Company Name: Family Twist

Location: France, Europe

Industry: Leisure

Established: 2012

Company Size: <50

Odoo Users: <30

Hosting Type: Online

Apps: Invoicing, Accounting, Documents, Discuss, Contacts

Implementing Partner: WeAdviz

Based in Paris, France, Family Twist is a luxury travel agency planning tailored trips for families. Growing fast and handling a large number of transactions, the company needed an advanced accounting and invoicing tool able to keep up with this fast-pace while offering a clearer overview of operations and cutting-edge features. Odoo was the chosen solution, and played a key role in tripling the turnover in 3 years without the need of growing the team further.

The luxury travel agency Family Twist provides solutions for parents and grandparents wanting to share a short break in Europe with kids. The team focuses on tailoring a unique and worry-free experience in some big European cities such as Paris, London, Amsterdam or Rome, and takes care of everything (transportation, accommodation, activities and even photo books). 

Family Twist initially started to use Cegid to manage daily financial entries, as it was the software used by the accounting firm they were working with for the annual review of the accounts. However, over time, Family Twist noticed that this tool was no longer meeting all of their expectations, and that some improvements had to be made in the following areas: 

 Managing the hyper-growth

 Structuring the financial processes 

 Handling a significant volume of financial transactions 

 Tracking numbers meticulously

 Controlling costs effectively

In order to keep offering the best experience possible to its customer, the agency had a crucial need to implement a user-friendly accounting and invoicing software, able to handle data in an advanced and comprehensive way. The team took some time to identify a few softwares that might be a good fit, to compare them and to choose the best one to answer their needs. Amongst them, Family Twist considered Spendesk, Regate, Pennylane, Libeo and Odoo. 

After thorough benchmarking, Odoo was the chosen software because of its incredible value for money, the well-designed standard features and also the custom development capabilities. Furthermore, Odoo makes it possible to handle a large volume of data with automated processes and cutting-edge features, which aligns with the growth ambition of the agency and simplifies the daily workflows.

Implementing a new management tool is a strategic step, which requires a rigorous and methodical approach. With the valuable help of WeAdviz, an implementing partner, Odoo’s solution was set up in three key phases, that lasted in total 3 months to be up and running.

The very first step was to conduct a thorough market analysis to identify the most suitable solution. WeAdviz studied carefully the available solutions and assessed their alignment with Family Twist’s requirements. The different features of Odoo’s software have been understood, tested and simulated through real-life use cases to ensure it was the right fit for the agency.

Deploying Odoo’s tool was done following a well-defined roadmap to guarantee a seamless and efficient integration of the software within the organization. This phase involved the following key steps:

• Configuring the company’s parameters
• Integrating a supplier database with the important details such as the name and bank information
• Setting up technical configuration with the accounting team
• Defining a structured analytical framework 
• Synchronizing bank accounts to automate and secure transactions 
• Providing in-depth training to teams to facilitate rapid and optimal adoption of the software

Finally, a major challenge of the implementation was internal financial processes optimization. During this stage, the goal was to:

• Define entry rules tailored to the company’s needs, such as multi-currency, banking relationships and validation workflows
• Implement XML payments to facilitate automation and transaction tracking
• Establish a structured banking framework to improve financial flow management
• Develop an efficient bank reconciliation process to ensure data consistency and reliability

Of course, configuring a new management software can come with some obstacles. Family Twist and WeAdviz worked closely together to overcome a few complexities and make sure everything was running smoothly to handle operations with the most powerful tool possible:

• Multiple currencies: Family Twist deals with international transactions. Therefore, it was crucial to handle multiple currencies with accurate financial reporting and updated exchange rates. 
• Accounting customization: The agency had specific general and analytical accounting needs. Leveraging Odoo’s tagging features, a harmonized classification system has been established to ensure consistency across reporting and financial analysis.
• Data migration from Cegid to Odoo: Financial data needed to find a way between Odoo and Cegid, with the creation of dedicated journals and accounts compliant with Cegid. Adaptations to the Charts of Accounts (PCG) and methodological consistency were applied to streamline the data transfer between the platforms. As Cegid was, back then, still the software used by the external accounting firm they were working with, it was crucial to create data exports that could be used for the annual review of accounts.
• Expense management and tracking: Tracking expenses over multiple periods and cost centers had to be structured to make sure financial allocations were accurate. Therefore, a robust deferred expense management system has been set up to track precisely and automate costs distribution over time.

After a quick 3-months implementation process and some roadblocks solved with the help of WeAdviz, Odoo was fully integrated into the Family Twist organization. Using this powerful, advanced tool to handle accounting had, and continues to have, a very positive impact on a daily basis. This optimized the management, offered better financial visibility and saved a significant amount of time for the teams, amongst other benefits. 

“Odoo’s implementation enhanced both efficiency and financial precision. The result? A dynamic digital ecosystem that meets operational demands but also scales effortlessly with the company’s growth. The turnover has more than tripled in 3 years, with yet still only 2 people managing day-to-day finances.” - Magali Déchelette - CEO & Founder of Family Twist

The accounting team handles a bigger workload quicker without the need to recruit any more employees, despite the hypergrowth. Odoo also saves time that can be reinvested in other operations such as management control, financial reporting and analysis, and processes optimization. 

The agency has made the most of a successful digital transformation, enhancing both the performance and operational efficiency. Thanks to an intuitive interface and a lot of adaptability, Odoo’s solution has streamlined the workflows, making daily operations more resilient, precise, and competitive than ever before. 

Today, the finance department of Family Twist is fully integrated into the processes, which makes it a business partner rather than a cost center. The benefits of a clearer overview extend to the rest of the company’s departments, such as operations, marketing and sales, which no longer are confused about payments, invoices, etc.