Manufacturer advisory · Regulated products, supplements, consumer goods

Commercial and product leadership for manufacturers, from someone who has run it.

Q: Do you sign NDAs before the first conversation?

Yes, a mutual NDA before any product detail is shared is normal in this category and I am happy to sign yours or provide a standard one.

Ten years at Nutramax Laboratories, a Lancaster County manufacturer of animal health and nutritional supplements: 22 export markets and $20M+ in wholesale built from one agreement, the NDAs, letters of intent and supply agreements behind new products, EU contract manufacturing set up from scratch, S&OP installed, and a stage gate that 30+ products moved through. Now available to manufacturers that need the same decisions made well, on a defined scope, without a full-time hire. Deepest in supplements; built for any maker of regulated or consumer products.

Start with a 30-minute call See the track record

Where I add value

Six areas where the decisions set your margin and your timeline.

New product development that ships on time

Most supplement launches stall in one of two places: ideas that never get a decision, or decisions made without the supply, regulatory and commercial facts in the room. A stage gate fixes both. I design and install the process, then run the first cycle with your team.

Gate definitions, entry criteria and decision rights matched to your size
Cross-functional review cadence: science, quality, supply chain, commercial, finance
Portfolio view across active projects so leadership sees the whole pipeline
Launch readiness: positioning, packaging, demand plan, channel sequencing

Delivered as: process design plus facilitation of the first two gate meetings, or fractional upstream project leadership.

International expansion and distributor strategy

Choosing between direct export, exclusive distributors, licensing and local manufacturing is the decision that sets your margin and your risk for a decade. I have run all four models and led a full transition from direct distribution to licensing across 22 markets without losing a revenue stream.

Market prioritization: size, regulatory path, channel structure, competitor presence
Partner search, vetting, term sheets and selective distribution agreements
Pricing waterfalls, transfer pricing and margin structure by market
Localization: labeling, claims, formula adaptation, multilingual packaging; regulatory pathways coordinated with counsel (Health Canada, EU and UK frameworks, market-specific animal health registrations)

Delivered as: market entry plan, partner search and negotiation support, or a retainer to run international as your fractional lead.

Entering the US market

For brands coming into the United States, the questions are the same ones I answered going out: which channel first (veterinary, specialty pet, mass, e-commerce, DTC), what the margin stack has to look like, how to structure a distributor or broker relationship, and how to protect the brand while it is small.

Channel and account prioritization across veterinary, specialty pet, mass, Chewy and Amazon, and DTC, with realistic volume and margin expectations for each
Amazon and marketplace launch planning, including brand protection
Distributor, broker and 3PL selection and agreements
Label, claims and compliance planning coordinated with your regulatory counsel, including NASC quality seal and FDA-CVM expectations for animal products and DSHEA structure-function rules for human products

Delivered as: US entry roadmap, then hands-on execution support through the first 12 months.

Contract manufacturer and supplier selection

The wrong contract manufacturer costs a year and a launch. I have selected and set up contract manufacturing, laboratory testing and logistics partners in the EU from scratch to meet local regulatory requirements, and run a 90-SKU portfolio through COVID-era supply disruption without losing a market.

Selection criteria and scorecard: capability, certifications, capacity, quality system, cost to serve
Site and quality-system evaluation coordinated with your quality lead
Technical transfer, first-run and stability plan, and a fallback source
Supply risk planning: dual sourcing, safety stock, allocation rules

Delivered as: a scored shortlist and recommendation in three to four weeks, then onboarding support.

Partnerships and agreements: NDAs, letters of intent, supply and distribution contracts

New ingredients, delivery technologies and exclusive partners are where a manufacturer's next product and next market come from, and the paper sets the margin for a decade. I have negotiated NDAs, letters of intent and exclusive technology and supply agreements with global ingredient and manufacturing partners, and selective distribution agreements with 15 exclusive partners.

Partner identification and technical-commercial evaluation
Term structure: exclusivity and territory, minimums, pricing and escalators, IP, quality obligations, exit
Negotiation support from first NDA through signed agreement, with your counsel on the legal text
Distributor and licensing agreements that survive a change in strategy

Delivered as: deal-by-deal advisory, or a partner search with negotiation through signature.

Commercial operations: S&OP, demand planning and the operating cadence

Growth breaks companies at the seams between marketing, sales, supply chain and finance. As Commercial Chief of Staff I set up the Sales and Operations Planning process, the monthly cadence, the budgeting and outlook reporting, and recruited six commercial leaders to sustain it. For a manufacturer or brand between $5M and $100M, this is often the highest-return work I do.

S&OP design and facilitation: demand review, supply review, reconciliation, executive decision meeting
Demand planning practice for a multi-SKU, multi-channel portfolio
Commercial org design, role definition and hiring support for the leaders you need next
Distributor enablement toolkits: training, marketing bundles, co-op programs

Delivered as: three-month implementation with your team, or a fractional Chief of Staff retainer.

Regulated products

Commercialized where a labeling mistake stops a shipment.

Animal health and dietary supplements sit under FDA-CVM and NASC expectations in the US, DSHEA structure-function rules for human products, Health Canada's natural health product framework, and separate EU and UK regimes, with market-specific registrations on top. I have launched and maintained products across all of them: the company's first multilingual, Health Canada compliant packaging, formula adaptation and localized labeling for 22 markets, and claims discipline across sales and marketing materials.

That experience transfers to any manufacturer whose product carries a label someone can fine: food and beverage, pet products, personal care, medical and veterinary devices, specialty chemicals. I am not a regulatory consultant and say so when a question needs one; my role is to make the commercial plan fit the regulatory path, and to coordinate the counsel and specialists who own the filings.

Registration path in the plan, not after it: which markets and channels are reachable in 6, 12 and 24 months and what each one costs to enter.
Label and claims review with your regulatory counsel before artwork, so packaging is printed once.
Localization that scales: multilingual packaging structures, formula variants and documentation built for the third market, not just the first.
Quality obligations written into supply and distribution agreements, so partners carry their share of compliance.
Specialists coordinated: formulation, regulatory, legal and testing partners brought in and managed against one plan.

Track record

Results from the same work, 2016 to 2025.

All of it at Nutramax Laboratories between 2016 and 2025, in progressively larger roles: International Product Manager, International Area Manager, International Sales Manager, Commercial Chief of Staff, and Senior Manager of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships.

Read the full account →

Built an international business from one Canadian distribution agreement to 15 exclusive partners across 22 markets in Europe and Asia-Pacific, growing at 20%+ CAGR to a $10M portfolio in five years and $20M+ in wholesale at handoff.
Created and owned a 90+ SKU international portfolio, including the company's first multilingual packaging and Health Canada compliant labeling.
Launched Cosequin into Costco Canada and onto Amazon in Canada, the UK, Spain, France and Germany.
Led the 12-month transition of international operations from direct distribution to a licensing model, moving supply chain, manufacturing, quality and distribution responsibilities with no market disruption.
Designed and implemented the new product stage gate process, integrated across 30+ active projects, and acted as upstream project leader on confidential first-to-market innovations.
Set up EU contract manufacturing, laboratory testing and logistics partnerships to meet local regulatory requirements.
Established the company's S&OP process and monthly operating cadence as Commercial Chief of Staff, and recruited six commercial leaders.

Engagement formats

Three formats, each with a written scope before work begins.

Starting prices are below; the exact fee is fixed in a one-page agreement up front. Each format defines deliverables, timing, and how success is judged.

Format 1

Diagnostic

From $7,500 · fixed fee · 2 to 3 weeks

For: a founder or leadership team facing one decision with real money behind it: which market next, why the pipeline is stalled, whether to keep or replace a distributor, what to do with a portfolio.

Outcome: a written read of the problem from someone who has made the same decision with a P&L attached, with the options, the trade-offs and a 90-day plan you can execute with or without me.

Stakeholder interviews and document review under NDA
Written findings and options with trade-offs
A 90-day plan with owners and milestones
One readout session with your leadership team

Credited against a Defined project that follows within 60 days.

Format 2

Defined project

From $15,000 · fixed price · milestones

For: a brand that knows what needs to be built and needs it done without a full-time hire: install a stage gate, run a partner search, build a US entry plan, set up S&OP.

Outcome: the process or plan installed and running with your team, priced as a whole so the invoice matches the quote, with handoff documentation so it keeps working after I leave.

Scope, deliverables and acceptance criteria in writing
Milestone payments tied to deliverables
Weekly progress notes and a working session cadence
Handoff documentation so your team can run it

Typical range $15,000 to $45,000 depending on markets, partners or products in scope; the number is fixed before work starts.

Format 3

Fractional leadership

From $6,000 a month · 3 days a month · 3-month minimum

For: a manufacturer or brand between roughly $5M and $100M that needs a head of international, an upstream project lead or a chief of staff, and is not ready to hire one.

Outcome: a function owned, not advised on: partners managed, gates run, the monthly cadence kept, at a fraction of a senior hire's cost and with no ramp.

Defined days per month and a standing cadence
Ownership of a function or a program, not just advice
Direct work with your team, partners and suppliers
Quarterly review of scope and results

Additional days at a set day rate in the agreement. Travel billed at cost.

Payment terms: Diagnostics are 50% at the start and 50% at the readout. Defined projects are paid against milestones set in the scope. Retainers bill at the start of each month with a three-month minimum and 30 days' notice after that. A mutual NDA is signed before any product detail is shared.

Questions

Common questions.

Do you only work with supplement companies?

No. Supplements and animal health are where the experience is deepest, and the work itself, choosing a first export market, installing a launch process, selecting a contract manufacturer, negotiating supply and distribution agreements, running S&OP, is the same for any manufacturer of physical products. It fits best where the product is regulated or sold through distributors, because those are the conditions I ran under.

Do you work with human supplement brands or only pet and animal health?

Both. The operating experience is from companion animal health, where regulatory and channel structures are more varied than in human dietary supplements, but stage gate design, distributor models, supply agreements and S&OP transfer directly. Human brands entering pet, and pet brands adding human lines, are a common fit.

Can you help a brand enter the US market from abroad?

Yes. I spent ten years doing the reverse, taking a US brand into 22 markets, and the work is symmetrical: channel selection, partner search and vetting, pricing and margin structure, labeling and compliance planning, and a launch sequence that protects the brand while it is still small.

How are supplement consulting engagements priced?

Three formats: a fixed-fee diagnostic from $7,500 (two to three weeks, written findings and a plan), a defined project from $15,000 with a fixed price and milestones, or a monthly retainer from $6,000 for ongoing commercial or product leadership. Every format starts with a one-page written scope.

Do you sign NDAs before the first conversation?

Yes. A mutual NDA before any product detail is shared is normal in this category, and I am happy to sign yours or provide a standard one.

Are you a formulator or a regulatory consultant?

Neither, and I will say so when a question needs one. My role is commercial and product leadership: deciding what to build, how to get it made and approved through the right partners, how to price and distribute it, and how to run the operation. I bring in or coordinate formulation, regulatory and legal specialists when the work needs them.

Where are you based, and do you travel?

Rock Hill, South Carolina, in the Charlotte metro. Most advisory work runs remotely with periodic on-site sessions. I have worked with partners across Europe and Asia-Pacific for years and am comfortable with the time zones and the travel.

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