Stephen Gerlach

For more than 25 years, Stephen has provided clients with innovative, practical solutions to increase stakeholder value by improving operations, streamlining logistics, managing inventory, and integrating technology. Stephen has 15 years of experience specifically in retail, while also serving a variety of industries.

Previously, Stephen ran his own company that specialized in helping distressed retail clients improve their inventory performance through reengineering their buying, merchandising, and supply chain processes. He has also held line management roles in large retail organizations, such as vice president of supply chain & logistics systems for a chain of grocery stores, and director of inventory planning for a large retail holding corporation.

He has provided companies with operational and financial advisory services during out-of-court workouts, mergers and acquisitions, and Chapter 11 proceedings. Stephen is particularly skilled in business process improvement and strategic planning and analysis.

A few noteworthy accomplishments include:

• Provided operational improvement and financial advisory services for a retail company in a post-ERP implementation environment, where he initiated new reporting capabilities and reengineered the company’s planning, receiving, allocation, and distribution functions
• Established operational improvement initiatives for a specialty apparel retailer with more than 300 locations nationwide, where he provided strategic direction, conducted a supply chain analysis, and implemented leading practices for inventory management
• Provided process improvement services for a department store chain with more than 800 locations, where he identified key performance indicators and management metrics that allowed the company to centralize and enhance its marketing methods
• Conducted a process review for $4 billion retailer, where he devised store operational, inventory control, and supply chain improvement initiatives that addressed shrink exposure and inventory management challenges
• Designed, developed, and implemented multiple custom forecasting and replenishment systems integrating client specific requirements and enhancements, including an end-of-season optimization methodology, that improved full price sell-through by over five percent at a 300-store footwear chain
• Performed statistical analysis to support product lifecycle modeling for a 300-store specialty retailer that reduced the unexplained forecast error by 60 percent, enabling significant reductions in safety stock

Education

• B.S. and M. Eng., Cornell University College of Engineering