Tech firm supports leisure supplier’s systems overhaul after period of renewed growth

A Coventry-based supplier of leisure equipment has upgraded its finance systems with support from technology solution partner CPiO, following limitations in its existing reporting and data management processes.

SAM Leisure, which supplies pool tables, air hockey and other leisure products to venues across the UK, including holiday parks, universities and sports centres, said its previous systems were no longer providing the visibility required to support day-to-day operations.

The company has traded for more than 20 years and has expanded steadily in recent years as demand for leisure and entertainment venue fit-outs has increased.

Like many established SMEs, SAM Leisure had continued to rely on Sage 50 as its core finance platform.

While suitable during earlier stages of the business, the company said it gradually became more difficult to maintain accurate, timely reporting as transaction volumes and operational complexity increased.

Rather than moving immediately to a new platform, the business initially attempted to resolve issues internally, including a period of data cleansing supported by a specialist consultant.

While this delivered temporary improvements, the underlying challenges around reporting consistency and data handling returned over time.

Matthew Drage, director at SAM Leisure, said: “At a certain point it became clear we weren’t dealing with a one-off data issue, but a system that had reached its limits.”

The business ultimately made the decision to move to a new finance and business management platform, opting for Sage 200 Professional, implemented with support from technology partner CPiO.

Rather than introducing a disruptive overhaul of internal processes, the focus has been on aligning the new system with existing workflows while improving structure, visibility and control.

For SAM Leisure, a key requirement was ensuring that operational continuity was maintained during the transition, while creating a more stable foundation for future growth.

The new system is intended to reduce the time spent managing and correcting data issues, while improving consistency across financial and operational reporting.

From a technology perspective, CPiO said the project also provides scope for future integration as the business continues to evolve, particularly in areas such as eCommerce and stock management.

Steve Goodwin (pictured), Sage 200 business development manager at CPiO, said: “SAM Leisure reached the point where continuing to refine the existing system was no longer the most effective long-term option.”

Dave Lee, Sage 200 product manager at CPiO, added that the platform provides a core structure that can be extended over time as requirements change, rather than requiring further system replacement as the business scales.

The experience reflects a wider issue faced by growing SMEs, where systems that once supported the business effectively begin to struggle under increased data volumes and more complex reporting requirements.

According to CPiO, the most significant challenges of SAM Leisure  weren’t related to a single failure point, but to the cumulative effect of inefficiencies in how financial data was being managed and interpreted.