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AADD Ltd (Water coolers)

AADD Ltd distribute water coolers. We assisted them with Sales and Marketing advice and also undertook a detailed IT review of their systems.

CRISP (mediation)

CRISP offer a mediation service in schools. We have helped them to develop a business plan and to devlop their marketing in order to offer the service commercially when their funding ends. We have also helped them to develop and manage a contacts database and to develop their web site.

Waterloo Brown Limited

Waterloo Brown Limited, an events and conference management company was set up Catherine Moutell, in early 2004, building on over 10 years’ experience organising events in the public and private sectors and for academic institutions.

CKC Bedroom Company

CKC Bedroom Company is a specialist retailer of quality and fashionable beds, bed frames, bedroom furniture and accessories in Ashby De La Zouch.

Waterloo Brown Limited

Relationship

Waterloo Brown attended some Business Skills workshops hosted by Fourthinking as part if it's starting in business strategy

The company specialises in organising conferences, seminars and exhibitions. We can also organise corporate hospitality events and product launches. Additionally, we are very happy to provide advice to charities on fundraising, running events and securing sponsorship.

Operating nationally, no event is too big or too small. Waterloo Brown can organise every aspect of your events for you or help you run your own event. Professional and creative, the company prides itself on attention to detail.

During the start up phase of the business, Catherine attended the workshops provided by FourThinking at Business Link Leicestershire, covering topics from bookkeeping, marketing to using the website. In an article in the Business Week supplement – Leicester Mercury – Tuesday 23rd November – she is quoted as follows:

The website workshop was “the best workshop I have attended in 20 years”. “As a result of the course, I was able to manage my own expectations and work out a strategy for developing my own website”.

All the courses have provided valuable information and have been great networking opportunities

Since the beginning of October, Waterloo Brown is delighted to be working with the FourThinking Consultancy Group providing backup logistical help.

For more information on the services provided by Waterloo Brown please see our website www.waterloobrown.co.uk or contact
Catherine Moutell on 01664 454 270

AADD Ltd

Relationship

FourThinking Consultancy Group was engaged to help the company develop its marketing and sales strategies.

AADD Ltd is made up of two companies, Freshflow and Mainchoice.

1.Freshflow – is a company that sells bottled mineral water (19kg) complete with the water stand to businesses in the West Midlands. The company uses telephone marketing as its method of selling the product. The aim of the business is to attack only businesses that as yet do not have any water supplied to them. This is still possible as the bottled mineral water market is still in growth.

2.Mainchoice – is a company that provides chilled filtered water from the mains as an alternative to companies who currently use bottled mineral water. The advantage of this service is that once a company has had this service installed they will have chilled filtered water forever.

Business Link Coventry and Warwickshire involvement
Business Link through the Mustard Programme managed this project and was responsible for short-listing the consultants for this project. After an interview with the customer (AADD Ltd) FourThinking Consultancy Group was selected for the project.

Business Planning
FourThinking Consultancy Group helped both companies develop a structured practical marketing and sales strategy. This process included an in-depth audit of the companies looking at the following processes:

• Internal functions
• Finance
• IT and systems
• Administration processes
• Database information
• Customer Relationship Management
• Telemarketing processes
• Marketing and Sales Processes

From this in depth evaluation FourThinking was able to provide answers to the companies’ questions of how to implement a sound growth strategy for the future. Before the planning process was completed, further research was undertaken into the external factors (PEST & Competitor analysis) that would help or hinder the companies’ development. This part of the process was completed by a SWOT analysis. Further research and analysis was undertaken to aid the sales process to achieve better results.

Strategy

With an integrated practical strategy developed for each company (Freshflow and Mainchoice) they have been able to build on their experiences and expand their growth through profitable sales volume.

Operations

Training was provided to AADD in the setup and management of an ACT customer contact management system. Additional target market areas were identified. Advice was given in the recruitment and retention of sales staff.

Outcome

The company has now achieved a high level of expertise in their market and is currently developing further product lines to extend their current ones.

CKC Bedroom Company Ltd

Relationship

Grahame Riggall is proprietor of CKC Bedroom Company, a specialist retailer of quality and fashionable beds, bed frames, bedroom furniture and accessories in Ashby De La Zouch. He wished to extend his retail sales without opening another outlet and decided to develop an online trading web site.
Following advice and discussions with Janette Pallas of Fourthinking, Grahame and his wife and partner Alex, attended web site workshops in trading electronically and search engine optimisation.

Grahame started development with his web site developer Steve Inchley, and implemented his site in October 2004. He had immediate success. On the launch day when Grahame put up posters in his shop window launching the web site address, he received an enquiry from a customer who had driven past the shop, liked the goods in the window and looked at the site when she returned home.
Early sales have been achieved from Cheltenham, Essex, and Scotland, outside the normal sales area for a North West Leicester based retail outlet.
Grahame maintains the site himself and plans to also add accessories to the site at a later date. He is really optimistic about the future, recognising that the site also acts as an extended catalogue for shop visitors when they return home.

To see the range of quality beds and furniture available, see www.ckcathome.co.uk

CRISP – Conflict Resolution in Schools Programme

Relationship

FourThinking Consultancy Group has been working with the company over the last 18 months. During that time FourThinking has helped the company transform from a Lottery funded charity into a commercial business after its funding came to an end in March 2003.

CRISP was recently featured on the BBC One Life television programme,
“Beating the Bullies” – a documentary film by Brian Woods and Jeremy Wales of True Vision.

“This film, made by a team behind the Eyes of a Child and Kids Behind Bars, enters the lives of a group of eight year olds struggling with friendship, isolation and bullying. It tells the moving and uplifting story of the children of Heatherbrook Primary School as they try to keep peace in their own playground”.
Source: True Vision

“Mediation is magic; it puts the kindness back in people”
Source: Jordan – 8 years old

Planning Process

FourThinking worked with the company to put in place management structures and procedures. Business planning and marketing forecasts were developed to give the employees and the company the best chance for survival. This planning process was needed, as the company had no past experience of working in a commercial environment.

Strategy

A customer relationship database (ACT) and web site were installed to manage the potential customers brought in via the BBC One life television programme. This enabled the company to manage their leads in a professional way. The television programme gave them the chance to advance their marketing through public relations (PR) appearing on BBC breakfast programmes and radio as well as other commercial television programmes.

Outcome

CRISP is now working in a commercial world that has enabled them to keep staff employed on a more permanent basic other than for a contracted period. The company has an opportunity to develop now without being fully supported by funded contracts.