Authentic Style: Upgrade from NAV 2016 to the modern Business Central solution

Passion for young fashion

Authentic Style is a family-run fashion wholesaler based in Marktbreit, Bavaria, specializing in young fashion. Since its founding in 1991, the company has grown steadily and now operates Europe's largest young fashion instant warehouse with an area of 30,000 square meters in the Lower Franconia region. Based on this warehouse structure, Authentic Style supplies national and international customers with the latest merchandise within three days. The company carries several private labels and is also active in direct sales with its own online shop.

Modernizing without losing the familiar

Authentic Style had been working with a NAV 2016 solution for years, which was functional but increasingly reaching its technological limits. The user interface looked outdated, performance and stability were declining, and important new features from the Microsoft ecosystem could no longer be integrated. At the same time, maintenance costs were increasing, system maintenance was becoming more complex, and upgradeability was increasingly limited.

For Authentic Style, it was therefore clear that it needed a modern, powerful ERP platform that integrated the latest technologies, made everyday work easier, and at the same time preserved the existing process logic. The goal was to lay the foundation for further growth with a future-proof system, with as little changeover effort as possible for employees and maximum investment security.

Collaboration based on trust and continuity

The collaboration between Authentic Style and BE-terna is based on a long-standing partnership. In 2016, the Navision project was implemented jointly, and since then BE-terna has continuously supported the company in its day-to-day operations. This proximity and deep understanding of systems, processes, and individual requirements formed the basis for the current upgrade from Microsoft Dynamics NAV to Dynamics 365 Business Central.

A key factor in the success of the project was the close integration of the service and project teams. The long-standing account manager remained involved throughout the entire project phase and acted as a constant point of contact. This allowed existing knowledge, established processes, and new requirements to be seamlessly combined. Short communication channels, familiar contacts, and clear handover procedures ensured efficiency and stability—before, during, and after go-live.

“It was crucial for us to work with familiar contacts who have known our processes and our system for years. This enabled us to not only implement the upgrade technically, but also to use it specifically to further develop our solution – without disrupting our day-to-day business.”

Lothar Ullrich, Managing Director, Authentic Style

Tailor-made for everyday life in fashion wholesale

Despite the very standard upgrade, a number of individual requirements were implemented. These included, among others:

• Inventory-managed lots: Article packages that are managed as separate stock items – ideal for fashion wholesale.
• 1:1 reservations: Assignment of purchase orders to sales orders for maximum traceability and consistency in large orders.
• Replacement of multiple clients through the introduction of transfer and shadow warehouse debtors.
• Data cleansing to ensure consistent information in the new system

In addition to BE-terna Fashion for Dynamics 365 Business Central, Master Data Management (MDM), Business Intelligence (BI), PrintConnect, Shipping Label, E-Commerce, and BE-Code were used for flexible customization and process automation. This combination forms a compact but powerful system landscape that is specifically tailored to the requirements of fashion wholesalers.

Every milestone is progress

The project began with the creation of a prototype, which served as the basis for further implementation. In Release 1, an initial prototype was provided, which was expanded in the course of the project so that key users could navigate the new system independently shortly after the project started.

Release 2 saw the implementation and transfer of master data. The aim was to create a stable database on which all further processes could be based.

Release 3 was dedicated to mapping transaction data, including purchase orders and sales orders. This enabled the project team to work with real data and test central processes.

In Release 4, the communication points were integrated: EDI, the web shop, and other interfaces, as well as document layouts. Internal printing processes and checklists were also implemented.

This was followed by Release 5 with comprehensive integration tests, in which all system components were checked for interaction and data consistency.

The go-live took place with Release 6. The productive start went smoothly. Downstream processes were also able to continue without interruption. In accounting, several hundred invoices were successfully posted on the very first day.

Key Benefits for Authentic Style

1. Future-proof ERP basis without process disruptions: 
   The switch to Dynamics 365 Business Central enables technological modernization while maintaining proven processes—without disruptive changes in day-to-day business.
2. High user acceptance thanks to familiar operating logic:
   Thanks to a modern interface and consistent standardization, training costs were kept low and rapid acceptance was achieved in the specialist department.
3. Stable system landscape for growing business volume:
   The new ERP architecture is scalable, updatable, and investment-proof in the long term – designed for further growth in fashion wholesale.
4. More efficient warehouse and order processing:
   Structured reservations, inventory-managed lots, and simplified client structures have significantly improved transparency and traceability in operations.
5. Secure go-live despite limited resources:
   The project was successfully implemented despite limited internal capacities – thanks to a clear project structure, close cooperation, and many years of system expertise on both sides.

Reaching our goal together

Authentic Style is the best proof that ERP upgrades do not have to be risky. By relying on trusted partnerships and ensuring technical continuity, complex projects can be implemented efficiently and successfully. BE-terna provided support not only with its expertise, but also with its reliability and the confidence that we would reach our goal together.