Industry overview
What is shaping fashion
Fashion and apparel brands need to read trends early, get fit and size right and turn browsing into buying across stores and e-commerce.
- Trends travel quickly through social media
- Fit and size issues drive returns
- Online shoppers need confidence before buying
Client background
A fashion label, working in Mumbai. Client identity is withheld to protect confidentiality.
- Organisation
- A fashion label
- Sector
- Fashion
- Team engaged
- Finance & Accounts
- Services
- Virtual CFO services, Budgeting & financial forecasting, GST services
Client challenge
The label paid for fabric, embroidery and production months before its two main seasonal collections reached stores, and cash ran short every season. Unsold stock from previous collections also tied up money.
Research objectives
- Deliver on the brief: planning cash for seasonal collections.
- Establish accurate, reconciled numbers management can rely on.
- Put a reporting and compliance rhythm in place that runs on time.
Target audience
Scope: Two collections a year.
Audiences we typically reach in fashion
Fashion shoppersOnline buyersStore staffStylists and influencersWholesale buyers
Geographic coverage
Coverage: Mumbai. Market: India.
- India
Research methodology
A structured finance engagement: review the current process, set up controls, run the routine and report.
- 1Brief
- 2Seasonal cash forecast
- 3Inventory planning
- 4Insight
Our virtual CFO built a seasonal cash forecast linked to production schedules and expected sales, reviewed inventory to identify slow-moving stock and prepared a working capital proposal for the bank. Monthly reviews compared actual sales and production costs with the forecast, so the plan could be adjusted quickly.
Virtual CFO servicesBudgeting & financial forecastingGST services
Sampling strategy
- Every ledger, entity and transaction stream in scope was covered, with sample-based checks during review.
Data collection
- Source documents, bank statements and ledgers were collected through a secure shared workspace.
Data quality & validation
- Maker-checker review on all entries
- Bank and ledger reconciliations
- Client approval before every filing or report
- Supporting documents kept for every figure
Data analysis
- Variance analysis against budget and prior periods
- Ratio and trend analysis
- Cash-flow view for management
Key findings
- Planning cash around the fashion calendar prevented recurring crises.
Recommendations
- Build on the core insight: planning cash around the fashion calendar prevented recurring crises.
- Re-measure after the changes to confirm the effect.
Business impact
- The label arranged seasonal financing in advance, cleared older stock through planned sales and reduced production of slow-selling lines.
- The founders also gained confidence to negotiate longer payment terms with fabric suppliers.
What changed in the business as a result of the work. Impact is described qualitatively.
Deliverables & next steps
- Monthly MIS pack and reconciled books
- Compliance calendar and filings
- Repeat the measure after changes are in place to track progress.
- A natural follow-on question: which trends will customers buy?
Client identity is withheld to protect confidentiality.