Fractional CFO & accounting for e-commerce brands
Bookkeeping, controller work and CFO strategy for Shopify, Amazon and multi-channel brands. One fixed monthly price, and a dashboard that shows where every dollar sits.
Works with Shopify · Amazon · TikTok Shop · QuickBooks Online · A2X · Synder
The problem
Every extra week of stock on the shelf is cash you can't spend on ads, payroll or the next launch. Most owners can't say how many days of inventory they're carrying.
Shopify and Amazon deposit one net number. Fees, refunds, reserves and ad spend get netted out, so the true margin by channel and SKU never shows up in the books.
If last month's numbers land in the middle of this month, every reorder, hire and ad budget is a guess. Late books are just history.
The Overlook
13-week cash forecast
Every client gets the dashboard
Cash and runway, margin by channel and SKU, days of inventory and reorder alerts, explained in plain English. It grows with you as you climb.
Ascent: Adds profitability by channel, days of inventory, reorder alerts and the 13-week forecast.
Revenue (Sep)
$318,900
Gross margin
47.8%
Total expenses
$112,600
Cash · runway
$482,300
Net burn
$51,400/mo
CAC payback
5.2 mo
Inventory turns
4.9×
Contribution margin
24.6%
Blended ROAS
3.1×
Customer LTV
$214
Days of inventory
74 days
| Revenue | $318,900 |
|---|---|
| Cost of goods sold | -$166,466 |
| Gross profit | $152,434 |
| Operating expenses | -$112,600 |
| Net income | $39,834 |
September books closed Oct 14
Closed by the 20th when docs arrive by the 5th
Sample data — Sample Brand Co. is a fictional brand. Numbers are illustrative, not client results.
How it works
1Connect
Shopify, Amazon, wholesale and your banks flow through A2X or Synder into QuickBooks Online, so each payout is split into sales, fees, refunds and reserves.
Bank feed · October
Sample dataOne net number per payout. Fees, refunds and reserves are invisible.
| Date | Memo | Amount | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 01 | SHOPIFY* PAYOUT 4471 | $18,204 | Uncategorized |
| Oct 02 | AMAZON MKTPL SETTLMT | $31,877 | Uncategorized |
| Oct 03 | SHOPIFY* PAYOUT 4472 | $9,613 | Uncategorized |
| Oct 04 | TIKTOK SHOP STLMT | $2,140 | Uncategorized |
| Oct 05 | FACEBK *ADS 8823 | -$6,500 | Uncategorized |
Gross margin by channel: unknown
2Close
Reconciled accounts, inventory and COGS tracked properly, and statements you can trust, closed by the 20th.
Amazon settlement · split & reconciled
Sample dataEvery payout broken into its real parts and matched to the bank deposit.
| Product sales | $41,920 |
|---|---|
| Refunds | -$2,316 |
| Referral fees | -$6,288 |
| FBA fulfillment fees | -$5,903 |
| Advertising | -$4,880 |
| Reserve released | $9,345 |
| Bank deposit | $31,877 |
Ties to the deposit to the cent · books closed by the 20th
3Command
Cash, margin by channel, days of inventory and reorder alerts on one screen, with plain-English notes on what to do next.
Contribution margin by channel
Sample dataThe same payouts, now telling you where you make money.
Insight · TikTok Shop is growing, but its contribution margin is under 10% after commissions. Worth reviewing affiliate rates before scaling spend.
QuickBooks Online
The ledger
A2X
Shopify + Amazon
Synder
WooCommerce, BigCommerce, TikTok Shop, Etsy, Walmart, Stripe
Fathom
Reporting
Trapped-Cash Calculator
Four numbers, thirty seconds. See your days of inventory and how much cash you'd free by carrying a little less.
Your estimate
Days of inventory today
0days
Cash you could free
$0
You're carrying about 133 days of inventory. Carrying 20 fewer days would free up roughly $60,274, which is 15% of the cash sitting in stock today.
This is an estimate, not financial advice. It uses your inputs only. No industry benchmarks.
This is an estimate, not financial advice.
The climb · Capital Peak
Scroll to climb. Every camp is a plan, and each one adds altitude.
Trailhead to the summit of Capital Peak · four camps · one fixed price at each
Terrain modeled from USGS elevation data
Stage 01
Up to 12 months
The starting point
Starting at$750/mo
Best for
Stage 02
Clean books. Ready to scale.
Starting at$2,000/mo
Best for
RecommendedBest for multi‑channel brands
Stage 03
Inventory, multi-channel, cash flow under command.
Starting at$3,500/mo
Best for
Stage 04
Limited availability
Your dedicated CFO.
Starting at$6,500/mo
Best for
Not sure where you fit?
Answer a few quick questions and we'll point you to the right plan.
Take the Tier FinderEvery client gets one fixed monthly price after the discovery call. Work outside your plan is quoted first and billed hourly only with your written approval. A full finance team (bookkeeper, controller and CFO) for less than the cost of one full-time hire.
Never included at any tier: tax preparation, legal advice or HR.
Our guarantees
One fixed monthly fee for your term. Work outside your plan is billed hourly, and only after you approve it in writing. No surprise invoices.
48 hours on Trailhead and Base Camp, 24 hours on Ascent, the same business day on Summit.
Every month, when we have access and documents by the 5th. Your reports arrive with the close.
You own your books and reports. Leave anytime after your term with a full handoff and no exit fees.
Why Timberline
A full finance team (bookkeeper, controller and CFO) for less than the cost of one full-time hire.
We serve inventory-based brands and nothing else. Landed cost, marketplace payouts and 3PL counts are our everyday work.
Everything in your plan for one monthly fee. Anything outside it is quoted and approved by you before we start.
Automation handles the repetitive work quickly and accurately. Our partners spend their time on review and strategy.
Summit clients get a dedicated partner as fractional CFO, plus a named backup.
From Trailhead up, you see your key numbers without waiting for a meeting.
Our CEO spent nearly a decade inside consumer-product brands, rising from accountant to head of finance.
The team
Timberline CFO was founded to solve a problem every fractional firm runs into: custom work doesn't scale. Led by CPA Kelsey Van Wagenen alongside founding partners Clark Bigler and Dereck Brotherson, we deliver CFO-level financial leadership through a tiered model built to grow with your business.
Kelsey Van Wagenen, CPA
Co-Founder & CEO
Craig Van Wagenen
Co-Founder & COO
Clark Bigler
Founding Partner
Dereck "Duck" Brotherson
Founding Partner
FAQ
E-commerce and inventory-based brands selling on Shopify, Amazon, DTC, wholesale or several channels at once. If you hold inventory and sell online, we speak your language.
Plans start at $750 a month. After a discovery call we quote one fixed monthly price based on your sales channels, transaction volume, SKU count and number of entities. Everything in your plan is covered by that price. If you need something outside it, we quote it first and bill it hourly only after you approve.
Tell us and we'll scope it first. Work outside your plan is quoted up front and billed hourly, and only after you approve it in writing. No surprise invoices.
Yes, a simple service agreement with a 6-month minimum while we set up and deliver your first months of reliable numbers. After that it's month to month with 30 days' notice, a full handoff and no exit fees. Trailhead is a starter plan for up to 12 months, after which you move up to Base Camp or we wrap up with a full handoff.
No. We don't provide tax preparation or legal advice. We keep tax-ready books and work alongside your CPA or tax preparer.
We work in QuickBooks Online, with A2X or Synder connecting your sales channels and Fathom for reporting. We set up and manage the connections for you.
Automation handles repetitive work like categorizing transactions and flagging anomalies, so it's faster and more consistent. A Timberline partner reviews the work and owns the advice.
A 30-minute discovery call. We'll look at your channels, your inventory and your books, then quote one fixed monthly price.
