John Lilly is President of John Lilly Strategic Insights, LLC (JLSI), a consulting practice he began in 2002. His firm provides advisory services primarily to the financial services industry: Private Equity funds, Venture Capital investors and Investment Banks. His primary focus is on consumer goods, including both branded and non-branded products and services; across all channels of distribution in the US and Europe.
Mr. Lilly has an extensive background in consumer products management, having managed more than 50 consumer-driven businesses in 25 countries over 25 years. He began his career with The Procter & Gamble Company in 1976 in the P&G detergent business. Over 22 years, he managed almost all of P&G’s laundry, paper, food and beverage brands in multiple countries. This culminated in a six year assignment in Frankfurt, Germany, where John had managerial scope for the paper and beverage businesses in P&G’s Europe, Middle East and Africa Division. His management experience at P&G includes responsibility for such brands as Pampers®, Pringles®, Tide®, Always®, Folgers®, Gain®, Duncan Hines®, Sunny Delight® and Dawn®.
In 1997, Mr. Lilly left P&G to join The Pillsbury Company in Minneapolis, first as President of Pillsbury North America and then as CEO for The Pillsbury Company worldwide. At that time, Pillsbury was a $6.8B manufacturer of such brands as Pillsbury®, Green Giant®, Häagen-Dazs®, Totinos®, Old El Paso® and Progresso®. Pillsbury had leading retail and foodservice businesses in 25 countries. The company was sold to General Mills for $10.5B in 2002 (12.2X EBITDA) in what is seen as a highly successful food industry consolidation transaction.
After Pillsbury became part of General Mills, Mr. Lilly “changed careers”, putting his experience to work full time as an investor/advisor. Working through his consulting firm, John Lilly Strategic Insights, LLC, he maintains relationships with several national and regional investment banks, working on merger and acquisition, bankruptcy, financial restructuring, ERISA/ESOP and valuation projects. He is also actively involved in investment sourcing as an Advisory Director to Calera Partners in Boston/San Francisco. Currently investing its third fund of $920MM, Calera is a middle-market private equity fund originally affiliated with the Bechtel family’s Fremont Group.
In addition to consulting work, John Lilly Strategic Insights is a direct investor in thirteen venture-stage companies including translation software, pharmaceutical testing technology and new-generation dye materials. In collaboration with two former P&G colleagues, Mr. Lilly is currently working on a book describing the proprietary OGSP® strategic planning process.
Mr. Lilly is a member of the Board of Directors of Adams Respiratory Therapeutics (ARXT), a NASDAQ-listed manufacturer of OTC/Rx therapies for respiratory care, including the Mucinex® brand. He is an Advisor to LEK Consulting and a Trustee of the National Public Radio Foundation. John is married to Katherine Moore-Lilly, a Chemical Engineer with a 20 year career in product development with P&G. They have twin teenage children and split their residence between Longboat Key, Florida, Edwards, Colorado and their principle residence in Wayzata, Minnesota.
Contact Info
John Lilly
President of John Lilly Strategic Insights, LLC
4900 IDS Center
80 South 8th Street
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402
(612) 330-5066
http://www.jlsi.com
