Case Study: Large Food Company Achieves 500 Basis Point Gross Margin Improvement with AlixPartners

Large Food Company - Customer Case Study

Large Food Company, a major food manufacturer that had grown through acquisitions, was struggling to integrate acquired businesses, which created operational inefficiencies, sub-optimal product portfolios, and slower growth. The company also faced tougher competition, supplier pricing pressure, a failed acquisition attempt, and balance sheet issues that caused a sharp drop in share price. It brought in AlixPartners to support a strategic profitability and growth program.

AlixPartners led an end-to-end operational transformation across procurement, manufacturing productivity, footprint optimization, distribution, trade-spend optimization, customer/product profitability, and innovation. The firm identified nearly $100 million in margin-improvement opportunities within six weeks, and by the end of the following year gross margin had increased by 500 basis points. Share price doubled during the engagement, and the company was eventually sold successfully to a strategic buyer.