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For CPG Companies, Necessity Is the Mother of Reinvention
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For CPG Companies, Necessity Is the Mother of Reinvention

John Knapp, Elfrun von Koeller, Alicia Pittman, Arnold Kogan and Jonathan Malankar
Boston Consulting Group, 2021
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A global health crisis, absent employees, travel restrictions and supply chain issues suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic should have been a disaster for the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry – but it wasn’t, or at least not entirely. What did CPG companies do to get on the right side of chaos? The Boston Consulting Group offers suggestions about which capabilities led companies safely through the crisis. It turns out that they’re the same capabilities that will lead companies safely into the future. 

Summary

COVID-19 exposed weak points in consumer packaged goods (CPG) supply chains, and spurred a new phase in grocery retail.

The COVID-19 pandemic created rapid shifts in consumer demand, exposing weaknesses in supply chains and shortages in raw materials and labor. Workers burned out, transportation became limited and store shelves were empty. A spike in online sales meant that eventually CPG backup inventories also disappeared.

In the midst of so much uncertainty, one thing is sure: CPG companies are wisely choosing to accelerate development of capabilities that will address the weaknesses revealed by the pandemic. This new commitment to critical capabilities will likely lead to an era of elevated performance.

The pandemic has...

About the Authors

John Knapp, Elfrun von Koeller, Alicia Pittman, Arnold Kogan and Jonathan Malankar are professionals with the Boston Consulting Group.

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