From Hidden Overspend to $27M in Working Capital Opportunity
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October 22, 2026
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A leading retail and entertainment operator managed a $680 million capital investment portfolio across new store openings, remodels, maintenance and IT projects, but fragmented systems and inconsistent processes limited visibility into project performance and contributed to inefficiencies in cash outflows. The client engaged FTI Consulting to assess its capital investment program and working capital practices, and our experts ultimately identified approximately $27 million in working capital improvement opportunities.
Our Impact
- The client gained a clearer view of capital spending after the analysis identified significant capital budget variances, including $9.7 million related to new store openings and $40.7 million related to remodels, pointing to areas where budgeting and project controls needed attention.
- More consistent capital expenditure reporting improved executive visibility into project performance, budgets, cash flow and forecasted spending after the analysis identified $20 million in previously unreported overspend related to new store openings.
- The assessment identified approximately $27 million in working capital opportunity, representing an estimated $2.7 million profit-and-loss benefit, with value tied to enforcing and extending supplier payment terms, eliminating early payments, improving invoice timing and processing, removing duplicate payments and accelerating credit application.
- The business strengthened capital and accounts payable governance through standardized policies, clearer ownership, improved controls and structured implementation roadmaps designed to support execution and sustain improvements.
Our Role
- FTI Consulting assessed capital governance, project controls, approvals, procurement, risk management and reporting across the client’s $680 million capital investment program, including targeted project reviews to evaluate governance maturity, execution and forecasting accuracy.
- Our experts analyzed budgets, commitments, actual costs, schedules and forecasted cash flows at the portfolio and project levels, using the findings to develop consolidated reporting, process maps and an interactive dashboard in Microsoft Power BI.
- Our experts conducted a working capital diagnostic across payment terms, early payments, prepaids, duplicate payments, credit processing, invoice processing and governance to identify opportunities to improve cash efficiency.
- To support implementation of working capital initiatives, FTI Consulting enforced contracted payment terms, extended targeted suppliers to 60 and 90 days, eliminated early payments, established a weekly disbursement cadence and implemented duplicate-payment controls, vendor credit recovery processes and cross-functional governance.
Related Insights
Published
October 22, 2026
Key Contacts
Senior Managing Director, Global Head of Data Center Construction, Projects & Assets
Senior Managing Director
Senior Managing Director
Managing Director
