Start Here.

Take a seat.

Get comfortable.

Feel free to let out a sigh of relief.

If you’re the finance leader running a DTC brand or the founder who’s ever wondered why the P&L says one thing and the bank account says another, you’re in the right place.

There’s no playbook for your exact situation. Every problem sends you down a rabbit hole, and what you find is either too generic or built for a company nothing like yours. And the few times you find someone else who’s actually been there, you get on a call and an hour disappears. Because you’ve finally found someone who gets it.

I’ve been in that seat for 10 years. VP Finance, CFO, COO across multiple DTC brands from early-stage through acquisition. I’ve had the Wednesday where payroll was close. I’ve had the month that looked healthy until it wasn’t. I’ve scrambled for a lender in 30 days when ours walked. And I’ve earned some grey hair because of it.

I spent years thinking someone else would write it all down, but nobody did. This is my attempt to change that.

Every issue covers one topic. Real stories from the seat and the mechanics behind how DTC finance actually works. The DTC specific 13-week cash flow inputs that turn your model into a reliable decision engine. The PO model that shows you what the bulk discount actually costs before you sign. The line of credit math that shows you what the rate actually costs when you add up all the pieces.

And there’s more coming than just the fundamentals. I’m building a DTC finance operating system. Daily, weekly, and monthly models, cadences, and workflows largely powered by AI, but with you still in the cockpit flying the plane. This is the playbook I never had.

Start with Issue #1. It’s about the week I almost missed payroll while we were growing 30% year over year. It comes with a cash flow model and a few mediocre jokes (get used to it).

- Brad