Start a Logistics and Supply Chain Consulting Business

Operations veterans underestimate how rare their knowledge is; small manufacturers and e-commerce brands cannot hire big firms but bleed money on logistics.

1. 1

   Pick your target company profile

   Small manufacturers and e-commerce brands doing $2M to $50M in revenue. They bleed money on freight and inventory but cannot afford Accenture, which is exactly your opening.

2. 2

   Package a fixed-price audit

   A freight and inventory audit at $3,000 to $7,500: analyze 6 months of freight invoices, carrier contracts, and inventory turns, and deliver a savings report with dollar figures attached.

3. 3

   Build your audit toolkit

   A freight invoice analysis template, inventory turn benchmarks for the client's industry, and a carrier rate comparison sheet. Reusable tools are what make fixed pricing profitable.

4. 4

   Sell the self-funding promise

   Position the audit as paying for itself: if you cannot find savings worth more than the fee, that finding itself is worth knowing. Operations buyers respect that framing.

5. 5

   Pitch through operations networks

   Your former vendor contacts, LinkedIn operations groups, and industry associations like ASCM. One post breaking down a real freight-savings example draws inbound interest.

6. 6

   Convert findings into retainers

   The audit surfaces projects: renegotiating carriers, fixing reorder points, vetting suppliers. Propose a monthly retainer with a percentage-of-savings bonus, and the upside compounds.

Read the full step-by-step guide →