Retail consultancy TPC expands in US, invests in Change 4 Growth

Retail-focused firm Thought Provoking Consulting (TPC) has invested in US-based change management firm Change 4 Growth (C4G), formerly Sequent Consulting. The move sees London-headquartered TPC expand its presence in the US, where it has an office in Carlsbad, California.

As the fee rates of large, premier consulting firms continue to rise, clients are beginning to look more favourably on smaller, specialized consultancies to cut costs and receive more customized and industry-specific advice. According to a recent report, 75% of respondents who work with management consultants believe that in five years’ time, small-to-medium sized service providers (with fewer than 500 employees) will have an important role in their firm. 

This is good news for smaller firms like UK-based retail specialist Thought Provoking Consulting. The boutique firm, which currently has a growing team of over 30 specialist consultants, recently invested in US-based Change 4 Growth (C4G) – a retail change management consultancy. The move will add excellent capabilities in change management to TPC’s portfolio, to go with its current major service offerings related to retail planning, pricing, supply chain, and 3D product lifecycle management.

“Change 4 Growth has a strong pedigree in organisational change management which we have not previously been able to offer clients,” commented TPC Co-Founder Keith Taylor.  “They have a strong presence in the US and so will strengthen the group’s presence in this market while we can help them expand into the UK and Europe.”

C4G has worked with top retail clients including Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, and Eddie Bauer, providing organizational change management services, as well as leadership development, e-learning, and recruitment.

Clients of TPC’s retail-focused consulting services have included Superdry and Shop Direct, among others.

Beth Thomas, CEO of Change 4 Growth said of the deal, “I’m so excited to be working with Thought Provoking Consulting to continue to grow our US business as part of the Group. I love their customer-centric approach and feel a great cultural fit and believe we are stronger together. The move will allow us to tap into a breadth of retail expertise and help our clients find solutions that are critical in this age in areas such as pricing, promotions, planning, product development and supply chain.”

New Hire

TPC also expanded its US team with the announcement that it had hired Sara Niles-Toth as its Business Partnership Director in the US. Toth has over 20 years’ experience in business development, creative marketing, design ideation, and sales. She also has a design and creative background in the New York fashion industry.

Toth will be able to support clients with her deep understanding of the creative and design process, while optimizing change through digital, automation, software, and self-service.

Toth holds a BFA in Surface Pattern Design from Syracuse University.