23rd century announces SAP Business One cloud implementation

Based on a press release by SAP, we implied below that the Nano Appliance implementation was DBS’s only SAP implementation to date. DBS MD, Richard Maulana however got in touch with us to let us know that conclusion was just wrong as Nano is actually a September 2012 implementation and that since then they have signed up over 200 customers in Zimbabwe and beyond. We have posted the clarification article here.

Since the launch last year of Cumulus, the cloud of version of the SAP ERP platform it hasn’t been clear how well the product is doing uptake-wise in the market. We have asked executives at Devoted Business Solutions (the 23rd subsidiary Cumulus falls under) a few times and gotten just a ‘it’s doing quite ok’ response with no specifics. Today however, a press release sent to us announces the implementation of the system by a household appliances retailer called Nano Appliance Centre providing meant to encourage other businesses to consider the application.

Nano, the release says, has moved from another accounting software (name not given) and spreadsheets they were using for inventory. According to the release, the move was necessitated by exponential growth by the retailer from just 1 branch to 6 within a few months.

A Nano executive, Simanga Madhlabutha, is quoted in the release: “After reviewing other products, SAP Business One OnDemand was the only solution that fulfilled all the criteria. The fact that this solution sits in the cloud means that it could be deployed quickly with all the functionality we required and without any additional IT infrastructure or downtime.”

As for the Cumulus uptake outside the Nano implementation, we are gathering that this is actually DBS’s first Cumulus implementation to date. A somewhat similar press release posted by SAP itself says so:

Still, can’t say we are surprised much as there hasn’t been much talk about the system since launch. And being pretty much pioneers of cloud based software services for local business in Zimbabwe, there’s a lot of change of business mindsets that needs to happen. Plus people don’t trust yet that they’ll always be connected when they need to so it just adds to the aversion. This should get some businesses considering it though.

The release smacks of one of those testimonial pieces that a supplying company (DBA) asks their customer (Nano) to do. The “tell the world how awesome our product is” kind. So we read it with that in mind, and you should too. Here’s a link to the full press release sent to us.