Case Study 1 – Electrical Lighting Manufacturer

Background

XPD was instructed by Lloyds Development Capital (LDC) to review and assist with the disposal of dated, slow moving and obsolete stock with a value in excess of £1.5m. The client had been offered £15k for the stock prior to the appointment of XPD.

The client had 6 months to consolidate the storage and warehouse facilities from 2 warehouses to 1. The stock holding needed to be converted into cash and in doing so obtain an acceptable rate of return.

Constraints:

The client did not want to release this stock in a bulk sale into the market as this could indicate that the business was in financial difficulty. XPD was provided with an extensive list of customers not to be approached. The brief was to not disturb or unsettle the existing wholesaler base in the UK outside of a 4 week sales drive to sell the target stock to the existing customer base.

Approach:

XPD developed a phased multi channel approach to market with a structured approach
• Uplifted stock from client and relocated the stock to an XPD warehouse, allowing the client to consolidate from two warehouses into one
• 4 week internal sales promotion targeting existing customers and using existing customer services team
• 6 week warehouse clearance sale – marquee erected at the redundant warehouse and promoted via local press, radio and online
• 4 month aggressive sale via XPD’s online auction partner
• Developed overseas customer base accounting for 30% of all sales and a significant base of UK bulk buyers

Outcome:

• Generated net revenue for the client of £500K
• Met the deadline to facilitate the warehouse consolidation• Cleared the stock
• No political impact on the client from the existing wholesaler base
• Client’s subsequent recommendation has lead to additional clients for XPD