​​​​Nickolas Darin 

Chief Financial Officer                                                                                                        2010 - 2013

 

Contract CFO Services – Rochester, MI                                                                                                                                       

 

Providing high-impact financial management services for challenged organizations & private equity resources for investment opportunities.

                                                                                                                           

• Partnered with newly appointed President, stabilized supply chain continuity and positioned key divestiture liquidity event in core operating unit for transportation manufacturer post-bankruptcy filing.

• Evaluated two middle market PE acquisition opportunities in specialty manufacturing markets, while simultaneously managing collaboration on ROI, growth opportunities, pricing, and financing.

 

Galls & Quartermaster, LLC – Lexington, KY

 

$233M Entity of CI Capital Partners, largest multichannel, full-service retail marketer and specialty distributor of apparel and equipment utilized by public safety departments, private security companies, federal agencies, and military.                                         

 

• Drove $1.9M pro-forma EBITDA synergies within first 90 days during platform carve-out from Aramark by organizing and implementing 15 successful multisite integration projects.

• Administered a $15M operating budget while managing 5 direct reports and overseeing a staff of 51.

• Managed two ABLS ($27M), a Senior Note ($9M), and two Mezzanine Notes ($45M).

• Decreased budgeting cycle time by 50%, introduced dashboard reporting, and eliminated spreadsheet consolidation through the implementation of Prophix, an OLAP consolidation and planning tool.

• Secured a $40M Tax Shield by performing valuation analysis and implementing fixed asset software.

• Reduced inventory levels by $900,000 and improved customer experiences through implementing purchasing optimization strategies, reducing backorders by 35%.

• Promoted awareness and profitable bottom-line growth in managed account sales channel by spearheading contract bidding model refinements to include impact of cost of capital and fully absorbed cost factors.

• Secured $2.7M in opening balance sheet inventory valuation adjustments, utilizing a post-close cross-functional team assessment of marketable on-hand inventory.

 

Metavation, LLC & Fairfield Casting, LLC – Southfield, MI

 

$132M entity of Revstone Industries offering casting, precision-machining, and component assembly to a diverse group of markets.

 

• Identified $1.8M of unprofitable product lines in underperforming plants, challenging profitability target-setting in budgeting process, and improved remediation focus on large contract pricing points.

• Administered a $21M operating budget, while leading a team of 3 plant controllers and 1 senior analyst.

• Increased asset-based cash availability by 22%, instilling ownership and accountability into daily cash flow process through coordination efforts of finance and purchasing teams.

• Instrumental in financially integrating $45M foundry, including securing $1.4M synergies via disciplined integration framework collaboratively with corporate staff and plant controller.

• Secured supply chain continuity in collaboration with the VP of operations on concerted improvement efforts by streamlining cash management activities and strengthening operational profitability.

 

Chief Financial Officer                                                                                                        2006 - 2010               

Decoratetoday.com – American Blinds & Wallpaper Factory – Livonia, MI                                                                                 

 

$79M entity of Contrarian Capital Management, largest multichannel and direct-to-consumer retailer of name brand, special order window treatments and wall coverings. In Internet Retailer Magazine, ranked #187 (2009) in “Top 500 Listing.”                                                                      

 

• Stabilized operating performance, built platform for positive cash flow, secured $25M tax benefit, and served as catalyst during merger with top e-retailer to form largest e-retailer in product segment.

• Administered an $18M operating budget while leading 4 direct reports and overseeing a staff of 28.

• Reduced operating costs by $15M by relocating headquarters to a smaller footprint, rightsizing call center staff with online-order transition to web, and benefits from administration overhead lean reductions.

• Generated $330,000 in cash flow by renegotiating credit card processing terms with new business partners.

• Realized a gross margin growth of 380 bps by designing strategic discounting programs, expanding private label product offering, and investing in a core product mix.

• Bolstered stakeholder confidence, employee morale, and customer satisfaction through cultivation of high-performance culture based on accountability and continuous improvement.

• Catalyst during successful web deployment initiatives in the Canadian marketplace, by creating a low-cost-to-serve operating model and leveraging existing technology and strategic vendor relationships in the U.S.

 

Vice President of Finance, Technology & Supply Chain                                            2000 - 2006

J&L Industrial Supply – Southfield, MI                                                                                                                                           

 

$300M division of global market leader Kennametal and largest specialty distributor of metalworking products and supplies.

                                               

• Instrumental in sale to MSC Industrial at 11.3X EBITDA, generating $220M pretax gain via successful repositioning and turnaround of an unprofitable division.

• Administered a $30M operating budget and led 5 direct and 80 indirect reports across the U.S. and the U.K.

• Stabilized a deteriorating business platform, reducing operating expenses by 21%, delivering a 36% decrease in working capital, and increasing cash flow by $17M through A/R securitization program.

• Increased return on assets by nearly 500% from 6.2% to 28.8% by improving return on sales from 3.1% to 11.6%, reducing working capital from $70M to $45M and monetizing idle assets.

• Improved customer experience through near-perfect line fill rate of 99%, order fill rate of 97% for 145,000 stockable SKUs, while nearly doubling inventory turns 2.3x to 4.3x.

• Restored double-digit EBIT to unprofitable division and refocused finance, IT, and supply chain organizations, placing high-energy, technology-savvy, and operational-minded A-players in key roles.

• Led 2 restructuring programs, creating $15M of benefits, closing 22 satellite locations, a census reduction of 295, SKU reductions of $3M, and the consolidation of 6 distribution centers.

 

Controller / Finance Manager / Project Manager / Senior Analyst                       1994 - 2000                

Cadillac Plastic – Troy, MI                                                                                                                                                               

 

$430M division of M. A. Hanna, a premier polymer supplier and world’s largest distributor of engineered plastic shapes and custom fabricated solutions, operating through 117 locations in 15 countries.  

                                                   

• Instrumental in strategically positioning and divesting division to global acquirers GE Plastics and ThyssenKrupp.

• Administered a $12M operating budget and led 5 direct and 40 indirect reports across the U.S. and the U.K.

• Redesigned and launched a Go-To-Market distribution strategy from 100+ brick and mortar retail locations, to a hub and spoke network, utilizing call centers and modeling profitability scenarios with KPMG.

• Eliminated 56 processing centers, consolidated supplier base by 73%, from 11,000 to 2,000, and saved the company $1.2M by centralizing accounts payable.

• Improved business focus through real-time reporting, eliminated cost redundancies, and supply chain bottlenecks by leveraging Oracle ERP technology-driven productivity and efficiency opportunities.

• Served as the Operations Manager for 14 fabrication/distribution locations, reviewing procedures, processes, internal control, and inventory management during the Oracle ERP rollout.