Why Stonewall Kitchen Chose Vic.ai

The opportunity 

Stonewall Kitchen, known for delighting customers with their award-winning specialty foods and home products, has been a staple in the food and beverage industry since 1991. Behind their iconic jams and gift baskets lies a finance operation needing modernization. The Stonewall Kitchen AP team, processing invoices manually in Microsoft Dynamics Business Central, struggled to keep pace with the team’s growing needs.  

When the company hired a new CFO, one of his priorities was modernizing and finding solutions to improve efficiency and reduce manual workloads. The Stonewall Kitchen team began evaluating technology tools and considered multiple solutions, most of which relied on outdated, template-based approaches. However, Paul Dachsteiner, VP of IT and IS at Stonewall Kitchen and a technical champion for modernization, instantly recognized Vic.ai’s platform as a completely different, next-gen technology solution that could transform their AP workflows.  

‍The solution

Vic.ai’s autonomous finance platform set itself apart early in the evaluation process. Unlike template-based solutions, Vic.ai delivers true AI-powered automation, completely removing the manual effort behind invoice processing and enabling “touchless” AP workflows. Stonewall Kitchen saw the value in Vic.ai’s AI-driven invoice and PO matching capabilities — an area they had struggled with for years in Microsoft Dynamics Business Central.

Dachsteiner quickly became a strong advocate for Vic.ai, which helped secure support from Louie Reformina, CFO, and Tiffany Walters, VP of Finance. The solution gained momentum thanks to Vic.ai’s hands-on approach, including tailored demos and in-person meetings and was ultimately selected just before the holiday season. The CFO was impressed with Vic.ai’s ability to streamline PO matching, automate invoice processing, and support vendor payments.

"The standout difference with Vic.ai is its advanced AI technology. Unlike other vendors that rely heavily on templates — which are not only time-consuming to set up but also demand significant expertise — their platform eliminates the need for templating altogether,” Dachsteiner says. “This means far less upfront effort during implementation and a solution that doesn't lose its functionality when employees with unique system knowledge leave the company. It's a game-changer in reducing institutional knowledge dependency."

The results

With Vic.ai’s platform, Stonewall Kitchen is primed to automate its AP workflows, achieve greater efficiency for the finance team, and lay the groundwork for long-term success. Key impact areas are:  

1. True AI automation: Replacing template-based systems with a tech-forward solution will deliver advanced, touchless invoice processing.  

2. Improved PO matching: Seamlessly automating invoice matching, significantly reducing manual workloads and improving data accuracy in Microsoft Dynamics Business Central. 

3. Scalable efficiency: Modernizing AP processes, allowing their team to handle growing workloads without adding headcount.  

4. Foundation for payments: Positioning to expand with payment automation as part of their longer-term goals with Vic.ai.  

5. A strong vendor relationship: Vic.ai’s ability to adapt to their unique needs and build strong partnerships with champions at Stonewall helped solidify confidence in the solution.  

The journey ahead

Stonewall Kitchen’s decision to partner with Vic.ai signals its commitment to modernization. With Vic.ai’s autonomous finance platform, the company is well on its way to achieving efficiency gains, reducing manual workloads, and keeping its AP team streamlined as the family of brands continues to grow.  

Learn more about Stonewall Kitchen.

Learn more about the Vic.ai autonomous finance platform.