Leveraging today’s disruption to create tomorrow’s opportunities
With the future of retail in a seismic shift, A&M helps leading retailers develop and implement the right strategies and capabilities to succeed. Through periods of tremendous change and increasing consumer expectations, A&M is there to ensure retailers stay ahead and create outsized results.
Our approach allows companies to focus on where and how to build the most sustainable value. Our team of retail experts shares a common passion to help companies achieve their maximum potential and be on the right side of disruption.
Because our clients require practical results and real impact, our team brings together deep consulting and industry operator experience.
Because our clients have broader and evolving needs, we drive large-scale enterprise transformations across all retail sectors beyond A&M’s deep restructuring heritage.
Because our clients deserve partners who are mutually committed to their success and shared value creation, we align interests through new commercial models.
FOR ANY PROBLEM, IN ANY SECTOR, WE’RE THERE TO HELP
Client Problems We Serve
Our full capability suite enables retail clients to address any business challenge to meet consumer needs, accelerate growth, enhance profitability, or improve cash flow
- Digital
- Marketing
- Growth Strategy
| - Organization
- Operations
- Analytics
|
Retail Sectors We Support
- Grocery
- Restaurant
- Mass Merchandise
- E-Commerce
| - Specialty Retail
- Foodservice
- Convenience
- Drug
|
Examples of Our Work:
A&M Consumer and Retail Group worked hand-in-hand with the client team to launch a full-scale transformation including a full cost take out effort – sourcing, supply chain, store operations, and indirect procurement; a customer-focused re-investment – eCommerce, omni-channel capabilities (BOPIS, curbside, delivery), digital marketing; and a program management approach - progress tracking, cash flow management, debt restructuring, and performance/impact tracking. Our joint work positioned the brand to survive the initial shutdown associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and is on track to deliver $75-100M in annual cost savings with significant revenue upside.
After the global pandemic challenged the company’s financials, the client board’s engaged A&M to manage liquidity and operational improvements. A&M served as Chief Restructuring Officer overseeing all aspects of the company’s restructuring and co-led a Transformation Office with the COO. All while continuing to reliably deliver product and services to customers without disruption, the company restructured its business, including cost reduction opportunities in supply chain and organizational design of over 15% of operating costs, created over $150 million in permanent working capital benefits, and reduced funded indebtedness while raising incremental liquidity.
A large cosmetics retailer with outlets worldwide had seen a steady decline in EBITDA margins over several years. In response, A&M completed a rapid diagnostic review of the business operations to identify and quantify performance improvement opportunities. A&M subsequently worked with the company to implement these performance improvements to deliver the identified margin improvements. As a result, A&M delivered tens of millions in cost savings to the client within just nine months.
A European food and beverage chain heavily impacted by the pandemic was forced to close a majority of its shop locations, which posed significant revenue, SG&A and real estate cost challenges. A&M was engaged to help the business manage through the crisis and reset the organizational structure. After modeling a selection of recovery scenarios from COVID-19 impacts on profitability, A&M designed the company’s future state operating model, identified significant recurring SG&A and real estate cash savings and put the company on a firm footing for strong recovery post-crisis.
Struggling with cost, agility and driving profitable growth, the client engaged A&M to pinpoint improvement opportunities across the global organization. After standing up a Productivity Transformation Office, launching independent productivity initiatives and shaping the overall change management plan, the joint team drove over $1 billion in annualized savings, reorganized support functions by creating 6 Centers of Excellence and built core capabilities to position the future state organization for its growth journey.
A&M Consumer and Retail Group developed a comprehensive plan to improve store operations, dramatically improve inventory productivity and support a dramatic improvement in product margin via a shift to directly managed brands. With a joint client and A&M-led transformation office, work teams developed actionable plans for Store Operations, Store Investment Planning, Supply Chain Network Strategy and Design, Inventory Planning & Execution and Global vendor partner integration. Plans identified an 18% reduction in overall inventory, 40% reduction in leadtime to stores, and $80 million of annual cost reductions. At the same time, A&M defined plans to significantly improve the balance sheets stability through an optimization of brands & business units.
With a multi billion-dollar turnover, a multi-channel apparel retailer has suffered from underinvestment in logistics and IT infrastructure, hampering growth and leading to market share loss. A&M was initially engaged to rapidly diagnose and fix causes of failure across the end-to-end supply chain. Through its work, A&M surfaced more transformative interventions required of the client against both functional and process failures across the entire value chain. A&M’s structured improvement delivered those transformative interventions as well as a revised future state supply chain operating structure. The overall program delivered hundreds of millions in annual benefits.
THE UK FOOD AND BEVERAGE M&A MARKET
November 5, 2024
In the post Covid-19 deal-doing environment, the UK food and beverage sector has consistently attracted significant investment, showcasing its resilience and strong market fundamentals.
Alvarez & Marsal India Strengthens Its Consumer & Retail Expertise by Appointing Aparna Chopra As Executive Director
May 9, 2024
Alvarez & Marsal India has appointed Aparna Chopra as Executive Director within the Retail and Consumer Products practice, bringing 25 years of experience in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), retail and online businesses.
Paws for Concern: Pet Specialty Retail at a Crossroads
April 12, 2024
Pet Specialty retailers and investors stand at a critical crossroads amidst market slowdown, shifting customer preferences, fierce competition and the dominance of e-commerce. A&M’s Consumer and Retail experts delve into the challenges faced by the industry and offer actionable insights to thrive in the current pet retail landscape.
A&M Supply Chain Viewpoint: Three Ways to Build a Supplier Development Risk Program
March 12, 2024
Discover how leading companies stay ahead in the global market with innovative supplier risk management. Explore advanced assessments, strategic partnerships, and diversification strategies reshaping supply chain resilience.
