Food & beverage and consumer packaged goods companies operate in one of the most margin-sensitive industries in business. Between co-packing costs, ingredient volatility, trade spend obligations, slotting fees, retail margin requirements, and the constant pressure to scale distribution — the difference between a thriving brand and a cash-burning operation comes down to financial discipline at the unit level.
At DMW Advisory, we bring Wall Street-caliber financial leadership — powered by AI tools that let us operate at the speed and depth of a full finance team — to fractional CFO food beverage CPG companies doing $5M to $50M in revenue.
Growing companies in this space face a unique set of financial complexities that most bookkeepers aren’t equipped to handle — and that don’t yet justify a $250K+ full-time CFO:
We help food, beverage, and CPG brands build the financial infrastructure to scale distribution profitably:
We’ve helped companies across the fractional CFO food beverage CPG landscape gain financial clarity, optimize cash flow, and scale with confidence. Here are a few examples:
CPG · Beverage · DTC + Retail · $9M Revenue
The Challenge: A specialty beverage brand had expanded from DTC into Whole Foods, Sprouts, and 200+ independent natural retailers. Revenue was growing at 40% YoY but cash was getting tighter every month. The founder assumed retail was driving growth — but had never calculated true channel profitability after accounting for trade spend, spoilage, slotting fees, and distributor margins.
Our Approach: We built a channel-level P&L that captured all costs: COGS (including co-packing and freight), trade promotions, slotting fees, distributor margins, broker commissions, spoilage, and retailer deductions. We also modeled DTC vs. retail on a per-unit contribution margin basis.
The Results: The founder was able to make strategic channel decisions based on data:
CPG · Snacks · $6M Revenue
The Challenge: A better-for-you snack brand had proven product-market fit in the Southwest region and received interest from national retailers for nationwide expansion. However, the capital requirements — co-packing scale-up, slotting fees, broker network, and trade promotion budgets — totaled over $5M. The founder had no financial model to present to investors.
Our Approach: We built a comprehensive national expansion model: per-retailer economics, phased rollout cash flows, co-packing volume discounts at scale, and trade spend budgets by retail partner. We prepared a CPG-focused pitch deck and investor materials highlighting velocity data, repeat purchase rates, and a clear path to profitability at national scale.
The Results: The brand raised capital and launched nationally:
CPG · Condiments · DTC + Specialty Retail · $5M Revenue
The Challenge: A premium artisanal sauce brand was growing rapidly but margins were declining. The founder attributed it to ‘growing pains’ but couldn’t identify specific cost drivers. Ingredient costs, co-packing rates, packaging design, and shipping costs had all increased but were tracked in aggregate, not by SKU.
Our Approach: We implemented SKU-level cost tracking, conducted a co-packer RFP process benchmarking their current rates against alternatives, and built a COGS waterfall showing exactly where margin was being lost. We also modeled ingredient substitution scenarios that maintained quality while reducing cost.
The Results: Margins improved significantly without compromising product quality:
If your food, beverage, or CPG brand is scaling distribution and needs a finance partner who understands trade spend, channel economics, and working capital intensity — we’re the team to call.
Or contact us at genevieve@dmwadvisory.com
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