 |
| Client Success > Consumer Products |
Client Successes: Consumer Products |
|
|
|
|
 |
Client Type:
Leading global marketer of cosmetics & toiletries
Service Provided: Product positioning and strategy development
Client Need: To build a sustainable position in skin care and round out its personal care portfolio
Kline Solution: Our business management consulting team provided in-depth analyses of key categories and competitors, identifying key success factors, and delivered a detailed mapping of competitive brands and their positioning. Our industry knowledge and direct feedback from retailers was used to challenge/validate current client hypotheses and business models, and to identify unmet needs. We recommended a comprehensive business strategy which enabled the client to build the business and close key gaps.
|
|
| "Kline’s domain expertise, in conjunction with its consulting services, delivered an efficient and effective approach that supported us in achieving our objectives." |
|
|
|
|
Client Type:
Leading marketer of prestige cosmetics and toiletries
Service Provided: M&A screening and due diligence
Client Need: To identify acquisition and/or strategic partner candidates which would effectively broaden the client’s channel and customer reach and enable it to achieve a global leadership position in the industry
Kline Solution: Our management consulting group evaluated several growth-oriented sectors which had significant alignment with our client’s current business.
Our management consulting associates
overlayed this analysis with a rigorous acquisition screening program and identified several targets, on a global basis, which fit with our client’s criteria. Several of the candidates that we recommended were subsequently acquired. Our client is now one of the top five global competitors in this industry.
|
|
| "Kline’s clear understanding of our objectives and detailed knowledge of the prestige market, yielded several viable candidates that we would not have normally considered, which we eventually acquired." |
|
|
|
|
Client Type:
Leading global fast food company
Service Provided: Supply chain strategy development
Client Need: Market conditions had become increasingly “hostile” for this client, with competitors making significant inroads and outpacing our client with new products, while their rate of sales growth was reaching an all-time low. Our client needed to obtain depth understanding of competitive strategy, business practices, and financial performance to allow it to effectively address its business strategy.
Kline Solution: A multi-phased engagement to provide our client with objective, detailed, and validated information and knowledge on their chief competitors, covering a specific type of marketing program, product procurement, distribution, and other areas. The insights provided gave the client a credible and in-depth basis from which to judge competition, and to evaluate its own strategy and business practices. We collaborated with our client to optimize its supply chain practices, distribution system, and HR decision making, as well as to plan its marketing strategy. Client has since regained its competitive stature, and is achieving strong financial results (favorable stock performance and increase in same store sales).
|
|
| "Kline’s manufacturing and supply chain expertise, and its strategy process allowed us to move logically and efficiently throughout the entire program, and get the actionable results we needed." |
|
|
|
|
Client Type:
Leading marketer of home improvement products
Service Provided: Channel strategy review and refinement
Client Need: With much of the home improvement market moving to big box retailers (Home Depot; Lowes), client needed to assess if and how it should participate in this channel for its core product line. The client’s brand is a well-respected premium brand purchased by consumers as well as professionals, and had historically been sold through independent and chain hardware and specialty retailers.
Kline Solution: Our management consulting team provided a comprehensive assessment of the KSFs to participate in the “big box” channel, covering: the investment and resources needed sourcing, manufacturing, distribution, marketing, product mix/pricing, and more.
Our management consulting associates
benchmarked our client against the KSFs and recommended a range of options through which we could work with our client to continue to optimize its current business strategy. Ultimately, our client decided to stay the course and not enter the big box channel. This has allowed them to maintain their premium positioning and pricing (and accompanying profitability), and continue to achieve solid growth.
|
|
| "Kline delivered an accurate and unbiased analysis of our current position and what we would need to do to succeed with big boxes. There were too many sacrifices – culturally and financially for – so we chose to continue on our current path." |
|
|
|
|
Client Type:
Leading global food company
Service Provided: Opportunity assessment/strategy development
Client Need: The new area of “functional foods” was emerging in the U.S. market and our client needed to determine if and how it should participate in the sector.
Kline Solution: Kline's management consulting team of consumer products and consumer healthcare professionals worked with our client’s new business team to understand the current and future potential of the market, and to define and assess alternate participation strategies for our client.
Our management consultants
provided market knowledge, and led an off-site strategy development workshop with the client. Strategic options evaluated ranged from developing functional “messaging” for some of its existing brands, to acquiring an OTC brand. Our client has built a successful business through the former strategy approach, by promoting the functional benefits of some of its core global equities and as part of an overall healthy eating platform.
|
|
| "Kline’s support and guidance allowed us to evaluate, enter and successfully participate in a new and profitable market for us." |
|
|
|
|
Client Type:
Leading global consumer products company
Service Provided: Channel expansion strategy
Client Need: To build its household and personal care products business in convenience stores; it also needed to assess if it was deploying a competitive sales resources to this trade class.
Kline Solution: Kline's business management consultants conducted extensive interviews with buyers as well as brokers serving major c-store chains, as well as independents. We compared the performance and trade support activities provided by our client against the competition, in view of the retailers’ desire/interest in building sales of these categories. The client was able to use this information to better utilize its sales resources and funding, based on its potential at each specific account.
|
|
| "Kline’s efforts allowed us to clearly hear the voice of the market, from which we have reconfigured our approach to ensure maximum return on our the resources we have invested – financial and human." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
