The question: operational guidance

The family-owned business had just gone through a turbulent time, and in August 2017 Nomad and her managing director parted ways. Anouk Kooijmans, owner of Nomad and daughter of its founder, realized she didn’t want to take on the leadership role on her own. “There were a number of strategic questions I needed to contemplate. I needed space for that and didn’t want to be busy all day with the operational management. My management team expressed their wish to have a contact person to discuss the day-to-day affairs. That person became Willem van Wijngaarden from Kwattaas. The primary objective was to increase the revenue and profit, decrease the amount of stock and to improve the EBITDA. Meanwhile, I looked into the possibility of selling Nomad. In that case, it was also important to have a healthy and strong company.”

The analysis: an urge for focus and agility

Willem van Wijngaarden on his vision of what needed to happen: “Nomad quickly concluded that it was strategically necessary to focus more on a number of product categories. The remaining product categories needed to be sold as quickly as possible for a good price. This required a set of specific actions to be taken short-term, a clear task division and a weekly meeting to discuss the results. Meanwhile we worked on structurally improving the processes. It’s a commercial organization, where product development, marketing and sales must closely work together. This cooperation was lacking. The connection between the departments and trust in each other needed to improve. Sometimes this can simply mean meeting up and talk to each other. In addition, we set up a clear reporting and communication structure.”

Our approach: people, people, people

Anouk was very excited: “Willem made every single member of the company grow. In business a lot of emphasis lies on thevnumbers, which is necessary, but that kind of improvement on the organization is even more important. That’s the basis for good results. And that’s where Willem’s biggest strength lies. He knows exactly which approach is needed at what specific time. He also understands that the pace at which management notices things, can be very different than that of the employees. He really took the time to include everyone. He’s the type of leader who doesn’t just tell you what to do, but enables people to run the business themselves. Moreover, for me he was an important sparring partner who helped me in my thought process and convey my message to the organization. He was basically a buffer between me and my employees.”

The result: strong company, successful sale

“In six months’ time Nomad was brought on course and ready for the next step”, Anouk continues. “I’ve only received positive feedback. The people in the company feel strong and have faith in the company, each other and in themselves.” In June 2018 Nomad was sold to investment agency Nederlands Merkgoed. Anouk: “For me it was vital to have time to really think about what I wanted. Thanks to Willem’s efforts I had that time and I leave behind a great and healthy company. The people who work there have entered a new phase from a place of strength and confidence and I can let go of Nomad in good faith.”