Madison Photo unifies store, website, and lab with dakis

Where they started

Madison came to dakis early, back when the need was simple: a website the shop could not build on its own, with its products on it. dakis was the right fit because the product database, online printing, and the catalog were already built to work together, rather than stitched from separate tools. The in-store kiosks came later.

For years, that was the shape of it. dakis ran the website and the product side while the rest of the shop ran on its own systems. The pieces worked, but they did not yet talk to each other.

“We were being held together with spit and bailing wire, as the saying goes. It was past time to update.”

Bringing it together

Madison came to dakis early, back when the need was simple: a website the shop could not build on its own, with its products on it. dakis was the right fit because the product database, online printing, and the catalog were already built to work together, rather than stitched from separate tools. The in-store kiosks came later.

For years, that was the shape of it. dakis ran the website and the product side while the rest of the shop ran on its own systems. The pieces worked, but they did not yet talk to each other.

"We're probably spending a quarter of the time we used to."

Key results

Before everything was connected, adding a product meant entering it in the point of sale and then again in dakis. Now the systems sync. Website orders flow into the point of sale and out to shipping without data duplication, and Bret only steps in when a new item needs a closer look.

The dakis-managed Manufacturer Instant Rebates service tells a similar story. Bret used to handle rebates himself: loading CSV updates week after week while vendors constantly changed their rules and promotions. It ate hours and eventually became unsustainable.

"How much is your time worth?"

For Bret, the math was clear. With dakis managing the rebates, they stay accurate and current, and the hours go back into running the shop.
 

We asked Bret what he would tell another retailer considering dakis, and he zeroed in on what actually moves the needle: the product database and the rebate service are the two he would hammer home first, then printing tied into the point of sale, the ability to add custom and used items, and a team that responds the same day.

Nearly 80 years in, Madison has lasted by adapting rather than standing still. dakis is part of how it keeps doing that.