The Berkshire’s center of online fulfillment David Crane owns Excelsior Integrated, the local version of Amazon

By John Townes

LEE — If you’ve ever ordered a product online, even if it was from Amazon or an overseas company, it’s possible that item may have passed through the Berkshires.

There’s a chance that product was actually stored and shipped from the 110,000 square foot headquarters and distribution center that Excelsior Integrated operates in Lee.

Excelsior Integrated utilizes a mix of sophisticated technology and hands-on labor to manage and store inventory, process and pack orders, and handle the logistics of shipping, tracking and delivering products. It provides an array of services for manufacturers, product marketers, e-commerce sites, brick-and-mortar stores, and other clients. It also helps clients operate in this is rapid-paced environment to ensure their products reach consumers in the most cost-effective, timely and accurate way possible.

“It’s a complex business, but basically, our clients provide us with their products, and we store them and dole them out to their customers,” said David Crane, the owner and CEO of Excelsior Integrated, who operates the company with son and business partner, Chris.

The company is headquartered in the former Country Curtains warehouse at 705 Pleasant St. (Route 102) in Lee, but Excelsior Integrated also operates a distribution facility in Fresno, Calif. That facility ships orders to locations in the western United States.

“Having a presence on the West Coast is an advantage for larger clients because it reduces the distance products have to be shipped to customers there,” Crane said.

Excelsior Integrated currently has about 70 clients, which range from small start-ups to established companies, Crane said. They include companies throughout the United States and overseas.

These companies either make products themselves, contract out the manufacturing of items, or market the products of other businesses. Some clients sell products directly to consumers through their own online stores or mail-order operations. They may also market and sell their products through Amazon, Wal Mart or other online retailers. Excelsior also collaborates with companies that wholesale their products to brick-andmortar stores.

Crane declined to identify his clients, but said their products include a mixture of high-value items, technology, and consumer products for a variety of markets. Specific items have included fine art, 3D Printers, smart notebooks, gift cards, bicycles, camera equipment, dried flowers, and medical devices. The businesses range from start-ups to established firms. The majority of Excelsior Integrated’s clients are small or mid-sized businesses.

Excelsior begins working with businesses that are in the early stages of developing products, who are testing and launching campaigns on crowdfunding sites such as Kickstarter. These relationships continue as Excelsior’s clients scale up and grow.

“It’s fun working with new companies,” said Crane. “They have a lot of energy and enthusiasm, and it’s very satisfying helping them get started and grow.”

Each client will have between 40 and 200 products on site at Excelsior at any given time, Crane said. The average volume of orders shipped for individual clients daily can range from 20 up to 1,000. Volume varies based on circumstances within each company and seasonal fluctuations.

Excelsior Integrated’s operation has many facets, including sophisticated systems for the business aspects of or- der fulfillment, and a staff that handles the labor-intensive job of packing and shipping.

“The company has always been strong on the technology side, and we use IT extensively to automate business processes,” he said. “At the same time, we don’t use robots to pack and ship orders. That’s very hands-on.”

The company has 35 permanent employees in Lee and 10 in Fresno. Temporary employees are brought in during busy periods.

“We have a great core staff,” said Crane. “It’s like a family.”

Deep Berkshire Roots

Excelsior Integrated has existed in its current incarnation since 2005. It grew out of three companies — Crane & Co., now known as Crane Currency, Excelsior Printing, and Berkshire Information Management.

Excelsior Printing was founded as a print shop in the late 19th century in North Adams. At its peak it was a major operation in that city. In 1967, it was acquired by Crane & Co., the large paper company founded in Dalton which has supplied currency paper to the U.S. government since 1879. David Crane is a member of the Crane family that founded the original Crane & Co. in 1801. Now headquartered in Boston, Crane’s currency operations were sold to a Connecticut-based firm for $800 million in 2018.

Crane & Co. had also operated a stationery division based in North Adams which it sold to its employees in 2015. Ten years earlier, David Crane had purchased Excelsior Printing from the Crane family and established it as an independent business. He bought Excelsior Printing as the demand for printed materials was beginning to decline, while digital and online communications and services were on the rise.

In response to this trend, Excelsior began to focus more on order-fulfillment and digital services. It formed a working relationship with Berkshire Information Systems, a provider of fulfillment, mailing, inventory management and

Cannabis

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“Today is very different from when we first opened up our doors in Great Barrington,” said Tom Winstanley, chief marketing director for Theory Wellness in Great Barrington.

“Obviously, being close to the New York border — that had a wide range of advantages in terms of traffic,” Winstanley said. “For a few years we saw a really large demand in a marketplace that had a supply that was not meeting demand. And so we have had a great, wonderful start into the rec market with the Great Barrington store.”

Brendan McKee, co-founder of Silver Therapeutics, which has a dispensary in Williamstown, opened in 2019.

“I think there are obviously pockets of saturation across Massachusetts,” he said. He added that “the first closure of an adult retail actually occurred in Northampton three or four months ago. So I think there is a market correction going on in several ways And then areas with several retail stores are competing with one another in more of an intense way relative to the pricing.”

Berkshire County, in fact, has a relatively high number of cannabis licenses, rivaling those of counties with much larger populations, according to figures posted by the state Cannabis Control Commission.

The figures for April show there were

110 licenses in the Berkshires, including 38 retail operations. That compares to

137 in Hampden County with 35 retail; 74 in Hampshire County, 32 retail; and 151 in Middlesex County, 72 retail. The total number of licenses in the Berkshires increased by four from March, including one for an additional retail operation.

Berkshire cannabis facilities have experienced a lot since they began operating in the state. The Berkshire Business Journal spoke to four of them and this is what they said:

BLOOM BROTHERS

Girard said the emerging cannabis industry in the county was strong enough to play a significant role in the local economy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I find that cannabis has created a kind of hyper-tourism market for the Berkshires at a time when the Berkshires really needed it most,” Girard said, at a time when “a lot of businesses, like hotels, restaurants, were shuttering.”

Dealing with state-imposed pandemic restrictions also led to a greater focus on personalized customer service.

“That resulted in, I think, a much better customer experience,” he said.”

Other than the tourism advantage, Girard said the county benefits from the lower cost of real estate here, compared to large urban areas.

“(An urban area) is probably so unattainable that I as an operator have to look at my options,” he said.

Girard was involved in real estate in the Berkshires when the state legalized cannabis and had a commercial site available in Pittsfield. Cannabis operators from other states soon began calling him about his property, which was in the right zoning location for a cannabis operation, because they wanted to partner with him.

They “were throwing around ludicrous dollar amounts,” he said. “I mean ludicrous amounts.”

Girard said he thought, “I should look into that as a way to benefit his family and create jobs in the Berkshires.”

Operating Bloom Brothers with his brothers Nick and Ben, and his wife, Mig Girard, he said the company only has a retail store, adding, “That’s what we do best ... We’re more like a concierge-based business, which is why I feel we have connected so well with our customers.”

New Yorkers have made up a large percentage of his customer base but are beginning to peel away, he said.

“At what point do they stop driving here even if ((there is) wider selection and price,” he said. “We are still registering new customers but also losing customers to other states.”

“I would definitely not open another location in the Berkshires, personally,” Girard said of the current market. “I feel the people who are now just opening, they are going to struggle.”

Canna Provisions

“Cannabis is still a really young industry so it’s not so predictable, I guess,” said Sanders, CEO and co-owner with Williams at Canna Provisions.

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That makes it difficult to predict what will happen over the next few years, but she said one thing is obvious today.

“There is massive oversupply; there are too many dispensaries,” she said. “it’s just not good. The pie stays the same size.”

In the Berkshires, she said, “Pittsfield has a ton of dispensaries, Great Barrington has a ton of dispensaries. So those are all learning lessons for municipalities that think it’s just like alcohol, that if we have 20 liquor licenses it’s all going to be great, but it is really very different [with cannabis].”

She said the “real challenge is that this isn’t just business as usual because we are federally illegal still. And we have an exorbitant tax rate because we can’t deduct business expenses because of [current federal law]. I can’t deduct marketing. I can’t deduct payroll. It is really, really challenging. I can’t do what a normal liquor store would have in deductions.

“I think only a third of cannabis companies nationally are profitable,” she added.

“Ultimately, I think there is going to be consolidation,” she said. “I think there is going to be probably a stabilization after 2023, but I think ’23 is going to be a tough year for everyone in cannabis. I I think this is going to be the washout year.”

Speaking of neighboring states, Sanders said legalization there is not a negative for the local industry, as some might believe, but “one of the best things we’ve seen.” It creates more potential customers who could come to the Berkshires as tourists or day visitors, she said.

Canna Provisions also is “in active talks with several stores in Massachusetts,” Sanders added, looking for the right partner, while “building up our wholesale to a full suite of products.”

Sanders said they would like to acquire another store in a desirable location, adding, “We wouldn’t start from scratch today in this market.”

Taxes, take “way too much money,” Sanders said, “and I think as other states come online we will have to watch that very carefully to make sure that we are not penalizing so much that people find it attractive to go elsewhere to avoid the tax.”

The chance of legalization on the federal level looks bleak given the make-up of Congress, she said.

“I’m really hoping that we can have a lot more forward thinking about cannabis,” Sanders said. “Realize that the sky has not fallen; we’ve added a ton of jobs here in Massachusetts. We have added a whole industry that has created a ton of opportunity for people.”

THEORY WELLNESS

“Today is very different from when we first opened up our doors in Great Barrington,” Winstanley said.

Theory opened a medical dispensary in 2017 and a recreational cannabis store in 2019.

“Obviously, being close to the New York border, that had a wide range of advantages in terms of traffic,” he said. “And so we’ve had a great, wonderful start into the rec (recreational) market with the Great Barrington store.

“And now when you take a step back, one of the things you hear is that there are dispensaries everywhere, and that is to some extent very true,” Winstanley said. “The market has adapted and normalized to some extent to demand.”

He added that “the landscape is very different; there is a lot of product in the state, a lot of retail and a lot of competition in the state, and really that is a benefit for all consumers.”

For a time, some thought the industry was “just printing money,” he said. But now operators are “getting to the point of thinking this industry is just as hard as it was on day one.”

As a company, he said, “We are constantly re-evaluating where we are in the marketplace.”

Theory Wellness also has fa- cilities in other states, including a store in Brattleboro, Vt. and dispensaries in Maine. The firm is close to opening a dispensary in Medford, outside Boston. and is building medical dispensaries in Ohio and New Jersey.

“We have a lot of irons in the fire, and a lot of that was created from the success we found in Massachusetts,” Winstanley said. “We have re-invested a lot of the capital generated.”

Federal legalization would solve a lot of banking-related issues the industry faces, Winstanley said, but probably not with a “one silver bullet reform ... I think see smaller progressive steps before that happens.”

Theory isn’t worried about new and larger markets opening in other states.

“(It) is continuing the path of adoption and normalization of cannabis and cannabis operations,” he said. “That to us is a net positive.”

Silver Therapeutics

McKee also cited customer service and employee satisfaction as keys for thriving in the cannabis business.

“We still have a bunch of the original team members in Williamstown,” he said. “So it has been a wild ride but it has been wonderful. We certainly see changes as well.”

Ultimately, oversupply “can drive down profitability,” McKee said. “I guess it is not unique because it has happened in other states, but it is happening in Massachusetts at this point in time. In terms of Silver Therapeutics, we are well positioned. We have a shop in Vermont and a lot of our customers are from Vermont.”

McKee lives in Washington, Vt. while regional manager Brian Mullaney resides in Shaftsbury. That made opening a dispensary in Bennington this year, “a natural for us,” McKee said.

“I think we have built a lot of loyalty, and I think that is a credit to the incredible [staff members] that we have,” he said. “I would have to say that our expectations have been exceeded, which is great and it is, again, a testament to the culture and the loyalty we have built in Williamstown.”

Silver Therapeutics also has a cultivation facility and dispensaries in Maine, while a craft growing facility is under construction in Boston.

“We know legalization and adult use in New York will impact our sales,” he said. “That being said, I think there is a product manufacturing that needs to occur that is still going to be several years before that can compete with Massachusetts for the quality of products and variety, and quite frankly cost.”

Pittsfield because no one else does that here.

“When we met with Maria about buying the business, we thought we could really turn this into something,” she said. “Since Maria occupied the location for so long, there are some structural things that need to be taken care of before we open.”

Having worked with Copolulos on a previous revitalization grant, Mendonca sees her as an asset to the community.

“Julie has been such a tremendous resource. Any questions, at any time, she’s answered. We really appreciate her help.”

Mendonca and Davis are able to finance much of the renovation project on their own, but believe that access to funding from the TDI is crucial. They are hoping to open this month.

“The grant would really get us over the top,” she said. “We have invested a little of our own savings, but being a small business we didn’t want to borrow more than we could afford.”

DPI, an organization of downtown Pittsfield merchants, views the TDI initiative as a huge boost for North Street.

“The opportunity for the downtown to have access to funding, is so key to revitalization,” managing director Rebecca Brien said. “One of the things that Julie and Mass Development has allowed for us to do is take all of those ‘what if’ questions up. What if we had the money? What if we had the resources? What if we had the drive?

“And now, with her leadership and her direction, this group of people who are coming together can make all of that “what if” happen,” she said.

Copoulos likes what she’s seen of the North Street area so far.

“I walk up and down North Street every day and knock on doors,” she said. “I’m lucky enough to have very personal and wonderful relationships with many of the business owners on North.” e-commerce services that was based in the Valley Mill in Lee.

Those relationships are beginning to pay off.

“Though I’ve only been here for six months, I now feel comfortable enough that when a new grant opportunity comes up I’m able to call through the catalog in my mind and go knock on a door and say, ‘hey, when do you have time to fill out this grant together?’” she said.

That’s how transformation works. One opportunity at a time.

In 2011, Crane purchased Berkshire Information Systems and combined the two companies into Excelsior Integrated, which originally operated in both North Adams and Lee. Four years later, Crane sold the North Adams printing operations to Integrity Graphics of Windsor, Conn., which moved the printing firm out of the Berkshires but retained a sales office in North Adams.

Excelsior Integrated then began to grow. To accommodate that growth, Crane purchased the large office and warehouse building on Pleasant Street in Lee that had belonged to the former Country Curtains. The property had served as the distribution center for the long time home furnishings company founded by the Fitzpatrick family of Stockbridge that closed in 2017.

By 2018, Crane had opened its distribution center in Fresno.

“Having a presence and distribution center on the West Coast was beneficial to our larger customers,” explained Crane. “It reduced the distance for orders.”

Locally, he continued to operate Excelsior Integrated at both the former Country Curtains property and the Valley Mill, before consolidating everything on Pleasant Street in 2020.

DRAMATIC

Changes

Order fulfillment and sales channels have evolved dramatically since the days when products were shipped only through the U.S. Post Office or by carriers like United Parcel Service. Now endless choices and decisions exist to set up basic strategies and systems.

In addition to the physical aspects of processing, packaging and shipping orders, Excelsior Integrated’s services include the management and administration of inventory control. This includes controls over incoming products to ensure there is a sufficient supply to meet the demand.

Excelsior provides guidance and advisory services to help clients set up and maintain inventory systems, adapt to changing circumstances, and make decisions on individual orders on an ongoing basis.

“We have a strong working relationship with our customers,” said Crane. “We serve as an essential partner in their order-fulfillment operations.”

The specific relationships and nature of services varies among clients. In some instances, clients outsource most of all of these responsibilities to Excelsior. Other clients manage some aspects themselves and utilize Excelsior Integrated for specific support services.

The company has comprehensive individualized information systems that clients can access through an online application called the Excelsior “portal” This allows them to manage their account activity and receive access to detailed real-time data and reports about their inventory, orders, tracking and delivery status, cost analysis, and other factors.

These services are integrated with other systems like online shopping carts, order management platforms, marketplaces, and custom environments.

This creates an automated order processing workflow with consistent re- al-time data across fulfillment and ecommerce environments. Excelsior will automatically pull orders from the client’s system for fulfillment, and sync delivery confirmations, inventory levels and other pertinent information.

Excelsior Integrated also helps clients keep up with increasingly rapid changes.

“For example, at one time, Amazon was about the only major online retailer,” said Crane. “However, other retailers such as Wal Mart have entered the online market in a big way. This gives companies more options, but it is also more challenging because each of them has their own requirements for vendors regarding pallet preparation, required delivery dates, labelling and other factors.”

Sometimes Excelsior Integrated provides products to retailers like Amazon. But the company also keeps its own inventory so it can fulfill orders for Amazon. With order fulfillment, Excelsior Integrated selects the best shipping and delivery services that are available for sending each product. The company has developed working relations and knowledge of those carriers. One of its goals is to identify the best options for overall shipping procedures and specific orders in terms of price, speed and accuracy.

The COVID-19 pandemic and other economic issues, including the disruption of international supply chains, effected Excelsior Integrated’s inventory management and shipping operations.

“Our customers experienced problems like ships with products from overseas not getting to California, or components not being available,” Crane said.

But the demand for ecommerce actually increased during the pandemic when so many brick and mortar loca- tions were closed.

“It had already been growing before COVID, and the pandemic bumped that up and accelerated the trend as more people chose to shop online,” Crane said.

Unlike many businesses, Excelsior Integrated was also able to remain open during the pandemic.

“Fortunately we were classified as an essential business,” Crane said. “We had to change the way we do things, such as heightening sanitation protocols and limiting visitors. The worst period was one week in which we lost about 40 percent of our staff due to infections and quaran- tines, but that was a blip. Overall we were able to operate well. I attribute that to our excellent staff and management, who did a great job in adapting to the protocols.” Those supply chain issues that have hampered the U.S. economy are finally beginning to improve.

“Those were critical for all companies for a while, and there is still some nervousness,” Crane said. “But it’s eased up, and the Christmas season went well. Things are not yet back to where they were in 2019, but overall it’s on the right track and the overall situation is getting much better.”