Retail
Select one of the case studies below:
Chief Executive Officer
Restructuring – Retail
England
A private equity backed specialist retailer with 130 stores throughout the UK was not executing its aggressive expansion and acquisition business plan and was in danger of not being in a position to be floated. Exacerbating the situation was the underperformance of the management team involved in the original MBI.
An Interim CEO, with successes in a variety of retail situations, was brought in (later followed by an interim commercial director and interim HR specialist) not only to identify and implement the short term improvements necessary to give the company breathing space and stave off the issue of trading while insolvent, but also to identify whether it had a long term future that would justify refinancing. The company was in no position to attract a new permanent management team, so any plan had to be predicated upon enhancing the capability, motivation and ownership of the remaining management team. Furthermore, time and financial constraints demanded that implementation take place concurrently as the strategy itself was being developed and refined. A key component in this process was the development of a broadly sketched strategic plan, fleshed out in close conjunction with the management team, that was able to pass rigorous due diligence.
This challenging assignment was successful and a refinancing negotiated. The key results were a dramatic turnaround in performance from a loss of £3m to a profit of £1m within 12 months coupled with a 25% reduction in working capital. The retail chain then traded profitably with additional expansion refinancing, followed by a profitable break up of the company.
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General Manager – Operations / Manufacturing
Turnaround & Transformation – Consumer Packaged Goods
Assignments in Mexico, Poland & Russia
One of the world’s largest FMCG companies with sales in excess of $8 billion in 135 countries identified a need to improve its supply chain, plant efficiency levels and resource utilisations.
An Interim Transformation Manager was initially hired to redesign the company’s global supply chain process and ERP. During the 6 months assignment, he identified 3-year savings opportunities exceeding $500 million.
The client extended the mandate by empowering the interim to transfer a £30 million manufacturing operation from Mexico City to a rural location. The project was delivered on time, within budget, and to the required standards of cost, quality, and service.
The mandate was further extended to assume control of the company’s leading Polish facility to improve its output and service levels. Under the interim’s guidance, the facility achieved record output in all product ranges, increased output in its leading line by 25%, and led the facility to hold the no. 1 position for service.
The Interim Executive was then posted to head the companies EMEA supply chain. Supply and inventory results across a based of 500m units worth $1.5 billion were improved while service levels increased from 94.3% in 2004 to 99.0% in 2006 via a focus on supplier lead-time, manufacturing flexibility, and planning controls.
Most recently the company again utilized the interim to head its EMEA third party manufacturing based in Russia. The interim commissioned the first Russian TPM and reduced the largest TPM by over 10% through contract renegotiations providing annualized savings of nearly $1 million.
The original 6 months assignment was eventually extended to 4 ½ years spread over four continents.
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