A Welsh tech firm is supporting the the retail industry to streamline operations, grow faster and unlock circular economy initiatives.
Founded in 2015 by Jonathan and Louise Petrie, Monmouth-based Dot On helps retailers manage their sales and supply chain operations in one system. Whilst many businesses struggle with outdated, fragmented technology that slows them down, the firm's technology enables retailers to connect all pre-existing systems and flexibly operate them all from a single system, saving time, reducing mistakes and assisting growth.
To make this happen, the company turned to the Welsh Government’s SMART Flexible Innovation Support (SMART FIS), a programme providing funding, expertise and specialist support to help organisations develop and implement innovative solutions.
With expert support, the company was able to:
- Identify the key challenges facing retailers – like customer frustration, operational inefficiencies, limited ability to scale and growing sustainability pressures caused by siloed and inflexible systems.
- Develop a detailed three-year innovation plan, setting out how to build a next-gen sales and supply chain management system.
- Bring that plan to life – developing new features and rolling out the technology to more businesses.
As a result, the company has tripled its staff with plans to double again in the coming year.
Jonathan Petrie, CEO and Co-founder of Dot On, said:
“There’s nothing like this support anywhere else in the world. Wales leads in innovation support and SMART FIS is truly transformative.”
Louise Petrie, CFO and Co-founder of Dot On, added:
“It’s not just about funding. It gives businesses like ours the flexibility to adapt and grow, helping us push the boundaries of what’s possible.”
The company worked with the Innovation team to create a centralised platform that manages sales and supply chain operations, saving time, reducing errors and improving customer experiences.
In 2021, the company secured £98,000 in Welsh Government innovation funding, which helped move the company from concept to a working solution, allowing real-world testing and refinement.
In 2023, the company received £37,000 in SMART FIS Level 1 funding, to develop a detailed innovation plan. The Innovation Specialist worked closely with the company to refine its research and development (R&D) strategy, ensuring its roadmap aligned with the ever-changing needs of the retail sector.
Since securing SMART FIS Level 1 funding, the company has seen its revenue grow by 400%. The success of this plan led to further support in 2024 and 2025, including SMART FIS Level 2 funding of £400,000, helped it accelerate growth, improving platform functionality and scaling up operations.
Jonathan added:
“Fragmented and inflexible sales and supply chain systems have been a problem for decades. Something as simple as changing a shipping address on a customer order should take seconds, not 10–20 minutes as it currently does – across multiple systems. SMART FIS has given us the support to build a system that fixes these inefficiencies, transforming how businesses operate.”
The impact of Dot On’s innovation on the retail sector has been significant:
- Retailers using its platform have cut operational costs by 4%, saving one business £400,000 a year.
- Customer returns have dropped by 5% and processing time has been cut by 90%.
- Customer services overall labour cost has been reduced by 33%.
- Inventory accuracy improved by 28%.
- Customer satisfaction has jumped by 15%.
The company’s success has also gained international recognition. In 2024, the company was introduced to luxury goods company, LVMH, as one of the “best of what the UK has to offer” by the UK Department for Business and Trade.
