Simplifying the product and customer portfolio of a chemicals business.
The context
A speciality chemicals business carries a portfolio of several thousand references, inherited from decades of customer-specific developments, and wants to finally tighten it.
The brief
Put a number on the contribution of each product and each customer, and make simplification decidable.
What we did
We segmented the portfolio on the margin it generates — a minority of references generates most of the margin — then crossed that segmentation with the customer one, which changes everything: the long tail of products is bought mostly by the largest customers, and cutting it mechanically comes at a price. We then opened the full range of levers, from the status quo to minimum order quantities, from formula consolidation to plant centralisation, all the way to discontinuation — with a step-by-step method to work through each case.
The impact
A decision basis product by product, and a leadership workshop that decides instead of deferring.
Structuring and running the post-acquisition transformation plan. Three months, renewed up to eleven.
The impact. Some ten initiatives — growth, margin, cash — run to the end, then the baton handed over internally.
ESG strategy in four months: interviews, double materiality, actionable priorities.
The impact. A strategy the group applies, not a report.
Digital strategy and an app prototype to open up primary care.
The impact. A digital department created straight afterwards.
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Describe your challenges in three lines; we reply within 48 hours with a proposal.
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