How I work
Three ways in.
Start with the audit. Continue only if it proves itself. The long game comes later, if we both want it.
How I think
Why before what.
Most product conversations start with what: "What deodorant should we launch?" The valuable conversation starts one level up. Same with suppliers: the job isn't introducing factories, it's building the supplier structure the next phase needs.
- ✶Why should we launch deodorant at all?
- ✶Who is it for, and which customer do we want more of?
- ✶What role does it play in the assortment?
- ✶Which channel should own it?
- ✶Will it improve margins, or just add complexity?
- ✶Is this the highest-impact move right now?
01 · Start hereMargin & Cash Audit
Fixed fee · 3–4 weeks
A short, focused look at your real numbers: how much of your own cash is frozen in stock and supplier terms, how many margin points are on the table, and where the quick wins are. One fixed fee, agreed before we start. You leave with a prioritised plan either way.
What I go through +
01 · Start hereMargin & Cash Audit
Fixed fee · 3–4 weeks
- Buying prices against what your volumes should cost, supplier by supplier.
- Supplier terms: payment days, minimums, price breaks, and what's normal for your category.
- Margin by product, after discounts, returns and freight, so you see which products carry the company.
- The slow tail: which products tie up stock and shelf without earning their place.
- Stock turns: where your cash is sitting, and how fast it comes back to you.
- Launch history: what actually sold through, what didn't, and what that says about the next one.
Every finding comes with a number on it, built from your real data, ranked by how fast you can act on it. Your team's total time: a few hours of pulling reports and one working session.
Most start here after the audit
02 · The ongoing partnershipEmbedded Growth Partner
Monthly retainer · 1–2 days a week
I join your team as a fractional CPO, close to you and the people doing the work. Flexible across the week, on site when it helps. A fixed monthly fee, agreed in writing before we start. Never by the hour.
Where I go deepest +
02 · The ongoing partnershipEmbedded Growth Partner
Monthly retainer · 1–2 days a week
The heart of the work is assortment and launch strategy. Every launch decision starts with one question: will this bring new revenue, or split what you already sell?
- Map what every product actually earns. Contribution after discounts, returns and the cost of the stock it sits on. Most ranges have heroes quietly funding passengers; we find out which is which.
- Find the white space. New launches get aimed where you don't win yet: a customer, occasion or price point the current range doesn't own. Positioned and priced so they add, not cannibalize.
- Fewer, bigger launches. Each one gets a sell-through target before it's greenlit, and a kill rule if it misses. The launch calendar stops being a wish list.
- A pipeline from idea to on-shelf. Briefs, samples, suppliers, forecasts: one process the team can run without everything going through the founder.
Around that core, the same seat covers the commercial engine (suppliers, pricing, payment terms), the planning structure that keeps you fast as you grow, and investor readiness when a raise or a partner is on the horizon.
03 · The long gameStrategic Partner & Board
Bespoke · Equity / board
When it's working and we both want in for the long run: advisory board, board member, or interim executive through a growth phase. Skin in the game, and a place at the table as you bring in a partner or build a board. We don't decide this now.
The partnership
Four fronts, one seat.
The Embedded Growth Partner retainer covers the whole commercial engine of a product brand. Where we push hardest depends on what the audit finds.
01
Product & Category Growth
A range that earns its keep. Fewer, better launches that land on time and sell through. Category logic instead of gut-feel sprawl, and a pipeline the whole team can see.
02
Commercial Performance
Margin, pricing and suppliers. Buying prices renegotiated, payment terms extended, pricing discipline installed. This is where the audit's findings turn into money.
03
Scale-Up Structure
The rails that keep you fast: forecast, sales plan, and a product process from idea to on-shelf that doesn't depend on the founder being in every room.
04
Investor Readiness
If a raise or a partner is on the horizon, the house gets in order early: clean numbers, a credible margin story, and a product plan that survives due diligence.
The awkward part
I run the supplier conversations you'd rather not.
You're close to your suppliers. That closeness built the brand, and it also makes it awkward to push. I've negotiated sourcing for some of the most demanding houses in beauty and fashion, and I do it in a way that protects the relationship while it moves the price.
You stay the loved founder. I'll be the reasonable, well-prepared one asking for better terms.
The terms
How it works.
Next step
Let's start with your numbers.
One short conversation, and I'll show you what's there.