“We wanted to offer our customers payment options that would be as efficient and reliable as our own products”
Christian Janhsen, Head of E-Commerce at Gebrüder Schulte GmbH
20%
more invoice payments
30%
larger baskets
89%
acceptance rate
Schulte: The leading supplier of efficient warehouse systems
In 1921, the Schulte brothers founded their metal goods factory, despite the economic crisis in Germany at the time. Through continuous innovations, they led the company to great success over the years. Today, Schulte is under the stewardship of the third generation and stands as a leading provider of shelving systems in the DACH market. With approximately 400 employees and annual sales reaching the triple-digit million mark, the company has firmly established itself as a renowned and respected company in the region.
Schulte’s recipe for success lies in its comprehensive range of services and customized solutions that meet the requirements of its clientele in various sectors. Whether in industry, DIY stores, specialty stores, or delivery startups – Schulte offers individual shelving and storage solutions to increase productivity and efficiency in its clientele’s warehouses. The company continuously introduces new products and expands its production capacity while maintaining a strong commitment to customer satisfaction.
Omnichannel: A new challenge in the B2B buying process
Schulte has continuously faced new challenges since the company was founded over a century ago. One of the most significant challenges in recent years has been catering to the increasing demand for omnichannel experiences among today’s B2B buyers, specifically for streamlined purchasing and payment processes. Schulte has already taken the first step towards digitization and omnichannel: The company’s customers can buy Schulte’s products in person on-site and order them online via the company’s webshop. Nevertheless, a solution to enable an optimal omnichannel payment experience has been missing until now: the ability to pay quickly and easily by invoice across every channel.
Schulte’s expectations of BNPL
Buy Now Pay Later solutions like invoice payment and installment plans have become essential for ensuring a positive customer experience. However, Schulte encountered challenges when it came to implementing these payment options across all their sales channels. These challenges centered on two key pain points. Managing purchase on account in-house demanded significant operational resources. It also entailed considerable financial risk.
Working with a commercial insurance company wasn’t ideal either, resulting in long waiting times for customers. Schulte wanted more. They expected a BNPL provider to provide nothing less than a quick and seamless buying experience for their existing and new customers: “Business customers shouldn’t have to wait a long time to get their order approved; such hurdles cause frustration to buyers and may even blow the deal.”
Partnering with Mondu
Schulte found the ideal partner in Mondu. In addition to providing a flexible range of payment methods and terms and meeting Schulte’s high expectations for a smooth payment process, they were particularly impressed by the motivated and energetic customer support: “With Mondu on our side, we have a partner who is always ready to help us and delivers solution-oriented options in real time!”
After Schulte implemented its new BNPL offering in their online checkout, they soon expanded the payment options to their offline sales channels. Schulte’s employees now have the option to close deals on site and offer digital invoice purchasing to their online business customers.
Mondu’s real-time credit check and high approval rate have significantly shortened the waiting time for invoice purchase approval, particularly for offline sales. In addition, Schulte can close deals significantly faster while reducing internal risks and processing times.
The results: more invoice payments, larger shopping baskets
With Mondu’s BNPL solution, Schulte was able to achieve its goals and ensure high customer satisfaction. Mondu enables Schulte to offer invoice purchasing to 89 percent of all potential business customers.
Schulte also saw a 20% increase in orders placed by invoice thanks to Mondu’s BNPL. These types of orders tend to have a significantly higher value than those placed using other payment methods. In fact, Schulte’s AOV is 30% higher among B2B buyers who use invoice payment compared to other payment methods.
“We’re delighted to see both our customers happy about the new payment option they have, as well as our service team, who are able to close more deals faster thanks to the pay later option.” – Christian Janhsen, Head of E-Commerce, Gebrüder Schulte GmbH & Co. KG
