Revitalize/Grow
TCDG for RESTRUCTURE & GROWTH
“The Corporate Development Group specializes in
repositioning underperforming food companies
into growth oriented profitable entities.”
The Corporate Development Group focuses
on working with underperforming as well as
performing food companies that require
operational and financial repositioning.
Armed with a broad base of industrial,
financial, and business experience, the group
provides timely and creative solutions to
food companies primarily in manufacturing
and distribution. Our approach is holistic and
our work typically impacts business strategy,
operations, sales and marketing, technology,
and finance.
The Elements of Trouble
To many, a troubled company is one plagued
with financial burdens, an employer unable
to meet its payroll, or an institution
struggling to meet its debts. Although,
trouble can visit a company in other ways.
The company’s founder may die leaving the
company without leadership. A group of top
management could suddenly exit and form
their own competing business. Trouble may
also appear in the form of a bitter feud in a
family run business. Sometimes a fast
growing company grows too quickly and its
expansion simply bypasses managements’
ability to run it or to finance it. Some of the
market related troubles can be sudden loss of
the company’s biggest customer, new
competition, globalization, the rapid changes
in technology, and excess capacity.
When the organization’s problems become
known, creditors are often angry and
confused, employees are scared, and
customers look on with suspicion and
uncertainty.
Manufacturing:
The present state of manufacturing is
threatened by a number of adversarial
factors. Unrelenting cost increases, growing
number of aggressive low-cost competitors,
and excess production capacity. Adding to
these are customer demands for lower price,
faster delivery, and higher quality products.
Distribution:
Challenging times are ahead for the
distribution industry as consumer
preferences further evolve, technology and
products continue to change, and discount
giants such as Wal-Mart and Costco source
more products directly from manufacturers.
To sustain success, distributors must not
only exceed customer expectations, but
they must also be responsive enough to
capitalize on shifts in customer values and
needs.
"Patience and perseverance have a
magical effect before which difficulties
disappear and obstacles vanish."
-John Quincy Adams
TCDG takes pride in helping our clients grow profitably by better understanding
the competitive environment and implementing information-based
solutions to their financial management, marketing, and operations challenges.
- Strategic Growth Planning: After clearly
identifying a company’s core competencies,
competitive advantages, and strategic gaps,
and after carefully analyzing the financial
capabilities and needs, TCDG assists in
creating implementable strategies that are
destined for success. In this process the
blend of investment banking with
marketing / business development
expertise gives TCDG a special value
perspective. A particular strength is
developing strategies for growth, or for
filling strategic gaps, through
acquisition or strategic alliances.
- Restructurings: TCDG’s substantial
experience in turnaround situations
allows it to examine core and non-core
business segments. Those segments not
providing a sufficient cash flow or EBITDA
represent either divestiture or reorganization
opportunities. The process of restructuring
operations must be sensitive to human
capital and potential organizational
upheaval.
- Manufacturing Asset Optimization: An
in-depth assessment on addressing the many
implicit trade-offs between what a plant can
profitably produce and the marketplace
wants. TCDG recommends a combination
of marketing, sales, and operations actions
that synergistically drive more profits from
the manufacturing facility.
- Turnaround Management: TCDG
provides a dispassionate and independent
assessment of the environment and quickly
identifies the business risks and
opportunities associated with each situation.
- Breakup Analysis: It involves
analyzing the value of each of a
company’s discrete assets
(normally business units, but can include
intangible assets) and totaling these
individual values to arrive at a value for the
entire company. With its market and
industry knowledge, TCDG is
well-equipped to carry out this activity, and
particularly to understand and give
maximum value to specific intangibles.
- Profit Enhancement: Because TCDG
frequently works with underperforming
companies, it can quickly identify “red
flags” in otherwise healthy companies.
Unlike other consulting organizations,
TCDG not only identifies the improvement
opportunity but also works with the
company to fully enact the solution.
“Building a business”
Value added
Whether the food company’s issues involve
surviving, choosing major strategic options,
dramatically improving profitability or cash
flow, managing growth, accessing capital, or
resolving management or organizational
conflicts, we have proven consistently our
ability to assess and implement practical
solutions. Our corporate mission and our
reputation in the business community has
been built on our ability to get results and
to get these results in an organized, planned,
and cooperative manner. We, work with the
company’s management to bring in the
understanding of the differences between
focus, diversification, and innovation to
build growth strategies.
We believe that, with a company’s ultimate
survival and growth on the line, results are
everything. TCDG can breathe new life into
a faltering company. As it analyzes then
attacks the problem at hand, it can make
decisions with total objectivity, because,
as an outsider, it can set goals without a
preconceived agenda.
Our focus is to work with the company’s
management to implement counter measures.
It is important to stabilize the climate
surrounding the troubled business. Externally
we build the confidence of lenders, vendors,
and key customers. Well respected within the
food industry as well as in the accounting,
banking, and legal communities; TCDG
negotiates practical agreements with
creditors and vendors.
At the core of every liquidity crisis is a crisis
in confidence about the financial management
of the troubled company. Realistic sales and
financial forecasts takes unnecessary pressure
off of management and allows them to
understand the true value of the business.
TCDG restores reliability in the numbers
enabling creditors to have renewed confidence
in the company’s strategy, management team,
and business outlook.
Besides other important areas, TCDG puts
emphasis in the areas of cost accounting,
supply chain management, and manufacturing
optimization to bring to the surface
opportunities to reduce cost, increase
efficiency, and bring profitable growth.
The ultimate goal is to enable a manufacturer/
distributor not only to offset eroding profit
margins, but also to eventually become the
aggressor for market share by building a
cost-effective, high quality, flexible, and
demand driven enterprise.
CASE STUDY
- Situation: A privately owned,
$100+ million revenue, ethnic
food manufacturer was looking
for solutions for profitable
growth.
- Problem: The company was
losing market share, suffering
low profit margins, and experiencing
intense competitive pressures.
- Solution: Through market
analysis we developed an understanding
of the external environment
and identified the
company’s competitive advantages.
In result we developed
corporate alternatives including
focused acquisitions and corporate
partnerships accompanied
by strategic financing.
- Benefit: Today, with the revenues
more than doubled the
company has become a very
profitable category leader in its
sector.