Simon-Kucher Beats Growth Records

Pricing and strategy consultant Simon-Kucher & Partners has announced 2018 revenue up 23% to $360m, its strongest growth in more than a decade.

The company only passed the EUR 100m milestone eight years ago, and since then has not looked back, only mixing fairly good years with very good ones. Revenue rises have been supported both by broad and ambitious recruitment drives and frequent senior promotions.

2018 results were especially strong in the US where the firm reported revenue up 35% on the back of rapid growth in the 'Software/Internet/Media industry'. CEO Dr Georg Tacke (pictured) notes: 'We have recently worked with 29 unicorns (innovative startups and young companies with a valuation over $1B such as Airbnb and Uber). This is likely unique for the consulting industry'. Demand is high for consulting support with digital topics such as dynamic pricing in the tourism and leisure industries, as well as the industrial Internet of Things, and Tacke reports a focus on 'smaller, clearly defined, and highly-profitable digitalization projects', from companies who have been disappointed after more scattergun investment in 'digitalization for digitalization's sake'.

Business also grew by 40% year-on-year in China, and by 25% in the company's home market of Germany. Tacke suggests, 'This confirms what we have always maintained: the market is not yet saturated. We still see many opportunities here'.

The firm is targeting revenue of $400m for 2019, and planning to hire over 400 new associates, to add to existing headcount of around 1,300 associates in 38 offices worldwide. The company was founded in 1985 and is on the web at www.simon-kucher.com .