Parker Avery News

2011

The Parker Avery Group Sponsors Women's Wear Daily Apparel and Retail CEO Summit 2011

New York, NY (November 18, 2011) - The Parker Avery Group, a boutique retail consulting and strategy firm, is pleased to announce that it was a sponsor of the 15th annual Women's Wear Daily Apparel and Retail CEO Summit, held at the Plaza Hotel in New York on November 14 and 15. The theme this year was "Brand Everywhere." The topics discussed covered issues related to expanding a brand globally and locally, creating a modern luxury brand and revitalizing an old one, realizing the next generation of brand identity, interacting with consumers across multiple platforms and marketing in the digital realm range.

"This event was a great opportunity for senior retail and apparel executives to discuss the latest trends and challenges. We're in a period of customer relationship changes that requires CEO's to think differently about channels, brand positioning and operating structure. As seasoned retail professionals, we bring a point of view to the discussion and we enjoyed networking with our clients," said Mike Matacunas, CEO of The Parker Avery Group.

As part of the event, round table discussions, talks and sessions were held with leading retail and apparel CEOs and experts including Tory Burch, Victoria Beckham, President & CEO of Bottega Veneta, President & CMO of Saks Fifth Avenue and CEO of Barneys New York.

In addition to sponsoring the event, The Parker Avery Group recently published a study on Retail Merchandising and Marketing that includes industry statistics on localization, mobile commerce and social media. The study was made available to the CEOs and attendees as part of the event, but can also be downloaded directly from The Parker Avery Group website.

About the Women's Wear Daily (WWD):
For 100 years, Women's Wear Daily (WWD), a property of Fairchild Fashion Media, has been the daily media of record - and THE industry voice of authority - for senior executives in the global women's and men's fashion, retail and beauty communities and the consumer media that cover the market. WWD hosts several summits each year in categories such as men's wear, footwear, denim, beauty, digital, sourcing/global markets, apparel and more.

The Parker Avery Group's Founder and CEO is Recognized by Business to Business Magazine as a 2011 Top Entrepreneur

Atlanta, GA (November 10, 2011) - Business to Business magazine honored the Top 25 Entrepreneurs and Ones to Watch in Metro Atlanta on November 3, 2011 at a dynamic awards ceremony and dinner held at the Georgia Tech Hotel & Conference Center. Winners will also be featured in the November/December issue of Business to Business

Each year, Business to Business magazine recognizes the top entrepreneurs of the South. Winners are entrepreneurs who have created innovative, high achieving companies and have contribute to their industries and business communities. A diverse collection of industries are represented, including those from real estate, retail, law and technology.

"There are several achievements that have defined our success," says company founder and CEO Mike Matacunas. "The first is our 100% client satisfaction metric. We actively measure this and constantly look for feedback from our clients on our strengths and opportunities. The second is our steady top-line growth based on continually delivering for clients like Wal-Mart, Lands' End, Carter's, et al. The third is our collegial culture that reflects in our client work and the respect our team has for each other. The fourth is building a successful consulting firm in a challenging market and a compressed economic climate. These are some of the achievements that define us as a firm."

Based on The Parker Avery Group's growth and sustainability, as well as entrepreneurship, the boutique strategy and management consulting firm is proud to have been chosen as "One to Watch" in the Atlanta business scene.

The Parker Avery Group Publishes Papers on Group Buying, Mobile Retail and Retail Product Development

Atlanta, GA (March 31, 2011) - The Parker Avery Group, an Atlanta-based management consulting and research firm with clients such as Wal-Mart Stores, Lands' End, Toys "R" Us, Cabela's and PetSmart, recently published three papers for retailers wanting to improve or develop in the areas of Group Buying, Mobile Retail and Product Development:


“In addition to strategy, business and implementation services to retailers, we offer our clients thought leadership, research and Points of View on important industry topics and challenges. We believe mobile commerce, group buying and integrating customer insights with product development are important, timely topics,” said company founder and CEO Mike Matacunas.

The authors of these papers, Robert Kaufman, Scott Kern and Courtney Albert, have more than 40 years of combined experience leading retailers around the world on strategy projects and major transformational initiatives. Their experience covers a wide variety of issues including customer insights, branding, social media, mobile commerce, channel operations, merchandising and supply chain. Webcasts will be published in April and May to provide retailers with additional in-depth analysis.

The Parker Avery Group Posts Record Revenue and Growth in 2010

New York, NY and Atlanta, GA (January 9, 2011) - The 100th Annual National Retail Federation Conference - The Parker Avery Group, an Atlanta-based professional services firm, announced today that it bested previous year performance by more than 31% while receiving high client satisfaction ratings from clients such as Wal-Mart Stores, PetSmart, Cabela’s, Toys”R”Us and others. In addition, the firm launched a new website and moved offices to a larger Atlanta location.

“Our on-line retail education business is now well under way and there are numerous indicators of the strength of the business; client relationships, brand awareness and retention rates are at an all-time high. Despite a tough retail environment early in 2010, new clients made up the majority of our revenue and we see this continuing in 2011 as the recovery continues,” said company founder and CEO Mike Matacunas.

“As another successful project draws to a close, I want to reinforce how much the Parker Avery team has meant to our business and the outstanding contribution they provide. In all, just another example of fantastic support of our mission,” said a senior executive of a large global retailer.

In 2010, The Parker Avery Group received a 2010 Pacesetter Award from the Atlanta Business Chronicle and was recognized by SPI Research as the Best-of-the-Best professional services firm out of 225 consulting organizations based on leadership, client satisfaction and overall performance.

2010

The Parker Avery Group Sponsors the 2010 Cross-Channel Retail Executive Summit

Retail Info System News (RIS News) hosted the fourth annual Cross-Channel Retail Executive Summit held September 15 - 17, 2010 in Scottsdale, Arizona. This invitation-only summit outlined strategic business and technology imperatives critical to retailers as they operate and compete in a multi-channel marketplace.

Participants enjoyed a wealth of opportunities for effective peer-to-peer networking, exchanged information and ideas, and built lasting business and personal relationships. Mike Matacunas, CEO of The Parker Avery Group, cited that this event was beneficial to the future of retailing because "leading retailers need to become more flexible and responsive to channel trends and timing to maintain customer loyalties and build brand equity. Cross-channel retailing requires retailers to change."

The 2010 Professional Services Maturity Model Benchmark Report

The Parker Avery Group was named one of the best professional services organizations in SPI Research's 2010 Professional Services benchmark report.

In comparison to 225 other professional services firms across industries, Parker Avery was identified as one of the 'best of the best' based on vision, client value, delivery excellence and overall performance.

"We are honored to be recognized as an outstanding professional services firm," said Mike Matacunas, CEO of The Parker Avery Group. "We are passionate about professional services and delivering value to our clients."

Parker Avery Sponsors RSR Research's "Getting Back to Good: Pricing 2010" Study

RSR Research, an analyst firm providing market intelligence on retail technology trends, announces the results of its latest research report, "Getting Back to Good: Pricing 2010." The research shows retailers continuing to invest in core pricing capabilities, with a broader view of how price optimization fits within the retail enterprise. The data also finds stores and competitors playing less of a role in determining prices, as retailers try to recover from 2009.

"Getting Back to Good: Pricing 2010" contains analysis of the business drivers, opportunities, and organizational constraints surrounding retail pricing and promotions, as well as recommendations for creating successful pricing capabilities.

"This is timely and insightful research for retail executives," says Dana Andrews, Associate Partner of The Parker Avery Group. "It substantiates our belief that back to basic pricing processes and capabilities make a difference."

Manthan Systems Appoints Parker Avery as Strategic Partner

In January, Manthan Systems appointed Parker Avery as a strategic partner to jointly offer strategy, best practice guidance and cutting edge business intelligence capabilities to retailers.

"The ARC solutions are an impressive example of innovative technology that can dramatically improve Retailer capabilities. From role-based merchandising intelligence to customer analytics and supplier collaboration, the Manthan products are focused on the retail industry and rapidly enabling process change. We're excited about Manthan's growth in the US market and our appointment as a strategic partner," said Mike Matacunas, CEO of The Parker Avery Group.

2009

Parker Avery Sponsors the First Atlanta Retail Forum

The Parker Avery Group sponsored the first Atlanta Retail Forum at the Crowne Plaza Ravinia hotel in Atlanta. The event was a successful gathering of professionals from The Home Depot, Macy's, Carter's, Georgia Pacific, Manhattan Associates, User Insights and The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

"We were excited to sponsor the event and provide a forum for Atlanta Retail professionals to network, discuss the industry and meet. In this Retail economy, it is important we go beyond blogging, texting and social networking to spend time with each other and discuss opportunities," said Dana Andrews, Associate Partner of The Parker Avery Group.

Please visit our ARF page to view photos from the event and make sure you're on the invitation list for the next event.

Parker Avery Responds to Market Needs with Outsourced Merchandising and Inventory Management Services

The Parker Avery Group is pleased to announce outsourced Merchandising and Inventory Management Services. These services provide core merchandising and inventory management business functions in an outsourced staffing model. The benefit for Retailers is lower operating costs, improved sales and profit performance and a greater focus on strategic capabilities.

"We believe that most retailers need to change their basic operating structure to power through the economic challenges of today. The 2010 Retailer needs to be leaner and have higher leverage on third parties to compete. As ex-merchant and inventory executives who understand Retail within a highly accomplished professional services firm, we are the right partner for executives who understand this shift" said Mike Matacunas, Chief Executive Officer.

"Outsourcing is no longer only for technology. We can create significant bottom line value for our clients who are willing to think differently about how to succeed and take advantage of our expertise."

2008

Parker Avery Announces Expansion of Replenishment Strategic Services

The Parker Avery Group is pleased to announce the expansion of its Replenishment strategic services group. The strategic services group provides clients expert advice on strategy, process, organization structure and solution configuration for Demand Planning, Forecasting, Profiling, Data Cleansing, Slow Mover Management, Replenishment and Multi-Echelon Inventory Optimization.

"In this market, companies need to identify and focus on lowering inventories and turning product. By adding a number of specialists and industry thought leaders to our firm, our replenishment and inventory expertise is unmatched and helps clients find and deliver on these opportunities," said Mike Matacunas, CEO of The Parker Avery Group.

2007

Parker Avery Pledges 1% of Revenue to Community and Environment

The Parker Avery Group is announcing the commitment of 1% of revenues to improve the environment. These funds will be donated to various non-profit organizations with high Charity Navigator ratings and causes that directly improve the environment and local communities.

"Commitment to Community is one of the founding principles of our business. We are pleased to be able to make this pledge and look forward to growing our business and contributions over the next few years." said Mike Matacunas, Chief Executive Officer.



The Parker Avery Group is a boutique strategy and management consulting firm.  We are a trusted advisor to leading retail and consumer packaged goods companies.   We specialize in integrating customer insights and multi-channel business models. Contact The Parker Avery Group at contact@parkeravery.com with questions or for more information.