Gloucester company makes the world more manageable

By JOHN B. EVERTON
Special to Essex County Newspapers

If you’re trying to move tableware, hammers, shoes or bananas between countries, RockPort Trade Systems has the tools to help companies do it faster, cheaper and easier, says company founder and CEO Sue Welch.

In the international business world, RockPort is known as a global sourcing and supply software system provider. The software helps managers track products, materials and prices as goods travel across international borders.

"We help people streamline their management process and cut costs from every aspect of the production and delivery schedule," says Welch, a Westfield native who moved to Cape Ann in the early 1980s. "Expanding beyond national borders requires the development of new business processes and information systems. Recognizing these challenges is what RockPort Trade Systems is all about."

Established in 1992, the Gloucester-based company appears well on its way to helping businesses improve their profit margins in the 21st century.

With 75 employees and offices in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom, RockPort boasts more than 3,800 users in more 40 countries. RockPort's revenues were expected to top $10 million in 1998, prompting industry analysts Deloitte and Touche to include the company in its "Fast Track 500," a compilation of the country's fastest-growing businesses.

RockPort's largest clients _ including retail giants Home Depot, Liz Claiborne and J.C. Penney _ routinely import $500 million to $5 billion in goods each year. Because these companies sell an array of products, they tend to use a lot of suppliers. But multiple products and multiple suppliers can create multiple problems for company managers.

"Using multiple vendors allows comparison shopping. Sometimes a single vendor can't keep a company fully supplied. Or perhaps it's not wise to rely on a single vendor," Welch explains. "Moving goods and materials from place to place, however, can be costly, time-consuming and complicated. Financial payments or letters of credit must be arranged, and companies must abide by international trade agreements such as NAFTA and GATT."

And when you're transporting goods from faraway places, a lot of things can go wrong, Welch says. Market prices can change, exchange rates fluctuate and shipments get held up. As a result, productivity and profitability suffer.

"We believe doing business across borders should be just as easy as doing business across the street," Welch says. "Our job is to smooth the data and make the process seamless. Product managers, purchasing agents and buyers need to know their goods will arrive on time, in sufficient quantity and at the price they expect."

As a software provider, Welch's quest is to eliminate the "supply chain paper trail" that often plagues many business managers. "When I was introduced to the manufacturing environment in 1983, a lot of work still wasn't being done with computers. I looked around and said, `There's got to be a better way,'" Welch says, shaking her head at the recollection.

Welch developed her business acumen working as a buyer and auditor for Zayre. The company recognized her potential and set her on a fast-track program, where she learned logistics and import operation procedures.

She and software developer Jack Zakarian first teamed up to form Import Management Consulting Corp. in Framingham. But when the duo first introduced their vision of a standardized electronic system in 1984, the global business community failed to embrace the concept and the company failed.

"At that time, we were just too far out on the cutting edge," Welch says, her eyes reflecting the disappointment she felt at the time.

Now the entire world is excited about the advent of electronic commerce, and the ideas Welch and Zakarian first tried to peddle are suddenly in high demand.

RockPort's competitors include software giants SAP and Oracle, but Welch says her Gloucester-based firm offers clients a lot more bang for their buck.

"RockBlocks was designed with an international focus from the start. Our systems are also more flexible, and we can implement them faster," she explains.

New York-based Frederick Atkins Inc., which supplies its retail clients with about $200 million in home supplies annually, is one global player that made the move to RockPort in 1998. Until integrating RockPort's RockBlocks software system, the company was still tracking its shipments manually. Atkins has since reported double-digit savings.

"These are compelling financial reasons to source globally or to expand one's global sourcing operation," Welch says.

For Welch, being located in Gloucester has both pluses and minuses. "We have a lot more business opportunities on the South Shore than the North Shore, and I also have to do a lot of international travel," she says. "But Gloucester is so beautiful I can never wait to return home."