Case Studies
At Forge Growth Consultancy, we believe success isn’t built by one person—it’s built by a team. True leadership isn’t about control; it’s about support, enabling people to grow, and creating a rhythm for success.
Challenge
A newly established company was exploring the importation of laminate products from Europe. While the business owners had strong industry contacts and a clear vision, they lacked a structured plan to bring their idea to market.
They needed a strategic roadmap to secure early sales, gain credibility with European suppliers, and establish long-term business viability.
Approach
Applying the Double Diamond framework, I guided the business through a structured process:
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Discovery – Conducted qualitative and quantitative research to assess market potential and validate demand. This provided the business owners with a clearer understanding of their competitive position.
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Define – Facilitated strategy sessions with the directors to refine their business model and define four key focus areas.
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Develop – Built a structured action plan prioritising:
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Quick Wins – Immediate sales strategies to generate revenue.
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Mid-Term Goals – Market positioning and operational efficiencies.
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Long-Term Growth – Strengthening supplier relationships and scaling sustainably.
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Deliver – Implemented the strategy, ensuring execution focused on driving immediate sales while setting the foundation for sustainable long-term growth.
Outcome
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The company secured major new customers, creating early momentum.
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European suppliers saw potential in the business, leading to improved pricing and deeper partnerships.
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The structured strategy gave the owners clarity and direction, ensuring they had both short-term wins and a roadmap for long-term success.
By refining their approach and implementing a structured sales strategy, the business successfully transitioned from a concept into a scalable, growing enterprise.
Challenge
A construction industry supply company was experiencing frequent product swaps by architects and designers after initial specifications. While their products were being specified, a lack of ongoing engagement and service led to substitutions by competitors before project completion.
The company needed a strategy to maintain influence beyond the initial sale and improve long-term customer retention.
Approach
To identify the root cause, we conducted a Value Chain Analysis of the sales and after-sales process. This revealed a significant service drop-off once the product was specified and purchased, creating an opportunity for competitors to step in and replace the product before final project execution.
Collaborating with key stakeholders, we facilitated a strategy session to generate solutions focused on post-sale engagement. This resulted in the development of a structured after-sales service approach designed to reinforce relationships with architects, designers, and contractors throughout the project lifecycle.
Outcome
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Implemented a post-sale engagement strategy, ensuring ongoing support and communication with architects and designers.
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Strengthened relationships with key stakeholders, reducing the likelihood of product substitutions.
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Increased customer retention by providing a seamless service experience from specification to project completion.
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Improved overall brand perception, positioning the company as a partner rather than just a product supplier
By refining the after-sales approach and reinforcing customer relationships, the company successfully reduced specification drop-off, secured more long-term business, and improved project retention rates.
Challenge
A large sporting stadium in Victoria was facing increasing public scrutiny over its security team's heavy-handed approach to patrons. The negative press was damaging the stadium’s reputation and creating tension between security personnel and attendees.
The stadium’s management sought an innovative, out-of-the-box solution to improve crowd management while also rebuilding public trust.
Approach
Using the Double Diamond framework, our team conducted an in-depth, 12-week discovery and problem-solving process.
This included:
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Discovery - Engaging with stadium patrons and key internal stakeholders to understand the full scope of the issue. Through interviews and data analysis, we identified several underlying causes behind the negative public perception.
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Define - Narrowing down key problem areas based on our findings, refining the core issues that contributed to the security challenges and poor public sentiment.
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Develop - Brainstorming and prototyping multiple potential solutions, ultimately identifying three key focus areas for improvement.
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Deliver - Further refining and testing these concepts, which led to a single standout solution—a mobile application for stadium attendees.
Outcome
The stadium adopted the proposed concept, integrating it into their broader security and customer experience strategy. While our role was to develop prototypes and strategic recommendations, the solution was successfully implemented by the stadium’s management, helping improve communication, reduce friction between security and patrons, and shift public perception in a positive direction.
This project showcased how structured problem-solving and human-centred design can be applied beyond traditional business challenges, delivering tangible improvements in both customer experience and operational efficiency.
Challenge
A Luxury Bathroom and Kitchen retailer had recently acquired a 60-year-old business in Queensland. While the existing business had a well-established reputation and a loyal high-end customer base, it was struggling with a significant issue—excess inventory tying up cash flow.
The newly acquired business had accumulated a large volume of outdated and slow-moving stock, restricting its ability to invest in new, high-margin products. The challenge was twofold:
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Free up capital tied in inventory without significantly discounting high-value items.
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Clear stock quickly without devaluing the premium brand or training customers to expect discounts.
A solution was needed that would both generate immediate revenue and drive long-term customer engagement.
Approach
To rapidly convert excess inventory into revenue while protecting brand positioning, I designed a high-impact, four-day clearance event featuring:
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Full-page newspaper ads to reach new and existing customers.
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On-site activations, including wavy inflatable air men, tents, and carpark product displays to create urgency.
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Strategic pricing to move outdated stock while safeguarding premium margins.
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Sales team incentives to drive engagement and maximise upselling opportunities.
By creating excitement and urgency, the event re-engaged past customers and attracted new buyers, turning excess stock into a competitive advantage.
Outcome
The four-day event generated over $1.3 million in revenue, significantly improving cash flow.
The sale:
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Cleared the bulk of excess inventory, freeing capital for reinvestment.
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Strengthened customer relationships, increasing repeat business.
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Boosted supplier confidence, leading to better pricing and larger strategic orders.
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Elevated team morale, driving higher sales performance.
This clearance event was the first of its kind in the industry at that time, setting a new benchmark for high-impact retail activations. By combining a structured sales approach with innovative event marketing, the business successfully turned an inventory problem into a significant growth opportunity, demonstrating the power of a well-executed strategic sales initiative.
Challenge
A large multinational business was heavily investing in targeting the Architecture & Design (A&D) industry but lacked a structured strategy to guide these efforts. Despite significant financial outlay, the absence of a clear direction led to wasted resources, inefficient marketing spend, and a lack of meaningful traction in the market.
The core issue was that upper management lacked visibility into key barriers preventing success. The business needed a back-to-basics strategy that could align efforts, streamline resources, and deliver measurable results.
Approach
Recognising that the business needed a strategic reset, I applied the Discovery stage of the Double Diamond framework to identify the root causes of inefficiencies. This process involved:
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Stakeholder Interviews & Internal Audits – Conducted deep-dive sessions with sales, marketing, and leadership teams to uncover hidden roadblocks and misaligned priorities.
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Market & Competitor Analysis – Assessed the A&D sector to determine where the company was missing opportunities and where its investments were failing to resonate.
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Identifying Key Customer Archetypes – Developed targeted audience personas to better define the A&D segment and tailor marketing efforts accordingly.
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Organisational Alignment & Headcount Adjustments – Based on insights, the strategy required structural changes, leading to new hires in key roles to drive execution.
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Resource Reallocation & Budget Optimisation – Shifted investment away from low-impact initiatives into high-value, long-term strategies that aligned with business goals.
This structured approach allowed the business to correct course before further investment was wasted and ensured that the A&D strategy was built on real insights, not assumptions.
Outcome
Although the A&D strategy launch was delayed, the restructuring efforts resulted in significant long-term benefits:
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The business reduced overall outlay, optimising budget allocation by funnelling resources into the right areas.
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Upper management gained visibility into fundamental challenges, allowing them to make informed decisions rather than reactively investing in failing initiatives.
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The A&D strategy was finally launched with clarity, direction, and purpose, leading to early traction in the market.
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The marketing team now had clearly defined target archetypes, ensuring future campaigns were more precise and effective.
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New headcount additions provided the necessary leadership and execution capability to drive A&D engagement forward.
By taking the time to properly define the strategy, rather than rushing into continued unstructured spending, the business set a solid foundation for long-term success in the A&D sector.
This shift not only improved short-term efficiency but positioned the business for sustained success in a highly competitive market.
Challenge
An SME importing European materials for the construction industry had experienced periods of success but had hit a growth plateau. The owner recognised that while the team was performing, they were not unlocking their full potential, and the business was failing to expand at a satisfactory rate.
The company needed a fresh strategy that was consumer-centric, actionable, and fully aligned across all levels of the business. To achieve this, I was invited to facilitate a five-day strategic planning session with the national team.
Approach
To ensure the workshop was structured, engaging, and results-driven, I implemented a multi-stage strategic planning process, including:
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Pre-Workshop Preparation – Each team member was assigned pre-session tasks to gather insights from their respective roles, ensuring the strategy was based on real customer needs and market realities.
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Five-Day Strategy Workshop – A highly interactive onsite session was conducted in a central location, ensuring full participation from sales, management, warehouse, and office staff.
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Identifying Growth Opportunities – The team worked collaboratively to uncover untapped market segments and refine their existing sales and operational strategies.
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Refining Internal Processes – Management received direct feedback on operational inefficiencies and areas requiring fine-tuning to better support the team’s success.
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Final Presentation & Buy-In – On the fifth day, the team presented back the strategy, KPIs, and action plans they had built together, ensuring collective ownership and alignment.
Outcome
By structuring the strategy with full team engagement, the business saw significant improvements in execution and buy-in:
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The business launched a refreshed, consumer-focused strategy, targeting previously untapped opportunities.
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Revenue growth was achieved through new business avenues, as the team actively pursued new markets identified during the session.
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Company-wide alignment improved, as the strategy was not dictated from the top down but built collaboratively by sales, management, and operational staff.
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Management gained clearer visibility into the team’s challenges, leading to improved support structures and a stronger internal culture.
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The workshop itself energised the team, creating a renewed sense of purpose and accountability in executing the new strategy.
By ensuring full participation and a structured planning process, the business was able to move beyond stagnation and drive sustainable growth through a clear, actionable, and well-supported strategy.