So What Club

Paper and packaging

What a three-month delay costs

The prompt

FlexiPack (fictional), a flexible packaging maker in India, uses 100,000 tonnes of resin a year. The resin price rises by USD 200 a tonne. Its contracts pass the change on to customers, but only after three months. How much margin does it lose before prices catch up, and what share of its yearly EBITDA of USD 40 million is that? All figures are illustrative.

Before you reveal anything, plan your own structure and first move on paper. Then reveal one part at a time and compare.

Clarifying questions, with the interviewer's answers

Next case

Read the next worked case the same way: plan your own answer first, then reveal one part at a time.

Back to the first case: Calculating the margins from the P&LThe lesson: Packaging economics: integration, the cycle and passing on costs
Facts checked against sources on

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report a mistake. We check every report and correct the page.