Thought Leaders: Ray Florio

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

• IRI Point of View, Achieving Profitable Growth in an Inflationary Environment, June 2021
• IRI Point of View, The Psychology of Pricing: Reshaping Your Elasticity Curve, June 2019
• IRI Publication, Revenue Growth Management: A Guide to More Effective Trade Management, August 2018
• IRI Point of View, Shifting Focus to the Bottom Line: Addressing Profitability at a Granular Level Can Improve Margins by 2 to 5 Percent, October 2017
• IRI Publication, Revenue Management Strategies to Drive Growth, September 2016
• IRI Point of View, Price Pack Architecture: A Proven Strategy for Sustainable and Profitable Innovation in a Slow-Growth Environment, January 2016
• IRI Point of View, The Changing Face of Retail, April 2015

Webinars and Videos

• IRI Webinar, Driving Profitable Growth, December 2019
• Pepsi Testimonial, Driving Profitable Growth for Naked Juice and Kevita, April 2018
• IRI Webinar, Ensure Price Pack Success, January 2016