Solving Fragmented Master Data and Reducing Effort by 70% at SHS Group

With a diverse portfolio of household, food, and drinks brands, SHS Group is one of the UK and Ireland’s leading FMCG companies. At this scale, consistent and high-quality master data is essential for operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, and continued growth. Yet, like many fast-growing organisations, SHS was struggling with fragmented processes, manual interventions, and the absence of a centralised data governance framework.

Imagine SHS’s master data processes as a patchwork quilt, disparate, difficult to manage, and prone to gaps. Rules were enforced through Excel spreadsheets, ownership of master data was unclear, and there was no formal audit trail to provide accountability. As data volumes and complexity increased, these issues compounded, slowing operations, reducing visibility, and introducing compliance risks.

To address these challenges, SHS partnered with Bluestonex and adopted Maextro: a versatile, SAP-integrated Master Data Management and Governance platform. By combining automation, intuitive interfaces, and governance-ready workflows, Maextro has enabled SHS to move towards a cleaner core SAP system, ensuring data accuracy, operational efficiency, and stronger governance across the organisation.

About the Client

Client: SHS Group
Industry: Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG)
Headquarters: Belfast, Northern Ireland
Founded: 1975
Divisions: Drinks, Foods, Household, Sales & Marketing, Group Business Solutions
Markets: Owns and distributes brands across the UK and Ireland

The SHS Group is a privately owned company with a proud history of growth through acquisition and brand development. With operations spanning five divisions, SHS owns, manages, and distributes a portfolio of well-known brands, as well as high-profile third-party products across multiple categories. As the business continued to expand, ensuring reliable, efficient, and governed master data processes became a strategic priority.

Business Challenges

As SHS grew, so too did the complexity of its master data landscape. Without formal data governance in place, teams struggled with manual, inconsistent, and error-prone processes. Key challenges included:

• Lack of formal data governance: No centralised framework to enforce standards and consistency.
• Growing complexity: Rising volumes of master data with diverse business requirements.
• Manual workarounds: Reliance on Excel and email created inefficiencies and prevented scalability.
• Limited ownership: No clear accountability for data processes across divisions.
• Weak auditability: Inadequate controls and audit trails for approvals and changes.

These limitations increased operational risk, hampered efficiency, and prevented SHS from unlocking the full value of its data. The company needed a scalable, SAP-integrated solution to simplify workflows, enforce business rules, and embed governance into its operations.

Engagement and Solution Journey

SHS partnered with Bluestonex to design and implement a modern, governance-ready MDM/MDG solution. Leveraging Maextro, Bluestonex applied a human-centred design approach inspired by the SAP AppHaus methodology.

The transformation began with a deep dive into SHS’s existing processes, identifying “as-is” workflows, mapping data models, and defining critical business rules. Stakeholders across divisions were engaged to clarify ownership and governance requirements. Using Maextro’s low-code/no-code configuration, Bluestonex then tailored workflows, rules, and interfaces to SHS’s unique needs.

The project followed a phased approach:

• Mapping of processes and rules.
• Configuration of workflows, UIs, and validations in Maextro.
• Unit testing followed by user acceptance testing.
• Training and handover to SHS teams ahead of go-live.

By focusing on usability, automation, and scalability, the solution was designed not only to fix immediate pain points but also to provide a strong foundation for future growth.

Real Impact Across the Business

The deployment of Maextro has transformed SHS’s approach to data management, moving from manual entry and reactive corrections to proactive governance and strategic stewardship.

Before Maextro, setting up a material master typically required 227 fields to be populated in SAP. With Maextro’s built-in rules and automation, SHS users only need to complete around 70 fields, just 31% of the previous total. This reduces manual effort and complexity by almost 70%, significantly speeding up processes while improving accuracy.

Maextro Material Master Module

• Introduced tailored workflows for material creation, changes, extensions, and blocking.
• Templates customised by division, plant, and material type.
• Freed the central data team from manual data entry, allowing them to focus on data stewardship and governance.
• Delivered consistent processes, higher data quality, and greater efficiency.

Maextro’s material master screen.

Maextro Sales Pricing Module

• Automated workflows for pricing approvals with clear templates for base price changes and customer-specific updates.
• Enabled system-driven price calculations with visibility into both historical and proposed pricing.
• Resulted in simplified pricing processes, improved accuracy, and enhanced efficiency.

For SHS, these changes have been game-changing: reducing manual workload, strengthening governance, and embedding accountability into core processes. Teams now work within a streamlined, automated framework that improves quality while supporting business growth.

Looking Ahead

The SHS journey with Maextro is ongoing. Future plans include:

• Migrating remaining data objects into the UI5 version of Maextro.
• Exploring integration with Microsoft Teams and AI-driven functionality.
• Expanding into additional objects such as Business Partner and Customer.

With Bluestonex as a trusted partner, SHS continues to evolve its data management capabilities, ensuring a cleaner SAP core, smarter governance, and the agility to respond to future business demands.

Learn more about how Maextro transforms master data management and enables real business change here.