The well-known shoe and fashion brand Birkenstock stands for a relaxed lifestyle, but on the way to transforming its North American operations, the company left nothing to chance and carefully planned every step.

Birkenstock’s technological transformation included the creation of a new subsidiary in Canada and the replacement of an outdated, 16-year-old AS-400 system in the United States. This should be done using the latest technology from SAP S/4HANA as well as the industry-specific functions of the SAP S/4HANA solution for fashion and vertical business is supported, will be replaced.

Birkenstock’s project team, led by Joshua Milos, Senior Director of IT for Birkenstock Americas, worked closely with the SAP partner Rizing together to put operations in Canada and the USA on a new foundation. The company now has an optimized, modern platform that supports its solid growth.

The “greenest” greenfield

Birkenstock has been represented in the USA for a long time. In 2019, the company decided to establish a new subsidiary in Canada to better serve its growing market there. With no existing infrastructure in the country – there were no offices, no employees, no technical basis – this was a greenfield project in the truest sense of the word. From the outset, Milos and his team saw the Canadian project as a blueprint for the planned redesign of Birkenstock’s US operations and as the perfect opportunity to lay the foundation for future growth.

“This was the greenest greenfield implementation imaginable and gave us the opportunity to use the project as a template for future expansion,” he explains. “Our launch in Canada gave us the opportunity to test and adapt our processes before expanding the rollout to other regions.”

The Birkenstock team worked with Rizing to create a robust foundation for the new subsidiary. It relies on the partner’s system architecture expertise to ensure that the new infrastructure would be scalable, future-proof and meet the company’s specific needs. “Rizing provided us with pre-configured tenants and the necessary expertise so we could get started quickly,” emphasizes Milos, adding that this enabled the seamless implementation of advanced functions such as order management, inventory control and financial reporting.

Standardization of processes was critical: the Canadian project team worked closely with U.S. colleagues to identify and incorporate best practices from U.S. business into this project. Rizing helped Birkenstock map out its business processes and configure the new SAP system to meet these standards. This ensured that the processes in Canada corresponded to the established procedures in the USA.

Immediate benefits

After implementation in Canada, the advantages of a modern ERP system quickly became apparent. Within months, Birkenstock Canada’s operations were running with a level of efficiency and transparency not achievable with legacy systems in the United States.

The real-time reporting and analytics capabilities of the new SAP system gave Birkenstock instant insight into its operations, enabling faster decision-making and better allocation of resources. Automated workflows and integrated systems significantly reduce manual processes. This made it possible to improve operational efficiency and free up resources for strategic tasks. The SAP infrastructure is also already prepared for Birkenstock Canada’s future growth, as it is designed to handle larger loads and more comprehensive operational processes.

Patience…and partnerships

While the greenfield implementation in Canada was straightforward, the transition from the old system to SAP S/4HANA in the USA, a so-called brownfield conversion, presented some challenges for Birkenstock. The company’s legacy system had not been upgraded for 16 years, resulting in inefficiencies and manual processes. The global pandemic, a private equity investment and the IPO added additional complexity. Milos knew that being patient and finding consensus with stakeholders was crucial to implementing the changes: “We had to figure out where the problems and challenges lay in order to achieve our ROI.”

Rizing helped Birkenstock overcome these hurdles by leveraging its industry expertise to help develop a compelling business case for the global leadership team. In order to achieve acceptance at all levels of the company, the project team invested a lot of time in communicating with stakeholders in the company. For example, it visualized the relevant processes in a sandbox environment to better illustrate the technology for everyone.

Another important step was the formation of a superuser group made up of key stakeholders in the company. This group received extensive training and was given responsibility for the system after implementation. “The user group made decisions, took responsibility and was heavily involved in the process,” explains Milos.

Keyword “Clean Core”: Clean core, clean data

Birkenstock has ensured that its system is future-proof, flexible and upgradeable by sticking to the “clean core” approach, meaning it makes greater use of standard functions and avoids unnecessary customizations. “We followed an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) approach. Only the minimum scope required for go-live was implemented,” says Milos.

Another key aspect was clean, accurate data before going live. “Get your master data in order before you start the first transactions in the system. This has a big impact on daily processes,” says Milos. Focusing on data integrity made a smooth migration of data possible. It also enabled the company to gain immediate benefits from its new system.

Birkenstock relied heavily on Rizing’s expertise in SAP best practices to implement its clean core strategy. The SAP partner helped Birkenstock identify areas where standard functionality could be leveraged, reducing the need for custom development.

Integration and real-time insights

By implementing SAP S/4HANA, Birkenstock achieved a unified system across wholesale, retail and digital channels that provides real-time insights and optimized business processes. “We can do more sales reporting and look at data holistically rather than in silos,” Milos notes.

The move has also improved supply chain visibility, which is critical to managing global uncertainties such as tariffs. “The ability to better support our consumers and respond flexibly to change was a game changer,” says Milos. Additionally, Rizing’s industry-specific solutions and deep understanding of the fashion retail sector ensured that Birkenstock was able to leverage the benefits of SAP S/4HANA.

SAP S/4HANA as an accelerator for the fashion industry

Birkenstock chose the SAP S/4HANA solution for fashion and vertical business because of industry-specific functions such as allocations, availability checks and the retail item master. “For fashion companies, the use of SAP S/4HANA for fashion and vertical business is crucial due to its advanced features and better product management,” emphasizes Milos.

The preconfigured one Fashion Suite Accelerator Rizing for SAP S/4HANA for fashion and vertical business also accelerated the implementation process. With immediately ready-to-use order types, calculation schemes and other processes, Birkenstock was able to concentrate on business-specific adjustments.

A complete success

Despite initial skepticism from Birkenstock’s leadership, which had faced challenges in past projects, the implementation of SAP S/4HANA in North America went live on schedule and was a complete success. It was clear to the team from the start that the U.S. implementation had to be a big bang, with wholesale, retail, and digital channels going live at the same time. To ensure a smooth transition, the team extended the initial schedule by six months to allow for more in-depth testing of the software.

From the SAP partner’s perspective, the project was also a success, said Javier Zayas Cela, Business Development Senior Director, Fashion, of Rizing: “Partnering with Birkenstock on this transformation has been incredibly rewarding. The openness to change and strategic vision in the transition from legacy systems to the advanced features of SAP S/4HANA have positioned the brand well so that the company can leverage the new technologies and accelerate its growth.”

The transformation has not only modernized Birkenstock’s operational processes. The company has also been equipped with the tools to adapt and thrive in the ever-changing fashion industry. In the future, the company will continue to focus on continuous improvements and optimization and use its SAP system to drive innovation and growth. “This is just the beginning,” Milos is convinced. “We look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead.”