Fractional CFO for health & beauty companies
Health and beauty is one of the most acquisitive consumer categories. L'Oréal, Estée Lauder, Unilever, P&G and Coty have been steady acquirers, with PE platforms rolling up indie skincare, haircare and cosmetics. Strategics underwrite on brand equity, repeat purchase, retail door productivity and gross margin after trade - not headline DTC revenue.
Repeat-rate and replenishment cohort reporting is the heart of beauty finance, because strategics buy brands whose hero SKUs sit on a refill cadence. Around that: the wholesale-to-DTC margin bridge including testers, gondolas and beauty-advisor support, returns and damage reserves on prestige skincare and colour, and the marketing payback split between paid social, influencer and retail-marketing spend.
Flow provides financial modelling, FP&A and fractional CFO advisory to health and beauty companies across skincare, colour cosmetics, haircare, fragrance, wellness and supplements, and personal care. Our startup CFO work frames repeat-rate evidence the way Estée Lauder or L'Oréal corporate development reads it.
KPIs to track for "health & beauty" startups
We're very 'KPI-driven' fractional CFOs, and we make sure to monitor the right metrics for your startup.
Revenue
Gross margin
Contribution margin
Repeat purchase rate
Cohort retention
AOV
Wholesale share
Door productivity
CAC
LTV / CAC
Advertising as % of revenue
Returns rate
Financial modelling for "health & beauty" startups
As fractional CFOs, we build KPI-driven financial models that are insightful and easy to maintain.
Financial modelling is both art and science - models must be robust, but also understandable, and useful for both internal planning and VC fundraising purposes. Hire a fractional CFO who knows how to handle both sides of the equation.
Hero-SKU replenishment cohort
Repeat purchase cadence and cohort retention modelled on the hero SKUs that sit on a refill cycle - serums, cleansers, foundation. The single piece of evidence Estée Lauder and L'Oréal corp dev actually weight in diligence.
Wholesale-to-DTC margin bridge
Invoice gross walked to net through testers, gondolas, beauty-advisor support, RTV and markdown for Sephora, Ulta and department stores, against DTC contribution after returns. Surfaces which channel is funding brand build and which is profitable.
Door productivity and shelf placement
Revenue per door per week by retailer and shelf placement, against trade investment per door. Tells you whether door expansion is creating real growth or paying for shelf space that has not earned it.
Marketing payback by channel
Payback period and ROAS split between paid social, influencer, affiliate and retail-marketing spend, with strategic-brand spend separated from direct-response. Stops sponsorship spend from being underwritten with performance maths.
Returns, damage and tester reserves
Returns on colour cosmetics and prestige skincare, damage on glass and primary pack, and tester and gift-with-purchase costs absorbed into contribution. Lands every brand on a contribution number that survives the audit.
Strategic-buyer P&L framing
Brand P&L restated for L'Oréal, Estée Lauder or Coty corp dev: brand-level gross margin after trade, hero-SKU repeat evidence and door productivity. Frames the asset the way the acquirer's model will rebuild it anyway.
Founders and investors we've worked with
We've supported winning builders across health & beauty and beyond.
TBô
We acted as fractional CFO to TBô, a Zurich-based tech-enabled DTC male underwear brand, building a bottom-up financial / operating model with cohort-level KPIs and positioning the company for its next venture round.
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Onlogist
We acted as fractional CFO to Onlogist, a Hamburg-based online marketplace for last-mile vehicle transfer, providing confidential valuation guidance and operating model support.
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Marcura
We acted as fractional CFO to Dubai-based Marcura, owner of maritime payroll and B2B payments platform MarTrust, advising on the strategic e-Wallet vendor selection and supporting product/finance integration.
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Hector
We acted as fractional CFO to Hector Aurumi, a Dubai-based specialist software house with AI/ML, IoT and data science expertise, providing confidential valuation guidance to the management team.
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Bonart
We've worked as fractional CFO with Bonart, a Zurich-based independent Swiss strategic advisory and execution platform for PE and investor fundraising, providing long-term confidential valuation guidance.
See moreRecent fractional CFO track record
See our fractional CFO and financial modelling experience across health & beauty and beyond.
Simple pricing
No hidden costs, no complicated long-term contracts. We understand how important flexibility is for health & beauty startups.
Per month
- Accounting / FP&A tech stack implementation
- Monthly financial statements and reporting pack
- Quarterly board pack with detailed financial analysis (with variance analysis vs. budget, relevant KPI observations etc.)
- Investor-friendly output
Per month
- Everything in Core, plus
- Operating model (via an online platform like Runway or Excel-based)
- Ongoing model maintenance, refining projections, burn/runway management
- Customer cohorts modelling, churn and retention analysis
- LTV / CAC, unit economics analysis
- Cap table management
Per month
- Everything in Grow, plus
- M&A / fundraising support; review of business plan
- Pitch deck preparation
- Investor approach strategy / list building
- Due diligence support and deal negotiation
- Valuation as required and free access to Multiples Pro
Packages shown are illustrative, final pricing is tailored to client requirements.
Explore our fractional CFO offering for similar verticals
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We provide fractional CFO services to companies operating across the entire tech.
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We help you scale by providing fractional CFO advice, through fundraising and a successful M&A exit.
VC fundraising for health & beauty companies
We help you prepare materials, reach out to investors in our extensive network, negotiate fair term sheets and structure the VC round.
Learn moreM&A for health & beauty companies
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