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Bain Case: BeautyCo – Where Did the Profits Go?
Our client BeautyCo is a large European perfumery company with 500 shops across Europe. However, BeautyCo has been struggling with a decrease in profitability for some time and would like to work with us to understand what the causes and possible actions could be. Therefore, as a first step the client wants us to identify the cause of the profitability issues.
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Roland Berger Case: Onlinestar
Onlinestar, an online retailer of furniture and garden products (core business), has grown significantly in recent years as a result of an expansion of its product portfolio. The company mainly imports goods from Chinese manufacturers but also operates its own production of cat lavatories (special business) in Eastern Europe. The company sells its goods via Amazon and eBay, and recently via an online shop on its website. Despite this development, the financial ratios have deteriorated in recent years. In particular, the gross profit margin decreased significantly. Combined with a significant increase in shipping costs, this led to a negative result for the first time in the recently ended fiscal year and a resulting strained financial situation. Against the background of expected stagnating sales for the current financial year, short-term action is required.The board of Onlinestar asks you for an analysis of the reasons for the negative result as well as a derived recommendation for action. As a consultant, you should bring in your knowledge in online trading and develop solutions. In addition, the management board would like to receive a sales and gross profit plan from you for the current financial year.
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MBMC Case: AMG | Turning the most affluent prospects into loyal clients
As a consultant at Mercedes-Benz Management Consulting (MBMC), you actively shape the desire for Mercedes-Benz as an iconic luxury brand. While you contribute to decisive projects that design the future of the world’s No.1 premium carmaker, you also develop your own career path, and have the unique possibility to build your personal brand and cultivate relationships with the top management.Your client on your current project is the head of Top-End Vehicles & Mercedes-AMG GmbH who reports directly to the CTO of the Mercedes-Benz Group AG. AMG represents the segment of performance luxury within the Mercedes-Benz portfolio.As part of your current project scope your client asks you to identify new opportunities to attract top-end customers & retain their loyalty. Therefore, you shall structure and explore the customer journey and identify possible measures regarding top end customer & Community Management. Furthermore, you shall quantitatively analyze an option to individualize AMG products along different regions and prepare them for decision.Finally, of course, the client is interested in your recommendation.
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Telekom Strategy Consulting Case: Fiber Optic Expansion
You recently joined Deutsche Telekom as a strategic project manager for the fiber optic expansion initiative. In this role, you act as an internal consultant, providing strategic guidance to ensure a successful fiber optic rollout in a mid-sized German city known for its vibrant tech industry. Your mission is to advise on delivering high-speed internet to residential and business areas, aligning the city's infrastructure with its rapid growth. This position allows you to influence the digital future of a growing tech hub and contribute to a project of national importance.The city you are overseeing has a population of 250,000 people with an average household size of 2.5. There are 50,000 businesses in the city. Deutsche Telekom aims to connect 90% of the households and businesses with fiber optic within the next 3 years, which also translates into your responsibility as a new project manager.
MBMC Case: Exploring the future of automotive mobility
As a consultant at Mercedes-Benz Management Consulting (MBMC), you are actively shaping the future of automotive mobility. While you are contributing to decisive projects that design the future of the world’s No.1 premium carmaker, you also develop your own career path, and you have the unique possibility to build your personal brand and cultivate relationships with the top management.Your client on your current project is the head of product strategy who reports directly to the CEO. She asks you to explore new profit pools and business opportunities regarding innovations and monetarization strategies.Initially, you shall structure and explore potential business models, and discuss necessary conditions and implications of these business models. In a next step, you shall quantitatively analyze possible options and prepare them for decision. And of course, the client is interested in your recommendation.
E.ON Inhouse Consulting Case: E-Mobility
Climate change has become one of the biggest challenges in the 21st century, and with roughly 75% of all CO₂ emissions coming from energy, this sector plays a key role in the transition to a reduced carbon footprint. E.ON has taken up on the challenge to promote more sustainable and efficient energy solutions throughout its whole customer spectrum. Correspondingly, a shift towards more sustainable energy consumption is noticed across the globe with many cities having set themselves ambitious climate targets, among those are:Copenhagen -100% CO₂ emissions by 2025Amsterdam -60% CO₂ emission by 2030New York -40% CO₂ emissions by 2030With E.ON focusing entirely on the “new” energy world, we have become the partner of choice for solutions propelling the energy transitions. Mr. Jensen, the mayor of Essen has come to E.ON requesting our help to accelerate the transition for his city.Essen is a city with about 600,000 inhabitants and prides itself as a forward-thinking one with lots of ambitions to become green itself. The economy is well and with his freshly won election the mayor looks forward to put its promised big initiatives into real projects.
SET Case: Your own Management Consultancy
As one of three management consultants with many years of experience, you have SET yourself the goal of founding your own management consultancy. The topics, contents and solution offering with which you can advise and support potential customers are clear. The legal company is already founded and registered in the commercial register. Now you must pitch your business plan to the banks to get the necessary start-up financing!Especially the banks are interested in the underlying rationale of the SET Management Consulting business model. Your goal is to think of relevant financial KPIs and be prepared to explain the underlying revenue and cost streams in more detail.With that, you have following assumptions in your business plan:10 consultants in total (including yourself)Average yearly salary per consultant 100.000 € (fixed)Average hourly rate as minimum pricing point that clients are willing to pay 250 €Founding costs (e.g., legal fees etc.) 20.000 €High-end IT equipment per consultant as invest 4.800 € (useful life 2 years)No office in the start-up phaseWebsite + SEO 40.000 €Expected employer’s contribution to base pay salary 20 %Financing requirement EUR 300.000, expected interest rate 3% p.a.The assumed utilization for the start-up phase can be taken from the assumption illustration (See exhibits)
tkMC Case: Market entry strategy in the lithium materials trade market
Your client tk Commodity Trade (tk ComT) is a global materials trader - they buy and sell raw materials. tk ComT had stable EBITDA margins in recent years. They consider expanding their target market and entering the Lithium (electric vehicle battery grade) trade, due to the current high demand for electric cars and Lithium-ion batteries. The client is concerned about minimizing the cash spending and about improving the payback period for this market-entry campaign, due to corporate cash policy.As a consultant, you are expected to calculate the size of the Lithium market and to assess the payback periods for an organic market entry (with own resources) as well as for the acquisition of an established company. Finally, the client expects a proposal about the best market entry strategy and potential opportunities and risks.
EY-Parthenon Case: Virtual Marketplace
A leading online real estate marketplace in Germany – your-new-home.com – is struggling with stagnating sales after many years of high growth rates. In a preliminary project with EY-Parthenon, the market environment has already been examined in detail – competitors, new entrants, customer needs, etc.As a result, you are asked to identify growth areas and quantify the potential sales uplift for the management.
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Oliver Wyman Case: On the Right Track
TrainCo is a manufacturer of rolling stock, or trains, with production sites in three European countries. The company has seen declining profitability over the past years; however, they are currently in a very good position to bid for and win a big contract for regional trains for a Swiss national rail company. They have asked you advise to them on whether they should place a bid for the contract.
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DHL Consulting case: Bike Shop
You have been hired to support the owner of a bike-shop as a business consultant. The bike-shop has suffered a significant revenue decline during the last year, and now the owner would like you to assess the situation and options for the way forward.They want to know last year’s profit, i.e. how it was affected by the revenue decline, and what the priority actions are to survive the next year. (short term)In addition they would like to understand the strategic competitive position of the shop better and how to increase revenues again mid- to long-term.
McKinsey Round 1: Homeware Heaven
Our client is Homeware Heaven. They are a homeware and appliance retailer that sells items such as kitchen appliances (fridges, ovens), kitchenware, lighting, bedding and bath products, home decor etc. They have 100 stores in the top 20 cities in the US. Their stores are large stand-alone stores located outside of the city centre. Over the last 3 years, business has not been going well for our client. Their revenue has been declining year over year and they have had fewer unique shoppers in their stores. They have hired McKinsey to help them turnaround the situation
BCG Round 1 Case: Telecommunication Troubles
Your client, Convo Telco, is a leading national telecommunications player in a developing country. They offer both mobile and fixed (e.g. broadband, internet) products across the country. Over the past few years, they have been facing declining profitability and have asked you to help them identify what is the problem
FastFood Chain Turnaround
Our client (FastFood Co) is a fast-food company that has > 20 restaurants in the city. Recently, the business has encountered significant challenges, with net profit drops to negative.The client wants us to help them turn around the business. How would you help them?
Pets Medicine Profit Improvement
Your client is a global drug company producing and selling medicine (pills, powder, ointments, injections, etc.) for a variety of pets (dogs, cats, birds, fish etc.). In addition to organic growth, the company grew significantly over the past few years by acquiring several other pets medicine companies in different parts of the world. During this period, profitability of the company decreased significantly. The CEO is concerned with this decline and wants to put in place a plan to raise the profitability to at least 70%.
MBB Second Round - TitanTrail - "Made in the USA" Operations Outsourcing
TitanTrail is a backpack maker that prides itself on quality and a “Made in the USA” promise. But the landscape is shifting. New competitors are entering the market, and labor costs are climbing.To stay competitive, TitanTrail is exploring a big move: outsourcing production to Cambodia. This decision isn’t simple. It raises critical questions.
Grocery Wholesaler
GroceryWholesaleCo is a leading international grocery wholesaler that sells, markets, and distributes food products, equipment, and supplies to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments, and other customers who prepare meals away from home. Historically, the client was able to ensure sustainable growth; however, profits have plummeted over the last three years.As a result, GroceryWholesaleCo wants to discover the reasons for this decline in profitability and identify strategies to turn the situation around.
Commercial Feasibility of Natural Gas Pipeline
A large natural gas field is unexpectedly discovered on the Mediterranean island of Corsica. The gas can be accessed and produced relatively easily and is of good quality. Europe, and especially Germany as the largest gas consumer in the EU, is looking for alternative gas suppliers to reduce its one-sided dependence on Russia. An initial market study has shown that stable demand in Western Europe would allow for around 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas per year from the new gas field to be sold on the European market for the next 25 years. To achieve this, however, the gas must be transported to the important Western European gas hub Baumgarten in Austria. Several large oil and gas companies sense a business opportunity here and are now asking themselves whether it is economically feasible to build a corresponding gas pipeline from Corsica to Austria. One of these companies has approached you as a consultant to provide your assessment.
Bain 1st Round Case – AirService [NEW]
Our client today is AirService – a service provider for a number of airlines and airports. Their management recently realized a decrease in profits that is linked to increasing costs.Accordingly, they have engaged our firm to help address this issue. How would you approach this problem?
Options Evaluation: Profitability of Brewing Company Startup
Your client is Alistair, a brew master from the east coast of the United States. He has developed a beer recipe he believes will revolutionize the beer drinking experience in the US. Alistair was able to convince his family and friends to invest in his business idea after letting them taste a sample of his new beer. With the investment money, Alistair founded the Allstar Brewing Company (ABC) and bought himself a mothballed brownfield brewery. This was already one year ago and Alistair has been working on perfecting his recipe since, but he has yet to produce a barrel of beer from the acquired production site. In the meantime, ABC has been approached by two other companies that both submitted a respective offer. Alistair seeks your help in determining the best course of action.
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