Kim Mortensen

• In Scandinavian Living I am hired as a Representative Managing Director, with full P&L responsibility for a luxury furniture company, where my main task is to build a more structured sales organization and a 3-year growth strategy for the company in the Japanese market. This is a full-scale business restructuring from changing logistics/warehousing, number of SKUs to organizational structure, marketing strategy with steps towards a more diverse mix of sales channels
• The sales channel the company is operating in, is mainly B2B channel, including contract business to hotels, offices, restaurants, but with a small presence in D2C. Through a fully owned flagship store and Ecommerce channel the target is to improve the margins for future increased advertising investments and diversified sales channels.
• Scandinavian Living is a multi-brand company, currently handling exclusively 11 brands.

• In Scandinavian Housing I am hired as a Representative Managing Director for a Housing Material company, with full P&L responsibility where the main task is to setup the organization for growth.
• The company is capable of becoming a significant player in the market due to the sustainability trend of the Japanese housing market.
• The company imports housing materials for high quality, low energy housing, mainly from Northern Europe. The business is in terms of sales channels, a pure B2B business. The focus is therefore on expanding relationships with architect companies and designers that build and plan hotels, high-rise mansions and houses for the top 10% wealthy population in the Japanese market.

• KM Corporation was founded in 2020 as my vast experience and extensive network in both the Japanese market and internationally has been giving me numerous requests for help and support in different business areas.
• The projects KM Corporation has been working on are mainly turnaround projects and growth projects.
• When companies request the services, either they have a non-profitable company or subsidiary, where I go in and analyze the company and build a report on how to change the momentum of the company, bringing it from a negative bottom-line to a positive. Recently there is an increasing ask for help on change management and business development in terms of changing a company’s strategy from traditional sales channels to D2C channels with online as the main focus.
• In extreme cases I act as interim CEO to change the company in detail doing a full restructuring.

• For Fissler Japan, a German premium kitchenware company, I creating and implemented a turnaround strategy, restructured the company with focus on the following: Eliminated four 3rd party brands to focus on the core business, Changed staff in key positions, Reduced number of SKUs by 250 and planned another reduction of 339 halving the number of SKUs by the end of 2021
• Creating 32% growth in Q1 2021 with a more balanced B2B and D2C strategy, Increased Gross Margin by 9% points after 8 months, 19% points after 20 months with full effect of contract negotiations. Renegotiated logistics and warehousing contracts reducing the cost by 50%.

Provided executive vision, strategic direction, and operational leadership for the Japan subsidiary of Tempur Sealy International, the world’s largest bedding manufacturer. Oversaw all aspects of organization's fiscal performance and capital allocation with full P&L responsibility.

• Established strategy and operational plan for growth and continuous improvement, driving strong financial results, driven mainly by a D2C strategy with healthy balance of wholesale business.
• Led all aspects of business development, logistics, employee onboarding, product development, multi-brand marketing, contract negotiations, and vendor relationships throughout Asia. Shifted focus of hiring to specialists vs. generalists. Drove excellence in business results, financial and operating performance, customer satisfaction, and team development.
• Grew company three-fold from 2008 to 2018, CAGR 12%
• Led positive transformation of underperforming company with five-year deficit into profitability, tripling revenue and significantly increasing gross margin. Implemented aggressive growth strategy following turnaround
• Increased gross margin from 28% to 44% through focus on high-margin products, product development and cost reductions.
• Decreased capital expenditures by 50% and reduced inventory by 44% within 18 months, resulting in significantly improved cash flow.
• Reduced SKUs from 1,500 to 800 with a focus on high-volume and high-margin products.
• Introduced D2C own retail stores/ecommerce strategy in 2009 as a first-mover in the industry. Implemented online-to-offline (O2O) strategy for B2B customers, including creating affiliate systems and specialized online store locator.
• The D2C channel strategy became half of the company revenue
• Established 33 company-owned retail stores; high success resulted in global implementation of the strategy, opening hundreds of stores worldwide.
• Excelled in omnichannel performance, creating synergy with online and in-store platforms
• Developed Marketing strategy including celebrity endorsement for TV commercials and using influencers for online strategy, moving the Awareness Degree from 0% - 48% on mattresses and 50% - 72% on pillows.
• Transformed organizational culture and behavior, leading the positive change management strategy for the employees.
• Established data-driven sales organization, enhanced product portfolio, and implemented KPI-driven strategy that ignited growth.
• Expanded existing sales channels and developed new channels to minimize risk and drive profitable growth.
• In the process of growth, built a team from 70 to 300+ employees.
• Established a valuable career development program, introduced bonus structures, invested in talent development and education, implemented succession planning strategies, and created environment of knowledge sharing and inclusion
• Mentored, empowered, and motivated the senior leadership team. Established a positive environment with direct open communication and a shared vision that drove the company forward.
• Directed an M&A in 2014 to develop full market potential, joining brands Tempur Japan and Sealy Japan.

• Directed strategic planning, in-depth market analysis, partner searches and more for Danish companies and organizations
• Drove successful market entry and market expansion into the Japanese market.

• Headed a Trade Commission on behalf of the Danish Foreign Ministry to support Danish SME’s in the Japanese market
• Managed relationships with 200+ Danish SMEs spanning apparel/fashion, industrial machinery, FMCG, interior design etc.

• Recruited to guide the implementation of the global sales strategy into Asian markets
• Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea
• Integral in the turnaround of the company’s presence in Japan
• Product development/innovation for specialized tableware, resulting in company’s second-leading design in Japan.

• Founded consulting business providing services to Danish companies seeking to trade in Japan.