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Edwin Clark
Director, Other Professionals
Edwin Clark has extensive experience in private equity and investment banking, with knowledge of principal investing and debt capital markets.
John R. Gordon Jr.
Senior Managing Director | Partner, Partners
John Gordon has more than 25 years of diverse business experience demonstrating an ability to bring deep financial and analytic skills along with a passion for operational improvement to difficult situations.
Conner Krumholz
Manager, Other Professionals
Conner Krumholz is a finance professional with experience in strategy and transactions, serving several clients across the consumer products and technology industries. He is skilled in performing economic analyses and in-depth research to evaluate various business environments and opportunities for new engagements.
Winston Mar
Senior Managing Director | Partner, Partners
Winston Mar is an experienced professional who provides advisory and interim management services to distressed companies.
- Reduced Lender outstanding by 20%
- Reduced labor costs by 15% through process improvement
- Doubled YoY EBITDA
$300MM grower-owned tree-based fruit cooperative with inefficient plant operations and in need of an overadvance. CR3 Partners was engaged to manage liquidity, vendor communication, cash flow modelling, and multi-year business plan development. The company was able to implement operational changes and year over year EBITDA grew from $10.5MM to $24MM.
The Situation
- $300MM grower-owned cooperative with more than 100 family farms and decades delivering >6MM bushels per year of tree-based fruit handled by five processing plants
- After years of forbearance, company was anticipating need for overadvance on its revolver, so lender required cash flow forecast through year-end and identification of opportunities for financial improvement beyond existing plans
- Plant operations were inefficient as poor maintenance practices were causing processing shutdowns and driving up per unit costs, especially labor
- Significant changes to management personnel and executives were being contemplated
The Work
- Engaged for immediate assessment of liquidity situation and business operations, leading to engagement as financial advisor managing liquidity, vendor communication, cash flow modelling, and multi-year business plan development
- Implemented SIOP (Sales, Inventory, & Operation Planning) process, including fruit receipts and storage, finished goods reduction, and operations and schedule attainment
- Managed third-party process improvement consultants utilizing Kaizen approach to overhaul several processing lines while building continuous improvement capability
- Extensive reporting to all stakeholders (lender, executive committee, growers/owners, vendors, and co-processors)
The Results
- Negotiated multiple extensions while eliminating overadvance and gaining concessions to return revolver to compliance
- Reduced lender outstandings from $92MM to $68MM through intense focus on inventory management ($21.5M FG reduction), processing cost reductions, and shutdown/sale of non-strategic assets
- Implemented operational changes in fruit intake and storage, processing line throughput, and plant staffing approach to achieve level-loaded production that reduced overall labor costs by >$5MM (~15%) and resulted in better management
- Year over year EBITDA grew from $10.5MM to $24.4MM
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