Finance Director (Commercial)
Location:
Manchester (hybrid)
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Type:
Full‑time
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Reports to:
CEO
Package:
Competitive base (strong six figures for exceptional candidates) + performance bonus + equity potential for sustained outperformance.
Own the numbers. Shape the plan. Drive the result.
Hairburst sits where beauty meets wellbeing
We design effective, habit-forming hair growth solutions and the experiences that keep customers coming back. Clear routines, measurable results, products that earn a permanent spot in the bathroom.
We're owner-operators. In 2014 our founders launched Hairburst with £4k; in 2021 the brand joined a FTSE-100 group (JD Sports); in 2023 the founders bought back 100% to build the company we always wanted to run.
Our first chapter took us from a tiny start-up into a global, social-first beauty brand. Today you'll find us in Boots, Superdrug and Holland & Barrett, on leading marketplaces and DTC, backed by a loyal community of over 1 million customers.
Now we're building the infrastructure for what comes next. The Growth Studio brings brand, creative, performance, CRM, data, retail and marketplace into one room, not as departments reporting up, but as collaborators solving the same problem. Weekly working sessions. One plan. Shared dashboards. AI accelerates the testing and sharpens the targeting, so regional operators get campaign-ready ammunition without waiting for corporate to decide.
Subscription economics that scale. Regional teams with real ownership. Craft and speed at the same time.
Hairburst is the first brand. It won't be the last.
Why this role, why now
We're entering a scale phase across nine territories. To go faster without breaking things, we need a Finance Director who treats finance as a competitive weapon: clearer unit economics, tighter cash, sharper decisions, no surprises.
This isn't a compliance seat. You'll partner the CEO and Growth Studio to make finance the thing that speeds decisions, not slows them. You'll own P&L integrity, working capital discipline, and the trading rhythm that turns insight into action.
This is a career inflection point for an ambitious operator ready for their first FD seat, or someone in a Head of Finance role who's been running the show without the title.
We back potential over pedigree.
We'd rather hire a sharp, hungry operator who's ready to step into an FD role than someone coasting in one. We look for proof of pace, judgment and results, not just titles.
If you've been consistently taking on more scope and delivering bigger outcomes, we want to talk. The question isn't "have you been an FD before?" It's "can you show us the numbers you moved and how you moved them
The mandate
Own the economics:
Full P&L integrity across nine territories, clear SKU/channel contribution, cost-to-serve by market. You're the person who knows where we make money and where we're kidding ourselves.
Make cash a strategy:
Shorten the cash conversion cycle through smarter inventory, better supplier terms, tighter S&OP. Fewer stock shocks, better availability, calmer month-ends.
Run the operating rhythm:
Weekly trading reviews, monthly close in days not weeks, rolling forecasts that leadership actually use. Speed decisions with facts, not hindsight.
Set commercial guardrails:
Pricing, promo and mix rules that protect contribution while growing LTV and subscription attach. You understand brand builds pricing power.
Build one source of truth:
Clean BI (cohort/LTV, margin waterfall, CCC by territory), tight close process, forecast accuracy people trust. Modern cloud stack, no spreadsheet archaeology.
Fit-for-purpose control:
Simple, strong controls; statutory/tax/audit readiness without bureaucracy. Own banking, audit and insurance relationships.
Build a lean, great team:
Coach for commercial judgment, not just technical accuracy. Raise the quality of decision-making across the company.
Be the external face of finance:
Own relationships with banks, auditors, and insurers. As we scale, you'll be the finance lead in conversations with debt providers, PE, or VC. Clear communicator, credible operator, someone institutional partners trust.
AI-native operating model:
Use AI to accelerate the work: faster scenario modelling, sharper forecasting, automated variance analysis, predictive cash flow. We're building for speed, you should be on the vanguard of what's possible, not defending legacy processes.
What success looks like (12 months)
✓ Contribution margin up materially while growth holds or accelerates
✓ Cash conversion cycle improved—meaningful reduction in days inventory outstanding, stronger supplier terms
✓ Weekly UK + EU economics that leaders use to make faster, better calls
✓ Pricing/promo guardrails adopted; brand protected, margin improved
✓ Month-end closed in a handful of working days; forecasts within tight tolerance
✓ One truth live: clear dashboards by SKU/channel/territory
✓ Board pack in 5 pages—no surprises, clear actions, tight follow-through
About you
Owner's mindset:
You've moved real numbers (margin, cash, velocity) and can show the before → after. You treat the business like it's yours.
Commercial first:
Comfortable in trading rooms and brand reviews. You argue with facts, not slides. You know the difference between growing revenue and growing profit.
Qualified accountant:
ACA/ACCA/CIMA. You can close books properly, handle audit, get statutory filings done. But you're not hiding behind technical work, you're using it to drive the business forward.
Bias to action:
Short cycles, clean reads. You kill zombie work and back winners quickly. You're impatient with theatre and generous with clarity.
Hands-on and systems-savvy:
Excel native. Comfortable with modern finance + data stacks (Xero/NetSuite, Shopify/Amazon/GA4/Looker or similar). You build systems that last.
AI-native operator:
Already using AI to brief faster, analyse deeper, and ship cleaner work. You see it as leverage, not a threat. Curious about what's possible, pragmatic about what works.
Strong external presence:
Comfortable representing the business with banks, auditors, and future investors. You build trust through clarity and delivery, not corporate speak.
Partner to specialists:
You love sitting between Growth, Ops and Brand, translating plans into pounds. You make complexity simple.
Standards and spine:
You tell the truth early, keep your promises, and don't let optimism corrupt the forecast.
Nice to have:
Consumer/omnichannel experience, subscription/LTV models, Amazon/retail terms, supply-chain finance. Not required if you can learn fast.
Signals we're looking for
→ A crisp before/after story where you lifted margin or freed cash (start → moves → £ impact)
→ One pricing, promo or mix decision that improved contribution without killing velocity
→ A working capital play (stock, terms, forecasting) that materially improved cash
→ Evidence you've installed rhythms (weekly trading, rolling forecast) that others actually use
→ Proof you've taken on increasing scope and delivered at each level
→ Examples of how you've experimented with AI in your work, faster analysis, cleaner forecasting, better variance reporting. We care about curiosity and pragmatism, not perfect implementations.
How to apply
Send your CV + 150 words answering:
"Where is cash hiding in a brand like ours, and what two moves would you make in your first 60 days to improve our cash conversion by ~15 days?"
Bullets are fine. Plain English. No decks. We're looking for your thinking, not AI-generated answers; it'll be obvious in the conversation if you've just used ChatGPT.
Please include your answer in your CV (as an appendix or cover note) and submit via LinkedIn, or email to if you prefer.
We can only acknowledge complete applications (CV + answer). If you've taken the time to answer the question properly, we'll get back to you within 48 hours.
Equal opportunities:
we welcome talent from all backgrounds and experiences.