Chicago Printworks transformed its fragmented operations by replacing a disparate set of applications with a single, unified business ecosystem. Using Zoho One applications and Zoho POS integration with Zoho Books, we consolidated the client’s entire lead-to-cash cycle, creating seamless integration and customized workflows.
Chicago Printworks, a Chicago-based printing company, was encumbered by “application sprawl”—a state where multiple, disconnected software tools created data silos, mandated manual workarounds, and obscured a unified view of the business. To address this operational bottleneck, Micah Taylor, owner of Chicago Printworks, contacted United Parts of Chicago, a Zoho Advanced Partner, to architect and deploy a comprehensive solution built on the Zoho ecosystem.
Executive Summary
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Industry: Commercial Printing Services
Since 2009, Chicago Printworks has established itself as one of the leading commercial print shops in the heart of Chicago, providing fast and affordable digital printing services. The company specializes in booklet printing, holiday card printing, invitations, banners, menus, and literally anything that can be printed, embodied by a small, dedicated team and validated by nearly 500 five-star reviews. Mr. Taylor’s business operates under the simple guiding principle: “Print Local, Print Easier, Print Better.“
Problem Statement and Key Challenges
The primary challenge facing Chicago Printworks was the inefficiency caused by a reliance on a “disparate set of apps.” Fragmented technology stack, a common issue for growing businesses, created significant friction in daily operations. Staff were forced to manually bridge the gaps between disconnected systems for customer relationship management, quoting, invoicing, and payment processing. The workflow for managing a print order—from initial quote to final payment—was manual and inefficient.
"The primary reason for Chicago Printworks to adopt Zoho was to consolidate a disparate set of apps. In addition to consolidation,we required a great deal of customization to best suit our business needs. Zoho has allowed us to discontinue usage of a multitude of services and with Zoho, we're able to have seamless integration of many apps under one umbrella."
A second, more nuanced aspect was the recognition that no off-the-shelf software solution could fit the Chicago Printworks’ processes out of the box. The unique workflows of a commercial print shop demanded a platform that could be modified as needed. As owner, Micah Taylor stated, “We required a great deal of customization to suit our business needs best.” This framed the problem not merely as one of technological consolidation, but as a search for a platform with the flexibility to be molded to Chicago Printworks’ operational model.
And, finally, Chicago Printworks allows both online and in-person payments. Thus, a POS (Point-of-Sale) was needed, ideally integrated with Zoho Books. The answer was, of course, the Zoho POS integration with Zoho Books.
In an attempt to resolve these challenges in-house, the Chicago Printworks team tried to implement the Zoho platform using in-house resources (read our blog post on the DIY implementations; this case study confirms our point of view).
"Make no mistake. Zoho is a complex, feature-rich ecosystem that requires time to comprehend and adapt. We initially attempted to implement and build out Zoho ourselves."
Problem Evaluation
United Parts of Chicago conducted a thorough analysis of Chicago Printworks’ end-to-end business processes, from lead generation to final accounting. Mr. Taylor’s knowledge of the best practices in the printing industry and decades of experience were invaluable for building the process map—a key component of every good implementation. To break down the data silos and automate the workflow, the key was to establish an SSOT (Single Source of Truth) that could connect sales, transactional processes, and retail operations.
There were many surprises on both ends, which is a healthy sign of a well-conducted business assessment. Sometimes, even the most professional business owners and Zoho Partners can’t see the whole picture; this is why the collaborative, detailed discovery phase is a must.
Proposed Solution
Zoho POS integration with Zoho Books and Zoho CRM
The proposed solution was a comprehensive implementation of Zoho One with the inclusion of the POS terminal platform, integrated with Everyware payment gateway and the PAX A35 Android PIN pad. The core applications of the solution were Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, Zoho Flow, and Zoho POS.
| Business Function | Before: Disparate Application Environment | After: Unified Zoho One Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Customer Relationship Management | Fragmented (e.g., Spreadsheets, basic contact managers) | Zoho CRM (Single Source of Truth) |
| Sales & Quoting | Manual processes, disconnected from customer accounting software | Zoho CRM Deals & Quotes Module |
| Invoicing & Online Payments | Separate accounting software | Zoho Books / Zoho POS integration, integrated Stripe Gateway |
| In-Store / On-Site Payments | Standalone POS terminal with a separate payment system | Zoho POS integration with Zoho Books and Everyware payment gateway |
| Customer Inquiry Forms | Basic website plugins with manual third-party email | Zoho Forms (fully integrated with Zoho CRM) |
| Marketing & Outreach | Third-party email service with manual list imports/exports | Zoho Campaigns (natively synced with Zoho CRM) |
| Process Automation | No system to inter-connect; reliant on manual triggers | Zoho Flow for cross-app triggers and integrations |
| Document Management | Local storage or basic cloud drives | Integrated Google Drive for file storage |
Zoho CRM: Deployed as the central hub (Single Source of Truth) for all customer data and sales activities. All leads, contacts, accounts, and deals (renamed to “Print Orders”) are managed here, providing a complete view of the customer relationship. On top of the native Zoho CRM / Zoho Books integration, United Parts of Chicago had created two custom flows: one to sync the CRM Contacts
and Accounts with Zoho Books immediately (the standard integration does that every 2 hours) and another one to create invoices in Zoho Books based on the Zoho CRM Print Orders (the standard integration can’t do that).
Zoho Books: Natively integrated with Zoho CRM for all accounting functions. Quotes generated in CRM are seamlessly converted into invoices in Zoho Books, ensuring data consistency and eliminating manual entry. Zoho POS integration was required to provide seamless transitions between on-site payments (Zoho POS integration with Everyware) and online payments (Stripe).
Zoho POS Integration: Implemented to handle all on-site payments. Being integrated with Zoho Books, it allows for any invoice generated in Zoho Books from a CRM Print Order be paid in person, automatically marking the invoice as paid and simplifying reconciliation.
Zoho Forms: Used to capture leads from the website directly into Zoho CRM and to create triggers for process automation.
Zoho Flow: an integration hub between the applications.
Zoho Campaigns: Integrated with Zoho CRM to enable targeted email marketing based on customer data and purchase history.
Stripe Integration: Configured with Zoho Books to process online invoice payments, offering customers a flexible payment option.
Everyware Integration: Configured with Zoho POS to handle on-site payments via AX A35 PIN pad.
Zoho Cliq: In-team communications.
Zoho SalesIQ: Website chat and customer engagement platform.
Implementation
The project went far beyond a standard, out-of-the-box setup. United Parts of Chicago worked closely with the Chicago Printworks team to define and optimize business processes, customize Zoho CRM modules, fields, and workflows to precisely match the unique terminology and multi-stage processes of the commercial printing industry. The client’s primary requirement for a system adaptable to their specific business logic, rather than forcing them to adjust their business to the software, has been fulfilled.
It is worth mentioning that this project is one of the pilot Zoho POS implementations in the United States and the first one of its kind in Illinois. Working in the Lean Agile paradigm, United Parts of Chicago released the core functionality within one sprint. Then, Chicago Printshop entered the slow adoption phase, learning the new platform and making small customization requests to address issues left behind in the first sprint.
The technical execution also involved a data migration process, moving customer data from the old, disparate systems into the newly unified Zoho platform. Concurrently, the integrations with the third-party payment gateways, Stripe and Everyware, as well as the CRM’s native integration with Google Drive for storing design files, were configured and tested.
Throughout this process, United Parts of Chicago served a role that went beyond technical implementation. We acted as expert translators, effectively bridging the knowledge gap that had caused the initial project to fail by translating the client’s clearly articulated business needs into the technical language of Zoho’s architecture and configuration.
This expertise was essential for navigating the complexities of the “feature-rich ecosystem” that Micah Taylor had identified. By making the right architectural decisions and avoiding the “wrong turns” of the initial attempt, we ensured the final system was not just a collection of apps configured “as the customer wants,” but a true digital reflection of the real business’s logic.
Results
The implementation of the Zoho One apps and Zoho POS integration has fundamentally transformed operations at Chicago Printworks, delivering a series of impactful business outcomes.
-
A Unified, Seamless Ecosystem
The most significant result is the complete elimination of application sprawl. Chicago Printworks now operates on a single, integrated platform where data flows seamlessly from initial lead capture through quoting, production, and final payment. This has dramatically reduced time spent on manual data entry, minimized the potential for human error, and provided management with unprecedented, real-time visibility into the entire business pipeline. -
From Disparate Apps to a Single Source of Truth
The project successfully established Zoho CRM as the SSOT. This provides a comprehensive, 360-degree view of every customer relationship, consolidating all interactions and transactions into a single record, regardless of whether they originated from an online inquiry or an in-store purchase. -
A Scalable Foundation for Future Growth
Unlike niche applications like ShopVOX, ShopWorks OnSite, and InfoFlo Print, the Zoho ecosystem offers more power and scalability. It evolves rapidly, powered by Zoho’s vast development force, and is designed to be customized to a degree that niche products cannot provide. -
Zoho POS Integration
Zoho POS, a recent (May 2025) addition to the Zoho ecosystem, played a crucial role in this project by enabling a well-known, native Zoho UI experience combined with modern POS functionality and native integration with Zoho Books.
"Working with United Parts of Chicago was an integral part of our adoption and couldn't have been done without their support. I highly recommend their services and wish I would have connected with them much sooner in the development process."
Acknowledgments & Contributors
Chicago Printworks
- Micah Taylor, owner
Zoho Corporation
- Diana Cruz, Partner Account Manager
- Vijay Karuppiah, Regional Sales Manager
- Bhavika Duggal, Technical Trainer
United Parts of Chicago
- Margarita Gracheva, Customer Success Manager
- Boris Green, Senior Software Engineer
- Tatiana Kascheeva, Software Engineer
Zoho POS Is a Modern Retail Point of Sale Built by Zoho
If your business is already using Zoho Finance (Zoho Books, Zoho Inventory) or any other Zoho product, and you need a compatible, easy-to-deploy POS solution, consider Zoho POS integration with Zoho Books or as a standalone product. Fill out the form below or book a demo to see how Zoho POS integration with your existing backend can improve your customers’ experience.