What our clients say

“Global Partners hired Gray Cat Enterprises and they have provided an expertise that we were looking for to enhance our operations across a number of fronts, producing great results. All in all, they have been a tremendous value to our organization in operations, merchandising, marketing and strategic planning. They are a high integrity team that were great contributors to the overall success of our team.”
Mark CosenzaSVP | Global Partners
“John Matthews is a seasoned leader with a diverse business background enabling him to bring value add to every business that we asked him to lead. As a consultant for Deluxe Corporation, he focused efforts on customers, financial results, and process improvement. He drove meaningful gains in every aspect of the business. He lifted morale and drove collaboration across the team while ensuring key talent remained within the organization. I would strongly recommend him to support any business in need of performance improvement.”
Jennifer MitchellVP & General Manager | Deluxe Corporation
"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 IlitchPresident & CEO | Ilitch Holdings
“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 and input. I highly recommend John to any company seeking a seasoned executive with exceptional operational and administrative bandwidth.”
Todd R. Meyer, Esq.General Counsel, Secretary & Vice President of Real Estate | Americas Zone
“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. I would recommend him highly to anyone looking to kick-start a stalled process, project or program that needs to be taken to the next level in your organization.”
Bob GreggDirector of Franchise Development | Potbelly Sandwich Works
"I have had the pleasure of working with John Matthews in a consulting capacity and most recently as a board member for Beck Suppliers for the past five years. John is a talented, bright leader with deep expertise in food and convenience retailing, marketing and operations. He has a knack for asking insightful and strategic questions that often lead to impactful change. John played a key role in the ideation and early design stages of our new FriendShip Kitchen stores which were first launched in 2018. We employ many of his local store marketing (LSM) concepts to build brand awareness, trial, and sales. Perhaps John’s greatest strength is his ability to see many opportunities, yet focus on the ones that have the highest potential for success. I would highly recommend John Matthews as a board member or consultant to any organization looking to add a creative, strategic thinker to their team."  
Greg EhrlichPresident | Beck Suppliers, 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 UnderwoodCFO | FB Johnston Group
“John has done a marvelous job advising Burt's Bees on our retail development strategy. I look forward to working with him again.”
John Replogleformer President & CEO | Burt's Bees
"John is the consummate project leader that's one of the reasons why he was ultimately responsible for four different divisions at White Hen as a vice president. That is why Kehe has utilized John in 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 BarnholtCEO, Kehe & former President & CEO | White Hen Pantry, Inc.
“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 KorthalsPresident | OxiBrands, LLC
"It is my pleasure to recommend John. I have worked with him in two different roles, and two different companies, which equally great results. John is an expert in his field and had the ability to create campaigns and strategies unique to your business. John is professional, reliable, and easy to work with. With two different franchise companies I have seen him work with a large variety of individuals and personalities with ease. His ability to communicate the value of strategic local marketing combined with leadership during the process make it a great experience. Any company would be well served to work with John and Gray Cat Enterprises.”
Amy TillerCEO | Inspired Results, Safeguard Distributor
"John Matthews is a very rare seasoned marketing consulting professional in that he is one of very few people I can think of who completely understands the strategic marketing goals while considering very operational and tactical considerations at the same time. John is the type of person who gets things done, successfully, on time and on budget. He is fantastic to work with! In addition to this, John is also a great presenter and public speaker. I am honored to have been able to work with him for so long as I have learned so much from him.”
Kraig Kessel Co-Founder | Kraido

Trusted by over 30 clients.

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