Location/Region: Fort Collins, CO
Industry: Metalwork Manufacturing
Apps implemented: Sales, Inventory, Manufacturing, Purchase, Studio, Documents, Project, Knowledge, Live Chat, Email Marketing, Social Marketing
Company size: 30
Software replaced: Lightspeed and Microsoft OneNote, among others
Hosting type: Odoo Online
Imagine walking into every house and seeing the same lamp or fireplace. You’d crave something different. That’s why Raw Urth Designs, a Colorado-based artisan manufacturer, redefines luxury with custom, handmade metal range hoods and fireplace surrounds. Each one-of-a-kind piece is crafted by a single artisan, bringing warmth and uniqueness to homes nationwide. Behind the artistry, Raw Urth runs a complex business, streamlined with Odoo for efficiency, scalability, and sustainability.
Founded by Amy Sasick and her husband, Stefan, Raw Urth Designs started with an unlikely spark. Both were landscape designers who wanted to bring metal into their outdoor projects but couldn’t find artisans who worked with it. Determined, they attended a forging camp for fun, where they learned to work with fire and metal side by side. Their very first creation was for Amy’s mother-in-law, a fire basket that unexpectedly caught the attention of a builder. That introduction led to their first major commission: the complete metalwork for a Colorado home that went on to win Home of the Year.
With no prior experience in metalwork, the couple taught themselves through books and trial and error. The recognition they received inspired them to pivot entirely from landscaping to custom metalwork. Soon, they discovered that range hoods were their strongest product: easy to ship, profitable, and in high demand.
A simple, handmade trade show booth later won Best of Show and confirmed their intuition: customers craved unique, humanmade pieces, not mass-produced goods. Raw Urth Designs was born with the mission to craft bespoke, handmade designs for people who value artistry.
"We build beautiful, unique, made-by-hand pieces of art for people’s homes. Every product is made by one person from start to finish, exactly how the customer imagines it."
Before Odoo: A Patchwork of Apps and Chaos
Like many small businesses, Raw Urth Designs initially relied on a patchwork of disconnected tools to run operations. They juggled dozens of apps, codes, and spreadsheets, creating a fragile system where a small mistake could derail production.
Their main platform was Lightspeed, a point-of-sale system that they had manipulated into a makeshift ERP. By creating codes like stars and plus signs, they tracked job deadlines and progress. However, as the company grew, the limitations became obvious. Lightspeed evolved to focus solely on POS and eventually discontinued the version Raw Urth depended on, leaving the company with only six months to find a replacement.
The team considered other solutions, including NetSuite, but ultimately narrowed it down to Odoo and made the switch under intense pressure.
"We were forced into a decision when Lightspeed told us we’d lose access to everything in six months. It came down to Odoo and NetSuite. We chose Odoo, and I’m so glad we did.”
Why Odoo Became the Perfect Fit
Raw Urth first discovered Odoo through extensive online research. Amy’s son played a key role in surfacing the solution, urging her to take a closer look. At first, Amy resisted, so accustomed to bending software to her will. But over time, she realized Odoo’s true strength lay in using it as designed.
"I fought against the change for two years. But once we let go of our own way of doing things and actually used it as intended, everything started working really, really well.”
The Manufacturing app has been a game changer. By integrating with Purchase and Inventory, Raw Urth now ensures that every bill of materials is complete before production begins.
Automatic inventory adjustments, purchase orders tied to work orders, and backside costing per job provide unmatched visibility. With Studio customizations, they’ve even built fields to track detailed costing, helping improve future bids.
Using the Sales app with Studio customizations, Raw Urth manages thousands of unique, one-off products. Every range hood or fireplace surround is its own product, built from templates and duplicated as needed. Unlike other systems that would bog down under this model, Odoo’s platform handles it seamlessly.
Raw Urth relies heavily on visuals to sell their handmade pieces. Instead of adopting yet another external Digital Asset Manager (they even tested Filecamp), Amy customized Documents+Project into a functional DAM. By indexing images with custom Studio filters like “brass” or “stainless,” her team can instantly search and retrieve design references, while storing full-resolution photos on their server.
The shift from Microsoft OneNote to Odoo’s Knowledge app has improved teamwork. The visual setup, complete with images and emojis, makes articles easy to find and appealing to navigate. Plus, multiple team members can now collaborate without the sign-in issues that plagued OneNote.
Odoo continues to grow with Raw Urth. The company recently activated Live Chat on its website and is rolling out Email Marketing and Social Marketing apps to support scaling efforts. For the first time in company history, they’re preparing to send newsletters and launch a structured marketing program, moving beyond word of mouth.
With Odoo, Amy absorbed two high-level full-time positions into her own schedule, tasks that now take only a fraction of her time.
- A full-time purchaser role was eliminated; Amy now manages purchasing in about an hour per week.
- A full-time scheduler role was also eliminated; scheduling is now integrated within the Manufacturing app.
"I no longer need a full-time purchaser or scheduler, two high-level salaried positions, because Odoo took over those tasks. Now, I do both jobs in just a few hours a week."
Looking Ahead: Scaling with Confidence
With systems in place, Raw Urth Designs is preparing to scale operations in ways they never could before Odoo. Their next phase includes:
- Building a designer portal with Odoo Website to give trade partners secure access to pricing, invoices, and orders.
- Leveraging Marketing apps for newsletters, social media, and campaigns to reach new audiences.
- Continuing to refine digital asset management, projects, and knowledge-sharing to support growth.
"We’re ready to scale now because we finally have a system that works. Odoo gave us the foundation we needed to grow.”
Raw Urth Designs’ journey proves that even the most artisan-driven, handcrafted businesses can scale and thrive with the right digital backbone. From eliminating redundant positions to connecting every workflow, Odoo has helped them save time, reduce costs, and prepare for expansion.
If your business is stuck juggling disconnected apps or struggling to scale, take Amy’s advice: explore what Odoo can do for you, today.
