Protecting margin across retail.
Margin is under pressure from every direction: cost of goods, supplier terms, labour and logistics. We bring the same deep, forensic approach to cost and supply chain that delivers results across the sectors we work in.
Where the opportunity usually sits.
Cost of goods
Line-by-line visibility of what you pay to buy and move product, against what best-in-class looks like.
Supplier terms
Consolidation and renegotiation to turn scale into genuine buying power and better commercial terms.
Store & operations
Per-site cost and performance, so you can see which locations lead and which need support.
Supply chain & logistics
Distribution, warehousing and last-mile cost lined up against output to reveal where money leaks.
Real engagements, measurable impact.
Bringing packaging spend under lasting control
A large retail business, getting to the root of why packaging cost and complexity had crept up, then putting the controls in place to stop it happening again.
The problem
Packaging cost and complexity had built up quietly over years. SKUs had proliferated across channels with no single view of spend, supplier prices had drifted upwards, the incumbent relationship lacked transparency and innovation, and stretched internal teams had little capacity to step back and tackle the root causes.
Insider Pro embedded with stakeholders across operations, sustainability, procurement and marketing, and took a forensic Benchmark view of every packaging SKU across all channels, total spend by supplier, SKU and region, and the real cost drivers in materials, order quantities and design. That surfaced exactly where money was leaking, and why it kept happening, before the Transform work to fix it.
Overlapping and redundant SKUs consolidated to cut complexity and holding cost, and a structured, multi-round tender run to reset commercial terms and service against the market.
Design changes made with the in-house creative team that reduced cost and material waste while protecting brand integrity and meeting sustainability and compliance standards.
Ongoing controls put in place so the gains stick: a single view of packaging SKUs and spend, clear design and specification standards, and a supplier governance and benchmarking rhythm that keeps cost and complexity from creeping back.
Key outcomes
- 52% reduction in annual packaging spend.
- 30%+ of packaging SKUs consolidated, improving operational efficiency and cutting holding cost.
- A move to a more responsive, innovation-led supplier, with stronger service and commercial leverage.
- Controls and governance embedded so cost, complexity and supplier drift don't return.
Impact at a glance
The lasting value is in the controls left behind: a single view of spend, clear design standards and a supplier governance rhythm, so the same problems can't quietly build up again.