The Challenge

LA Alimentos is a frozen fruit processor and distributor with a mission to deliver quality products to customers across multiple channels. The company operates a complex supply chain—from importing fresh fruit, processing and packaging it, to managing inventory and fulfilling orders. It's a business that demands precision, speed, and coordination across every function.

However, the company was struggling with a fundamental problem: fragmentation. Financial operations ran on legacy systems that were slow and cumbersome. Production planning relied on informal communication and spreadsheets. Inventory data lived in multiple places, creating confusion about what was actually in stock. And cash flow visibility was nearly impossible to achieve.

"The CONCISA system was well, complicated," one team member reflected. "Everything took longer than it should have." Payments were processed manually, one invoice at a time. Bank reconciliation was a time-consuming chore. Worse, there was no clear picture of how much money was coming in or going out, making it hard to plan for growth or manage debt responsibly.

The production side faced its own challenges. Demand from sales didn't always align with what was being produced. Embalagem (packaging) constraints limited throughput. Estoque (inventory) levels were either too high—tying up capital—or too low, causing missed sales opportunities. Without a shared system, the team couldn't see real-time inventory or coordinate effectively between departments.

On the financial side, the company had accumulated significant debt across multiple banks and lenders. But the debt wasn't organized or tracked clearly. Contas em atraso (overdue accounts) were scattered across spreadsheets. The team couldn't answer basic questions: How much do we owe? When is it due? What's our cash position next week?

These gaps weren't just inefficient. They were barriers to growth. The company couldn't scale confidently because it lacked the visibility and control needed to make smart decisions.

The Solution

The leadership team recognized that fixing these problems required more than tweaks. They needed integrated systems, clear processes, and a commitment to data-driven decision-making.

The first major move was migrating from the legacy CONCISA system to Mainô ERP. This wasn't just a software swap—it was a fundamental shift in how the company would operate. Mainô brought speed, automation, and transparency to financial operations. Bank reconciliation, which once consumed hours, now took 15 to 20 minutes each morning. Payments could be programmed and aggregated, reducing manual work and improving cash flow planning.

"The Mainô system is so much easier than what we used before," the team noted. The shift freed up time and reduced errors, but more importantly, it created a foundation for better decision-making.

In parallel, the company implemented a structured approach to production planning. A simple but powerful tool—a weekly production planning spreadsheet—became the bridge between sales and production. Carol (sales) would communicate orders to Juliana (production) throughout the week. The team would close orders on Friday and adjust production through Monday to meet delivery commitments. This replaced ad-hoc communication with a clear, repeatable process.

The company also tackled inventory management head-on. They separated estoque de venda (saleable inventory) from estoque de consumível (consumables) and imobilizado (fixed assets). This simple classification prevented misreporting and gave the finance team confidence in the numbers. They established estoque mínimo (minimum stock levels) to balance availability with capital efficiency.

On the financial governance side, the team built a consolidated view of endividamento (debt). A single spreadsheet tracked every loan, every payment, and every balance across all banks and lenders. They created a "raio-X do fluxo de caixa" (cash flow snapshot) that updated weekly, showing recebimentos (inflows) and pagamentos (outflows) side by side. This visibility was transformative.

The company also invested in people and processes. They documented standard operating procedures (SOPs) for accounts payable and receivable. They assigned clear roles and responsibilities. They created backup plans so that vacations or absences wouldn't paralyze operations. They trained the team on how to extract data from the ERP and build dynamic reports in Excel.

"The commitment from the top was 100%," one team member said. Leadership didn't just approve these changes—they modeled them. They showed up to meetings, asked tough questions, and held the team accountable. That cultural shift was as important as any system implementation.

The Transformation

The results came quickly and compounded over time.

On the operational side, the company gained visibility it had never had before. Production capacity for morango (strawberry) increased to a target of 1,000 kg per day through packaging optimization and line adjustments. Abacaxi (pineapple) production stabilized at around 600 kg per day. More importantly, the team could now see in real time what was in stock, what was being produced, and what customers had ordered. This alignment reduced waste and improved on-time delivery.

The financial transformation was equally significant. Bank reconciliation time dropped from hours to 15-20 minutes. The consolidated debt view revealed the true scope of obligations and allowed the team to prioritize payments strategically. Weekly cash flow reporting gave leadership the early warning system they needed to make proactive decisions about spending, borrowing, and pricing.

The company implemented a three-month cash containment plan focused on balancing recebimentos (customer payments) with pagamentos (supplier payments). They renegotiated terms with fornecedores (suppliers), explored new sourcing options (Chile, Egypt, China), and adjusted pricing to protect margins. They reduced compras (purchases) from approximately 1.4 million per month to a more sustainable level, freeing up capital that had been trapped in excess inventory.

Faturamento (revenue) began to recover. July showed improvement to approximately 1.7 million, with a target of 2 million for August. The EBITDA remained positive even during challenging months, a sign that the underlying business was sound—it just needed better management.

But the wins went beyond numbers. The team developed a shared language and rhythm. Weekly meetings became forums for real problem-solving, not just status updates. People across departments—production, sales, finance—started thinking like partners instead of silos. Stress decreased because visibility increased. When you know your cash position and your production capacity, you can make confident decisions.

The company also positioned itself for the next phase of growth. By diversifying suppliers and testing new products (like alho congelado—frozen garlic), they reduced dependence on any single item or source. By building robust financial governance, they created the foundation for sustainable scaling. By documenting processes and training the team, they made the business less dependent on any one person.

"The work we've done has given us control," leadership reflected. "We can now see where we are, where we're going, and what we need to do to get there. That's the difference between surviving and thriving."

LA Alimentos is no longer fighting fragmentation. It's operating as an integrated business, with clear visibility, shared accountability, and the confidence to pursue growth. The frozen fruit market is competitive, but the company now has the operational and financial discipline to compete and win.