Laura is available for hire
Hire LauraLaura Costello
Verified Expert in Management Consulting
Management Consulting Expert
Vancouver, Canada
Toptal member since June 12, 2026
Bio
Laura is a strategic business leader with 20 years of experience in commercial growth and operational transformation. Her expertise spans international expansion, strategy, sales, and cross-functional leadership, with notable work at Tru Earth Environmental Products and Galderma Canada. She led Tru Earth's international division to win the World Trade Center Vancouver “Exporter of the Year” award in 2023.
Expertise
- B2B Sales
- CPG
- Key Account Management
- Negotiation
- P&L Management
- Pricing
- Retail Sales
- Strategic Planning
Work Experience
Founder
2025 - PRESENT
LVC International Consulting
- Advised founders and executive teams on growth strategy, pricing optimization, profitability analysis, and operational planning.
- Facilitated strategic planning and business alignment sessions across sales, operations, marketing, and supply chain functions.
- Supported leadership teams in solving complex operational and organizational challenges through structured problem-solving and systems thinking.
- Coached emerging business leaders on prioritization, decision-making, organizational alignment, and commercial strategy execution.
- Contracted as a technical specialist advisor for Export Navigator, providing advisory support to Canadian CEOs and founders developing international expansion strategies and export readiness plans.
- Contracted as a beachhead advisor for New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE), supporting New Zealand businesses with international growth planning, market expansion strategy, and operational readiness.
Focus areas: Executive Leadership, CPG, Commercial Strategy, Strategic Partnerships, Business Planning
Head of International Development
2021 - 2025
Tru Earth Environmental Products
- Developed and presented the company’s long-term international growth strategy to executive leadership and board stakeholders, securing additional investment funding to support expansion initiatives.
- Built and coached international business development teams, supporting capability development, strategic thinking, and regional performance management.
- Managed full international P&L, including pricing strategy, profitability optimization, forecasting, and investment planning across multiple markets.
- Led expansion into Europe and Asia-Pacific, including the establishment of a Netherlands business entity and market launches across China, Singapore, the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK.
- Served as a key liaison with external stakeholders, including EDC, Trade Commissioner Service, regulatory agencies, distributors, logistics providers, and in-market strategic partners.
- Guided cross-functional teams through complex international expansion projects requiring coordination across sales, marketing, operations, finance, and supply chain.
- Led the international division to receive the World Trade Center Vancouver “Exporter of the Year” award in 2023.
- Led a full UK market reset, including distributor transition, new 3PL implementation, and eCommerce platform migration to Shopify to improve operational agility and margin performance.
Focus areas: Profit & Loss (P&L), Shopify, CPG, International Growth, Executive Leadership, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
North America Sales Strategy Manager
2019 - 2021
VEGA
- Facilitated strategic project sprints and cross-functional planning initiatives focused on pricing strategy, operational effectiveness, and new product commercialization.
- Led organizational alignment initiatives between sales and operations teams, improving communication, forecasting accuracy, inventory visibility, and execution efficiency.
- Developed and deployed a new US pricing strategy across major retail channels, securing adoption across all targeted retail partners.
- Supported new product development and commercialization planning across grocery, club, mass, eCommerce, Amazon, and natural retail channels in Canada and the US.
- Developed ROI and trade spend analysis tools to support better commercial decision-making and profitability management.
- Coached sales teams on forecasting discipline, operational planning, and performance management across Canadian and US business units.
Focus areas: ROI, Deal Structuring, Innovation, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategy, Product Pricing, International Growth, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
National Retail Sales Manager
2019 - 2019
Galderma
- Led a national sales team of 13, driving an over 23% YoY sales increase through targeted strategy and leadership development.
- Earned Exceptional Performance Bonus in 2019 for steering the team through organizational change while achieving record growth.
- Designed and executed national training and engagement programs that increased sales proficiency and team performance.
Focus areas: Field Sales, Retail Sales, Execution, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
Key Account Manager, Western Canada
2016 - 2019
Galderma
- Managed multimillion-dollar key accounts including London Drugs, Sobeys, and Federated by implementing strategic business plans that achieved 16%+ YoY growth.
- Developed pricing optimization strategies that saved $300,000 in trade spend while driving category growth.
- Awarded Key Account Manager of the Year 2017 for outstanding performance.
Focus areas: CPG, Retail Sales, B2B Sales, Negotiation, Pricing, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
Business Development Manager
2014 - 2016
Energizer/Edgewell Canada
- Implemented joint business planning with lead account resulting in revenue turnaround from a 12% decline to over 10% growth.
- Developed and executed promotional marketing event with lead account resulting in a 5x increase in daily sales rate of the featured product.
- Effectively navigated and led through business change as Energizer underwent separation into a new company (Edgewell).
Focus areas: CPG, Innovation, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategy, Pricing, Product Pricing, B2B Sales, Retail Sales, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
District Manager
2012 - 2014
Ferrero
- Created trade promotion program across key distributor customers, resulting in over 14% increase in direct pre-packed display sales.
- Developed and presented national team annual sales conference content which focused the team on key objectives for the year and supported growth results through new training process.
- Worked on the implementation and training of the CRM tool, resulting in accurate reporting and planning across the team.
Focus areas: CPG, Field Sales, B2B Sales, Business Planning
National Account Manager
2010 - 2012
Goodman Fielder
- Created and drove growth strategy, led by ROI analysis and promotional elasticity data, resulting in 3% gross margin growth.
- Optimized the promotional plan as guided by promotional analysis, growing Edmonds flour brand market share from 8% to 10%.
- Launched a new olive oil brand in the New Zealand market with key retail partners, which grew to the second-largest olive oil brand in the NZ market in year one.
Focus areas: Key Account Management, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
National Account Manager, Convenience Channel
2006 - 2010
British American Tobacco New Zealand
- Led the global travel retail initiatives for BATNZ in collaboration with the APAC regional director.
- Implemented and led new merchandising initiatives across Shell retail chain.
- Represented the company at the NACS national awards dinner, presenting on new eco-conscious retailing initiatives.
Focus areas: CPG, Brand Strategy, Business Planning
Education
2019 - 2021
Master's Degree in Business Administration (MBA)
Simon Fraser University - Vancouver, Canada
2003 - 2006
Bachelor's Degree in Sociology
The University of Auckland - Auckland, New Zealand
Skills
Finance
Profit & Loss (P&L), ROI, Pricing, Data Analysis
Other
Executive Leadership, Business Coaching, P&L Management, Commercial Strategy, Strategic Planning, Market Intelligence, Market Entry, Strategic Partnerships, Stakeholder Engagement, Negotiation, Deal Structuring, International Growth, Leadership, CPG, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategy, Product Pricing, Retail Sales, B2B Sales, Key Account Management, Business Planning, Change Management, Innovation, Field Sales, Execution, Brand Strategy, Post-aquisition integration, Business Cases, Business Transformation, Enterprise Transformation, Executive Consulting, Shopify
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