Corporate restructuring and business turnaround

Corporate restructuring puts a business back on an even keel when it still has a market but no longer the margins or the cash to sustain it: action is taken on the operating model, the organisation and the debt, in that order. Alma Next works alongside the owner from diagnosis to recovery, together with their legal and tax advisers.

Our approach

At a glance

What we do

Diagnosis, turnaround plan, reorganisation, debt renegotiation, execution

Who for

Businesses with a market but under pressure on margins or cash, and groups that need to reorganise

Where

From Monaco, for businesses in Italy, France and the Principality

Timing

Diagnosis takes weeks, the plan and its execution take quarters: the first months decide everything else

Confidentiality

No name is shared without your written consent

When restructuring is needed

Margins have worn thin

Revenue is holding, profit is not. Prices have not kept up with costs, the mix has shifted, some contracts are loss-making without it showing in the accounts. We start from profit and loss by business line, because that is where value leaks, not in the total.

Cash is setting the agenda

Payment dates decide the priorities, credit lines are stretched, some suppliers are asking for guarantees. First working capital is secured, then the conversation with the banks resumes: debt is renegotiated with a credible plan in hand, not with a request for more time.

One unit is falling behind

A division, a plant or a market is weighing on the rest of the business. The question is whether to relaunch it, stop it or sell it: carving out a business unit is not a defeat, it is often what funds the recovery of everything else.

Our approach

Five phases, in the order that matters. The way the business operates changes before anything is asked of the banks: a business plan that stands up is the only argument creditors listen to.

Diagnosis

Accounts, margins by product line and by customer, working capital, contracts, organisation. Within a few weeks it becomes clear whether the problem is operational, organisational or financial, and how much time there really is before choices are forced.

The plan

A business plan with figures, timelines and an owner for every action, not a statement of intent. It covers the scope to keep, the actions on costs and prices, month-by-month cash needs and the assumptions behind it.

Engaging with banks and creditors

We take the plan to those who financed the business and prepare the owner for that table: what to ask for, in what order, with what security. Legal matters and any formal procedures remain with your lawyers and accountants, with whom we work side by side.

Execution

A plan is only as good as its execution. We stay alongside management in the months when decisions are really made, with light management reporting that shows every month whether the business is on track and where it is drifting.

The exit

A restructuring ends when the business goes back to deciding instead of reacting. A choice then opens up: carry on alone, bring in a partner to fund the next step, or sell, at a value that did not exist before.

The levers of a restructuring

There are four levers and they almost always move in this order. Anyone who starts with the debt before fixing the operating model buys time and pays it back with interest, because the problem comes back unchanged in the next plan.

Lever	What it acts on	When we use it
Operational	Product mix, pricing, production capacity, purchasing, loss-making customers	When the problem lies in the profit and loss account, even before the debt
Organisational	Roles and delegation, key people, management reporting, quality and timeliness of data	When everything goes through the owner and the numbers arrive too late to act on
Financial	Maturity and terms of the debt, security, working capital balance	When the business plan holds up but the debt timetable does not
Structural	The perimeter: carve-out of a business unit, asset disposals, a new shareholder	When one part is worth more outside than inside, or fresh capital is needed to restart

None of the four works on its own. The adviser’s job is to set the order, keep together the people who have to apply it and tell the owner when a lever has been pulled as far as it will go. If you want to understand what this means for the value of the business, valuation is explained on our M&A advisory page.

You don’t need a crisis to reorganise

Part of our work concerns businesses that are doing well and want to stay that way. This is corporate strategy consulting, not rescue: we step in while there is still margin and time to choose.

Growth that needs managing

A jump in volumes, a new market or a recently completed acquisition put pressure on a structure built for a smaller company. Organisation, sales processes and management controls are reviewed before the strain turns into a number in the accounts.

A perimeter to simplify

Several companies, brands and sites created at different times for reasons that no longer apply. We look at the group the way a buyer would and decide what to keep, what to merge and what to let go.

Commercial growth that has stalled

When organic growth has run aground: customer portfolio, pricing policy, sales network, partnerships and tenders. It is the work our founder did for twenty years inside companies, with responsibility for the margin, before doing it alongside them.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between restructuring and turnaround?

In practice they describe the same journey from two angles. Restructuring describes the actions: costs, organisation, perimeter, debt. Turnaround describes the intended result, the reversal of the curve. A business can be restructured without being turned around, if costs are cut without fixing the way it makes money.

How can you tell a crisis from a margin problem?

By looking at cash, not profit. A margin problem shows in the profit and loss account and leaves time to act. A crisis shows when the cash needs of the coming months are not covered by the available facilities: from that point time becomes the variable in charge, and the options shrink every week.

Can debt be renegotiated without a formal procedure?

Often yes, if you move early and with a documented plan. Banks assess the credibility of the business plan and the quality of the information they receive, not good intentions. Where a statutory procedure is needed, your lawyers and accountants lead it: we prepare the figures and the plan it rests on.

How long does a restructuring take?

Diagnosis takes weeks, the plan a few more weeks, execution several quarters. What changes the timeline is not the size of the business but when help is sought: those who arrive once the cash has run out have fewer routes and pay more for all of them.

Who decides, the owner or the adviser?

The owner, always. Our role is to put comparable scenarios in front of them, explain what each involves and keep the process in order. We take no management powers and sign nothing on your behalf: if you disagree with a choice, our job is to explain it better, not to impose it.

Should a business be restructured before it is sold?

Almost always. A business under strain sells badly: the buyer prices in the risk twice, in the negotiation and in the warranties. Putting margins, contracts and reliance on the owner in order in the months before a transaction is the work that has the biggest effect on price, as described on our M&A advisory page.

Do you also handle legal and tax matters?

No, and we say so before we start. Alma Next provides studies, analysis and transaction support: it does not carry out activities reserved to regulated professions or financial activities requiring authorisation. We work with the professionals who already advise the business, or help you choose them.