10 Minutes With
ANDREW SUTHERLAND LIGHTSWITCH CONSULTING Andrew is founder of lightswitch consulting, a bespoke FMCG consultancy supporting ANZ brand owners.
ANDREW SUTHERLAND, FOUNDER OF LIGHTSWITCH CONSULTING
Founder of lightswitch consulting, Andrew Sutherland has extensive experience in management and sales in the commercial and retail space, including working for brands such as Deoleo, ANZ, PepsiCo and Kellogg’s. Andrew recently hosted a webinar in partnership with Australian Organic titled “Building Sustainable Retail Partnerships”, to help organic operators learn more about building and improving on retail partnerships and brand strategies. We spoke to Andrew to learn more about his new venture, lightswitch consulting, and what advice he would give to organic operators entering the current retail space. Tell us a bit about yourself and your business. I’ve been in FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) for over 25 years, working in Sales, Category, Marketing and Senior Leadership roles for Tier 1 organisations across ANZ and the UK. My lovely wife (Olivia) is also in FMCG, so we are a Grocery Household (makes for scintillating dinner conversation!) lightswitch consulting is a bespoke FMCG consultancy which supports ANZ brand owners across all aspects of the go-to-market process. What is your background? How did you get into the commercial / retail space? My first permanent role out of University was with Kellogg’s NZ as a Sales Representative. I loved it and have been hooked ever since. FMCG is a great industry in so many ways, and it has been interesting to see the industry evolve over the last two decades. 12
AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY & UPDATES AUSTRALIAN ORGANIC CONNECT
What inspired you to start lightswitch consulting? It was three things. Firstly, I became a little disillusioned with the tier-1 FMCG relentless focus on profit – often at the expense of brand investment. Good brands are literally ‘the gift that keeps on giving’, and they need to be nurtured, not exploited. Secondly, I was also inspired by some of the passionate local brand owners I began meeting across ANZ. They cared deeply about their brand’s health and relationship with consumers; investing actively to support it and to also support their local communities. I agreed with their philosophy, and realised that my experience could really help local brand owners grow – and would be a good use of my time. And last, but by no means least, I wanted the flexibility to be an ‘available’ father to my two boys as they move through the teenage years.
How do you feel COVID-19 has affected the retail environment and consumer shopping habits in Australia? There has been a couple of really interesting changes. Lockdown time spent in local communities has moved shoppers to local stores. This was compounded by supply chain challenges in the early days, as supermarkets struggled to cope with panic buying. As a result, consumers have become more open to trying new brands, which creates huge opportunities in many categories. More time at home has increased from-scratch cooking, and possibly encouraged consumers to not only think about what they eat, but also where it comes from. As a result, they may be choosing to find out a bit more into the brands they buy, and what those brands stand for.
