--- title: "El Mersal Case Study: Transparent Import Costing on Zoho" description: "How Wanas Apps built El Mersal Trade a China-to-Ghana import operation on Zoho Books and Inventory: container costing, landed cost per SKU, multi-currency." url: https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/el-mersal-case-study/ lang: en modified: 2026-10-12T05:23:45.012Z --- [Case Studies](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/category/case-studies/)·3 min read # El Mersal Trade Case Study: Transparent Import & Container Costing on Zoho How Wanas Apps built El Mersal Trade a transparent China-to-Ghana import operation on Zoho Books and Zoho Inventory — container costing, true landed cost per SKU, and traceable multi-currency payments. M [Mostafa Wanas](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/author/mostafa-wanas/) April 28, 2026· Updated October 12, 2026 On this page **Client:** El Mersal Trade · **Industry:** Import & Wholesale Trade · **Country:** Ghana ## Overview El Mersal Trade is an import and wholesale trading business operating in Ghana, sourcing goods from China and selling to local buyers. To replace fragile spreadsheet tracking with a real ERP — and to bring full transparency to a complex, multi-currency import operation — [Wanas Apps](https://www.wanasapps.com/contact/) implemented an integrated [Zoho Books](https://www.wanasapps.com/products/zoho-books/) and [Zoho Inventory](https://www.wanasapps.com/products/zoho-inventory/) system built around container costing, true landed cost, and a transparent procurement workflow. ## The Challenge Importing from China and wholesaling in Ghana is an operation full of moving parts: purchase requisitions, ocean freight, customs, container loads, and sales — all spanning three currencies (RMB, USD, and local). El Mersal was running it on manual Excel sheets, which made a few things nearly impossible: - **Knowing the true cost of each product.** Without automated landed-cost allocation, the real cost per SKU — freight, duties, and fees included — was a guess. - **Tracing every payment.** With sourcing handled through an intermediary agent who controlled payments and currency conversions, money flows weren't transparent — and untraceable conversions can quietly erode margin. - **Seeing the business in real time.** Stock levels, shipments in transit, and true profitability were scattered and slow to compile. ## The Solution Wanas Apps designed a fully integrated system on [Zoho Books](https://www.wanasapps.com/products/zoho-books/) and [Zoho Inventory](https://www.wanasapps.com/products/zoho-inventory/) that models the entire import lifecycle — requisition → China shipment → container costing → landed-cost allocation → inventory → wholesale sale: - **Container & landed-cost management.** Every shipment is costed at the container level, with freight and other expenses automatically allocated across SKUs — so inventory is valued at its true landed cost. - **Transparent, traceable payments.** Multi-currency payment flows (RMB / USD) are captured in the ledger, making every conversion and expense visible and auditable — closing the door on hidden intermediary margins. - **Factory-level purchase tracking.** Purchases are traced back to the originating factory even when procured through an agent. - **Structured wholesale operations** with real-time visibility of stock, shipments, and profitability. - **Multi-currency, multi-jurisdiction setup** — configured for the realities of a China-sourced, Ghana-operating business. ## The Results - **True cost visibility** — accurate landed cost per SKU, so pricing and margins are based on reality, not estimates. - **Financial transparency** — traceable, auditable multi-currency payment flows replace an opaque, intermediary-controlled process. - **No more spreadsheets** — a structured ERP workflow from purchase requisition to wholesale sale. - **Real-time insight** — live visibility of inventory, shipments, and profitability. ## Ready to bring transparency to your trade operation? From landed-cost accounting to multi-currency inventory, [Wanas Apps](https://www.wanasapps.com/contact/) builds the Zoho systems that import and trading businesses run on. [Book a free consultation](https://www.wanasapps.com/contact/). ### Already on Zoho? Keep it running. Tiered monthly Support & Maintenance retainers: SLA-backed response, continuous Deluge and automation upkeep, and proactive platform care. [Explore Support & Maintenance](https://www.wanasapps.com/services/support-maintenance/) ### Not sure which Zoho product fits your business? Download our free Zoho Fit Checklist — 5 questions that map your needs to the right Zoho apps. [Download Free →](https://www.wanasapps.com/server/api/documents/Zoho-Fit-Checklist.pdf) M About the author [Mostafa Wanas](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/author/mostafa-wanas/) Founder & Lead Engineer · Zoho Skill Champion Founder of Wanas Apps and a Zoho Skill Champion, Mostafa architects Zoho CRM, Catalyst, and custom Deluge solutions for businesses across the UAE and Egypt. Tags: [Case Study](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/case-study/) [Cost Accounting](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/cost-accounting/) [Ghana](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/ghana/) [Import & Trade](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/import-trade/) [Multi-Currency](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/multi-currency/) [Supply Chain](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/supply-chain/) [Zoho Books](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/zoho-books/) [Zoho Inventory](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/topic/zoho-inventory/) [← More Articles](https://www.wanasapps.com/blog/)