We help you identify, screen and integrate retail acquisition targets for maximum value creation
Our Strategy & Planning Approach
Discovery
Phase
Direction
Setting
Future State Design
Transformation Planning
However, equally significant in the M&A marketplace are financial buyers such as investment banks, private equity funds or private equity investors who acquire and integrate businesses. Each retail acquisition candidate brings with it a unique set of challenges and opportunities. Acquisition success, or at least improving the chances of successful value creation, begins with a clear understanding of your acquisition strategy and the critical success drivers to be evaluated during due diligence and mastered during implementation.
CRA’s value proposition for helping private equity firms is:
- Experienced Practitioners
- Trusted advisors that add value immediately
- Industry and functional experience and expertise
- Ability to address all functional areas of the retail business model
- Knowledge Based Consulting
- Ability to bring subject matter expertise and experience to all operational areas of the company
- All services and projects designed to deliver measureable value creation
- Courage to have the difficult conversations
- Competitive Pricing
- Repeatable service offerings and methodologies
- Relationship focus not transactional focus
Our experienced consulting team helps retail organizations:
- Conduct an objective due diligence for a 360-degree view of acquisition targets
- Guide a successful post-acquisition integration
- Design and build a strategic technology and process roadmap to optimize performance
M&A - Operational Due Diligence
The transaction is just the beginning. We believe the more thought given to “why” we are doing the deal and “what” we will do immediately after, the higher the likelihood of success and sustainable value creation. Our approach is to bring a strategic and business process approach to the due diligence team.
- Business Strategy and Brand Position
- IT Review and Assessment
- Supply Chain Review and Assessment
- Organizational Review and Change Management Assessment
- Data Analysis & Modeling (Inventory-Payroll-Customer-Product)
- Store/Service Model Assessment
- Omni-channel assessment
M&A - Integration
Our experience suggests that the first 90 days after a successful transaction are critical to maximizing long-term value. Successful integration comes from a clear integration plan, stakeholder alignment and effective project management.
- Business strategy defined and aligned
- Brand positioning statement and alignment
- 90 day integration work plan
- Integration project management, change management, training and testing
- KPI’s identified and created
- Capital priorities, capital and expense budgeting
- Critical few corporate initiatives defined and aligned
Strategic Planning
Value creation begins with a clear understanding of your position in the marketplace; the core business processes critical to differentiation and the critical few initiatives required to generate earnings growth.
We partner with senior management to provide a framework and facilitation that leads to stakeholder alignment and a strategic plan that aligns with the company’s financial plan.
- Competitive Analysis
- SWOT Analysis
- Brand Audit
- Customer Analysis
Business Turnaround
Whether it’s a distressed situation or simply a business stuck in neutral our portfolio profit improvement approach consists of a wide array of services and data modeling tailored to the unique needs of each situation.
- Business Process Review
- SGA Rationalization
- Working Capital Reduction
- Store/Service Payroll Productivity Review
- Brand Audit
- Strategic Information Systems Plan
- Indirect Procurement Cost Improvement
- Transformational Roadmap
- Change Management
Supply Chain Optimization
The costs and complexities of getting product from sketch to customer have never been greater and more challenging. Our approach is to examine the entire value chain and help clients maximize the trade-off’s between speed and cost.
- Time to market and business process review (PD-Design-Sourcing-Production-Logistics)
- PD Calendar
- Strategic sourcing assessment
- Merchandise Planning
- IT Assessment
- Organizational review
- Logistics network review
- Social and vendor compliance
- Data modeling and KPI development
Brand Re-Positioning and Customer Journey Analysis
Few organizations spend the necessary time thinking about their brand and how their customers engage with it. For a turnaround business or a business in its early or growth stage, brand positioning is critical to establishing lasting relevancy with the customer.
- Brand Vision
- Brand Audit
- Customer Analysis
- Business Process Review and Re-design (Customer acquisition and retention
- Pentagon & Triangle: aligning the organization to deliver on the brand promise
Working Capital Improvement
Leveraging our deep experience gained from extensive merchandise planning and inventory management system implementations, we have created an operations practice aimed at maximizing a retailers working capital and merchandise margins.
- Assortment Strategy review
- Business Process Review (Line Planning-Assortment Planning-OTB-Replenishment-Product Lifecycle and Markdowns)
- Direct Product Profitability & GMROI Analysis
- Inventory Data Modeling
Strategic Information Systems Planning
Retailers rely on technology to support every facet of their business including customer relationships and insights, inventory decisions, secure transaction processing, and digital operations. In many instances technology is the driver of key business initiatives and strategic transformations. We have guided companies in all retail segments in linking technology investments to their operational and organizational strategies using the strategic systems planning process.
