Why Columbus

Columbus Consulting fixes the hardest problems in retail merchandising, planning and allocation, supply chain, unified commerce, finance and information technology (IT).

Columbus Consulting provides teams with unrivaled specialization from experts that have direct experience managing businesses and operations in the retail, DTC, wholesale and CPG landscape. 

We have proven frameworks and methodologies that deliver consistent results. For over 25 years, Retailers and brands have relied on Columbus Consulting’s industry expertise, proven methodologies and program leadership to transform businesses.  

We are passionate problem-solvers and experts who develop deep relationships with our clients and share their excitement for improvement and growth. Our consultants know you and your business intimately, so they can deliver on your expectations on time and on budget. 

We deliver great value and ROI with a commitment to help clients find solutions that drive competitive advantage.

We drive organizational change that empowers transformation, evaluating team structure, talent, process and systems. Our approach enables retailers to overcome growing pains and adapt to new challenges. 

We’re with you from strategy through execution. We turn your goals into a clear vision and strategy, and then help you prioritize, select, implement and sustain complex business processes and solution roadmaps–from design to delivery.

We work across all retail segments from Luxury to Big Box, Apparel to Grocery. Our expertise includes: digital transformation & unified commerce, merchandising & category management, planning & inventory management, sourcing & supply chain, data & analytics, accounting, finance & operations, people & organization and information technology & artificial intelligence. 

WE ARE:

  • Strategy-led leaders
  • Technology-focused implementers
  • Solution-focused
  • Functional area retail experts
  • Flexible and adaptable to change
  • Vendor agnostic systems specialists
  • Driven by your success, not ours
  • Problem solvers
  • More than advisors—extensions of your team

WE PROVIDE: 

  • Proven frameworks and methodologies 
  • Specialized industry expertise
  • Actionable data-driven strategies
  • A focus on accelerating digital transformation
  • AI integration and optimization
  • Measurable ROI
  • Improved customer experience and operating model efficiencies

WE DELIVER:

  • Actionable Consumer & Market Insights: Capabilities in leveraging AI-driven customer analytics, personalization, and market research to drive sales. 

  • Omnichannel & Digital Transformation: Support for integrating online/offline channels, e-commerce optimization, and technology implementation (POS, ERP). 

  • Operational Excellence & Efficiency: Focus on reducing costs through supply chain optimization, inventory management, and store operations improvements. 

  • Information Technology (IT) Excellence & Efficiency: Maximize systems’ performance through adoption and integration while assessing voids and needs for best in class solutions.

  • Speed to Market & Agility: Ability to improve product lifecycle management and quickly adapt to changing market trends.

  • Execution-Focused Change Management: Assistance with implementing new strategies and ensuring staff adoption of new processes. 

WE’RE DIFFERENT:  

  • We operate as extensions of your team
  • We leverage senior level retail talent across delivery
  • We anticipate challenges and work through solutions 
  • We are vendor agnostic and won’t recommend a provider that is not the best choice for you
  • We build long-term relationships and pride ourselves on our industry partnerships
  • We execute and won’t leave you with unrealistic strategic plans
  • We align resources with your culture and provide experts curated for you and your project and who can hit the ground running 

DON’T TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT…LOOK AT WHAT  SOME OF OUR CLIENTS ARE SAYING: CLICK HERE

THE TOP 5 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN SELECTING A RETAIL CONSULTING FIRM:

1. Team. Ask what team will be assigned to your project. Will they fit into your culture? Are they the same team you met at the pitch? How senior are they? Do they know the retail industry? Have they actually done this work before?

2. Delivery. Find out if the firm executes or just advises. Ask if they provide delivery and can conduct assessments AND recommendations that they can implement with and for you. 

3. Experience. Look for industry practitioners who have experience in the functional area you are looking to support. Career consultants may not necessarily know what is actionable, even if it looks good in a presentation. Work with a company that specializes in retail and is not a generalist. 

4. Value. Ask for defined KPIs and how they define  success upfront. Will they provide the agility that a retail business needs or will they enforce change orders and scope increases to pivot. Find out if they go beyond strategy and will stay with you through the outcome.

5. Accountability and ROI. Question how the firm will be accountable. Consider their prior performance on similar projects and with similar brands/retailers. Ask for anticipated results and what their client re-engagement rate is.

Connect with one of our experts

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