Thought Leaders: Ray Florio

Partner, Growth Consulting

Focus and Expertise

  • Portfolio and Brand Strategy
  • Pricing Strategy
  • Value Proposition and Innovation
  • Customer and Product Profitability

About Ray Florio

As a partner for IRI's Growth Consulting practice, Ray has helped leading retail, CPG and healthcare clients grow and become more profitable.

Ray has spent more than 15 years helping the leadership of Fortune 500 companies to understand and solve underlying issues in their business strategy, as well as meet their growth and profitability goals.

Ray's work, along with his commentary on economic and market trends, regularly appears in print, on television and on the radio. He has led engagements across six continents, driving profitable growth in both developed and emerging markets.

Hot Topics

  • COVID-19 and the Recession – As most are aware, the whole world is actively changing its behavior to avoid spread of COVID-19. There is tremendous impact to the U.S. economy, and though the CPG industry is not exempt from the virus, several categories will actually see an upturn due to stockpiling behavior, "shelter in place" and the potential recession. However, smart manufacturers will move beyond just determining the impact, and begin looking into what to do about it.
  • Pricing Psychology – Despite the availability of voluminous shopper data and advanced analytics, many CPG companies leave revenue on the table by failing to optimize the link between product pricing, product development and marketing. Understanding the myths that exist around price elasticity and charting a new path forward will unlock new revenue potential for manufacturers and retailers alike.
  • Portfolio Profitability – As the cost of doing business continues to rise for CPG manufacturers, smart brands can effectively determine the most efficient path forward through portfolio profitability.
  • Clean Labeling – Clean labeling is increasingly becoming an expectation among consumers, but it can be a potentially large investment for established brands, and it may not always drive a positive financial return. In fact, if done incorrectly, clean labels can end up eroding brand equity among existing loyal shoppers.

Thought Leadership

Speaking

  • Columbia Business School Executive Education Program, Best Practices in Revenue Growth Management, July 2018
  • Columbia Business School Executive Education Program, Best Practices in Revenue Growth Management, June 2017
  • Columbia Business School Executive Education Program, Best Practices in Revenue Growth Management, March 2016

Writing

Webinars and Videos