no additional Cross-Sells would occur.

The primary admin accounts were used to determine whether the resell functionality was triggered or not.

After all units were bought back, the product was considered out of stock and removed from view!

We utilized WooCommerce Account Funds to permit users to load up a balance.

As users purchased items, their balance would decrease. Once items were purchased back, they could either request a payout or convert their Dokan Balance into their Account Balance.

This was intended to help reduce the amount of transfer fees that would be incurred throughout the process.

If a user wanted to continue to use their balance to buy more inventory, they wouldn’t need to first draw the balance out and then make additional payments.

Users received a larger profit, companies were able to put more into manufacturing, and Novanty was able to yield higher profits.

This version of Novanty was a minimally-viable product (MVP) designed to showcase proof of concept to investors and to have reviewed by regulators.

After the solution was built, it was realized that the Cross-Sell Functionality wasn’t well received by potential users of the platform.

Later on, we were brought back to create a streamlined version of Novanty to remove the Cross-Sell Functionality and focus more on a Consignment offering.

Most of the functionality remained, but the concept was still hard to sell to potential businesses.

Novanty changed gears again and started offering Manufacturing Financing to businesses directly.

This was in addition to assisting businesses with sourcing manufactures and providing consultation services throughout the entire manufacturing process.

Sometimes your first idea isn’t going to be the best idea. However, you have to be able to try so that you can realize what might need to change.

We are here to take your ideas, bring them to life with an expertly crafted solution, and continue to work with you as your business evolves.