PartsStop Limited

Case Study Prompt

Your client, Parts Stop Limited (Parts Stop), is a leading automotive aftermarket retail and service specialist with a nationwide footprint in a major continental Western European country.

In the last four years, the company has increased its branch network by more than 25%, growing from about 480 branches in Y1 to over 600 in Y4.

The automotive aftermarket consists of the total market for replacement parts (e.g., brakes, exhausts, etc.), accessories (tires, electronics, optical accessories, etc.) and car chemicals.

There are three main groups of players in the market – Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who service cars of their own brand especially warranty services for cars that are 2-4 years old, chains and/or franchise networks of aftermarket specialists of which your client is one, and independent mom & pop garages.

The company has had a dip in profitability over the period Y2-Y3 and has hired you to perform strategic market analysis to identify underlying market changes.

In addition, you have been asked to develop an operational performance improvement blueprint to enhance the company’s profitability.

Case Overview

This Roland Berger case study involves an automotive specialist that has seen a decrease in profitability, despite marginal company growth. Your job is to diagnose the cause(s) of the decline, and provide a strategy for how to get back to profitability.

Are you ready to tackle the problem? It’s time to build your structure for the case. You can start with the Profitability Framework in this case, but Roland Berger will be looking to see you create a custom structure that will best solve the case.

This Roland Berger case study has loads of math exhibits waiting to be examined and interpreted. Not only that, the overall case interview math is quite difficult – good luck!

Roland Berger Interview Tips

Roland Berger looks for case interview candidates with an ability to think critically on their feet.

To impress in your interview, demonstrate your ability to problem-solve when under pressure.

Get the most out of this Roland Berger case study by focusing on 2 things:

• Timing yourself as you walk through the case study (2min to build structure and 2min to present it; 2min each for a brainstorming question; 2min for final recommendation)
• Consultant-level communication and polish

Need more case practice before your interview(s)? Book an hour of 1:1 case practice with an ex-MBB coach today.