From Fragmented Spreadsheets to Series A-Ready Financials for Footwear Startup

Client Context

A fast-growing direct-to-consumer footwear e-commerce startup operated across multiple European markets, selling through its own online channels with a growing mix of wholesale and marketplace partnerships.

Despite strong revenue growth and increasing brand traction, the company was preparing for a Series A fundraising round without a robust financial model to support its growth narrative. Existing spreadsheets were fragmented, assumptions were loosely defined, and the financial story was difficult to defend under investor scrutiny.

While unit economics appeared attractive at a high level, the leadership team lacked a clear, integrated view of scaling dynamics, cash requirements, and margin sensitivity across pricing, fulfillment, marketing spend, and returns.

Key Challenges

Fragmented Financial Model
Financial projections were spread across multiple spreadsheets with inconsistent assumptions and limited linkage between revenue growth, costs, cash flow, and balance sheet dynamics.

Weak Unit Economics Story
Key drivers such as customer acquisition cost, repeat purchase rates, fulfillment costs, and returns were not clearly modelled or stress-tested under scale.

Investor Readiness Gaps
The company lacked investor-ready outputs, including scenario-based projections, funding use-of-proceeds logic, and a defensible path to profitability.

Cash Flow Uncertainty
Inventory cycles, marketing spend ramp-up, and payment timing created uncertainty around cash runway and funding requirements.

Solution Design

A decision-ready, investor-grade financial model was designed to support both internal planning and external fundraising, with a strong focus on unit economics, scalability, and scenario clarity.

Key Components:

Integrated Financial Model Architecture

1. Designed a fully integrated 3-statement financial model (P&L, Cash Flow, Balance Sheet) with monthly granularity.

2. Structured the model around operational drivers rather than top-down assumptions, ensuring transparency & auditability.

3. Built modular logic to allow easy iteration during investor discussions.

Revenue & Demand Modelling

• Modelled revenue by channel (DTC, marketplace, wholesale) with assumptions for pricing, volume growth, and seasonality.

• Incorporated customer cohort logic to reflect repeat purchase behavior and lifetime value dynamics.

• Linked demand growth directly to marketing spend efficiency and conversion assumptions.

Unit Economics & Cost Structure

Built detailed unit economics covering:

• Product margin

• Fulfillment and logistics

• Returns and reverse logistics

• Payment processing and platform fees

• Marketing and customer acquisition costs

• Stress-tested margins under different pricing, discounting, and return-rate scenarios.

Cash Flow & Inventory Dynamics

• Modelled inventory procurement cycles, supplier payment terms, and stock turnover.

• Integrated working capital logic to forecast cash needs under rapid growth scenarios.

• Produced clear cash runway views tied to fundraising timing.

Scenario & Sensitivity Analysis

Developed base, upside, and downside scenarios covering:

• Growth rates

• Marketing efficiency

• Gross margin evolution

• Cost inflation

Included sensitivity analysis on key investor concerns such as CAC, return rates, and fulfillment costs.

Investor Presentation Support

Translated the financial model into clear investor-facing outputs, including:

• Scenario comparison tables

• Use-of-funds analysis

• Path-to-profitability visuals

• Cash runway and breakeven timelines

Worked closely with founders to ensure financial assumptions aligned with the strategic narrative.

Key Deliverables

• Integrated 3-Statement Financial Model – Monthly projections with full linkage and transparent assumptions.

• Unit Economics Framework – Detailed contribution margin and scalability analysis.

• Scenario & Sensitivity Toolkit – Base, upside, and downside cases with investor-ready outputs.

• Cash Runway & Funding Model – Clear visibility into funding needs and timing.

• Investor Deck Financial Exhibits – Clean charts and tables embedded directly into the Series A pitch deck.

• Assumptions & Documentation Pack – Clear documentation to support diligence discussions.

Business Impact

Successful Series A Fundraise
The financial model and investor materials supported a successful Series A raise, with investors citing clarity of assumptions and scalability as key strengths.

Stronger Valuation Narrative
Unit economics and scenario modelling enabled the founders to defend valuation assumptions and articulate a credible path to profitability.

Improved Internal Decision-Making
Leadership gained a clear understanding of growth trade-offs between marketing spend, pricing strategy, and cash runway.

Faster Investor Iterations
The modular model allowed rapid updates during investor Q&A, reducing turnaround from days to hours.

Conclusion

The financial modelling engagement transformed the startup’s planning from fragmented spreadsheets into a coherent, defensible financial narrative aligned with investor expectations.

By grounding projections in unit economics, cash dynamics, and scenario analysis, the company entered its Series A process with confidence — enabling leadership to focus on strategy and execution rather than defending numbers.