Consulting

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Helping you grow your business.

Gray Cat Enterprises offers an array of consulting services to meet your firm’s unique needs:

Project Development and Implementation

Corporate Communications & PR Management

Franchisee Relationships and Management

Local Store Marketing Development

Request For Proposal (RFP’s) Management

Marketing Planning and Development

Brand Analysis and Assessment

Consumer Goods Product Positioning

Strategic Business Plan Development

Gray Cat: We Don’t Just Consult – We Produce

Some consultants draft a project plan for you, say “good luck!” and wave goodbye. Gray Cat is different–we take a roll-up-our-sleeves, active role in your success. As strategic thinkers with the industry expertise and know-how to take a project from start to finish, we become a powerful extension of your team that engages your organization, your products and your industry.

When a project is completed by Gray Cat, the result is a better way of doing business for your company. Our goal is to have your project succeed beyond your expectations, in addition to being on-time and on-budget.

Gray Cat’s reputation is based on the fact that clients repeatedly ask us to take on new projects.

Clients seem to like us (and we really like them!)–we know you will too.

Passionate, personable and extremely focused, in the nine years with my family, John did an excellent job of knowing operations inside and out as well as the marketing needs of our huge network of franchisees, while always keeping an eye on our overall bottom line. Simply put, he’s a pro.

Christopher Ilitch, President and CEO of Ilitch Holdings, including Little Caesar Enterprises, the Detroit Red Wings, and the Detroit Tigers Ilitch Holdings

John is the consummate project leader that’s one of the reasons why he was ultimately responsible for four different divisions of ours as a vice president. That is why White Hen now has John tackling some major projects for us. He has a tremendous ability to quickly analyze a multitude of complex components, producing a detailed project plan while communicating with every team member involved until the project is successfully implemented. John always gets the job done.

Brandon Barnholt, former President and CEO White Hen Pantry

Our Clients Say...

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- “I was introduced to John when he assisted the company with respect to the project management of a number of initiatives. In addition to ensuring the timely delivery of milestones, John provided relevant, substantive input thanks to his vast experience as a senior executive in the Retail Industry, and was always selfless in providing guidance [...]
  
  —Todd R. Meyer, Esq. General Counsel, Secretary & Vice President of Real Estate – Americas Zone
  
  The Body Shop
- “John is an “A” player. He brings a great deal of industry knowledge and experience to the equation and utilizes critical thinking and planning skills to organize and unify a team. He understands the importance of nuance in the effect of a project’s outcome and ensures the team is thinking robustly in each process and function. [...]
  
  —Bob Gregg, Director of Franchise Development
  
  Potbelly Sandwich Works
- “John was hired to operate a Local Marketing pilot, refine tactics through the pilot, operationalize the tactics and ultimately deliver a local marketing practices manual for Sylvan Learning. John was very professional and organized in his approach. As one of the internal owners of the project, I appreciated the relationships John established both with us and [...]
  
  —Michele Popelka Richardson, VP Sales
  
  Sylvan Learning Centers
- “John is a consummate professional that has proven leadership skills. His approach, ability to make a difference and personality works well as a consultant. John’s ability to navigate the corporate matrix and drive for quick results is unmatched and he does it with courtesy and professionalism. We have hired John to aid us in an area that [...]
  
  —Spencer Blaker, Retail Director
  
  Burt's Bees
- “John Matthews delivered an outstanding marketing presentation at our House of Bread franchise convention. As a small franchise company, it is even more important to obtain a return on your marketing investment. I didn’t want another marketing cheerleader but rather someone with real strategies and tools to increase profits. John Matthews delivered and the Franchisees [...]
  
  —Sheila McCann, President & CEO
  
  House of Bread Franchising
- “I’ve watched the requests for our product samples come through and have watched all the work that Gray Cat has done to help us launch this new product into the c-store channel; I am very much looking forward to getting out to NACS to get face-to-face time with all of Gray Cat’s category manager contacts. [...]
  
  —Tim Korthals, President
  
  OxiBrands, LLC
- “Gray Cat helped Quiznos in developing Local Store Marketing tools and also in a series of motivational speaking engagements with our Franchise Owners. John was very well-liked by the Quiznos community and he brought tremendous knowledge of and enthusiasm for LSM tactics. He’s a very focused, creative, and high-energy individual with a can-do attitude. We’d [...]
  
  —Rebecca Steinfort, SVP
  
  Quiznos, Inc.
- “As one of our most trusted and competent board members, John’s assistance and expertise was extremely helpful as he worked with our management team to address our most pressing business challenges. As a board member and consultant, his input and was invaluable. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend John to anyone wanting to improve their business [...]
  
  —Bob Underwood, CMA
  
  FB Johnston
- “I recently sold a portion of my high-tech company to Computer Associates, with Gray Cat Enterprises’ John Matthews as my lead negotiator and principal. In addition, as a result of working with Gray Cat, I have an excellent strategic business plan for the remainder of my company.”
  
  —John Busse
  
  InfoSec
- “As the franchisor of the Maid-Rite Corporation, it is invaluable for me to have credible, cutting edge advise. John Matthews has proved to be an invaluable asset to our franchise system as a mentor and coach. John has a great deal of valuable information and contacts to share. His practical ideas can be easily implemented [...]
  
  —Tania Burt, EVP, COO, Maid-Rite Corporation
  
  Maid-Rite