The Opportunity
Harmonic Finance are delighted to be working on a retained basis with one of the UK’s fastest-growing cosmetics businesses in their search for a commercially astute and ambitious CFO.
This is a rare opportunity to join a dynamic, values-driven scale-up with international recognition for its high-quality, innovative, and sustainable products. The business has experienced significant growth and is now entering a new phase of maturity and operational sophistication.
With a strong culture built on collaboration, transparency, and long-term thinking, this is an environment where finance plays a central role in shaping strategy and driving performance.
The Role
- This is a high-impact, hands-on CFO position suited to a founder-friendly operator who can balance strategic thinking with execution.
- Working closely with the Founder and senior leadership team, you will take full ownership of the finance function while acting as a key strategic partner across a complex and evolving business environment.
- You will be instrumental in evolving the business from financial insight to true operational control, ensuring robust financial discipline, clear visibility on performance, and effective capital allocation.
Key Responsibilities
- Act as a core member of the leadership team, shaping strategic and operational decision-making
- Partner closely with senior leadership to improve performance, and optimise capital deployment
- Establish best-in-class financial control and discipline, shifting from reactive reporting to proactive, decision-oriented management
- Own cash flow and working capital visibility, with a strong focus on near-term performance and liquidity
- Lead budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning
- Drive system improvements to support scale, efficiency, and data-led decision-making
- Support strategic initiatives including financing, debt structuring, and potential M&A activity
- Work closely with the Founder on capital allocation, prioritisation, and future fundraising plans
What We’re Looking For (Essential)
- Proven experience as a senior finance leader within an SME or scaling business with £30m - £100m revenue.
- Background in Cosmetics, Personal Care, or adjacent sectors (e.g. Food & Beverage)
- Fully qualified (ACA / ACCA / CIMA)
- Commercially sharp with the ability to operate both strategically and hands-on
- Experience partnering with founders and senior leadership teams
- Strong track record in building and leading high-performing finance teams
- Experience in financial planning, cash management, and operational finance
- Exposure to strategic finance areas such as fundraising, debt, or M&A
Desirable (Bonus)
- Experience in a fast-growth environment
- Exposure to international expansion
- Experience supporting new product development or innovation-led businesses
- Prior involvement in an exit or IPO process
- Experience implementing finance systems or driving digital transformation
- Experience operating within group or multi-entity business structures (highly advantageous)
Location: London - Hybrid working
If this is of interest, please get in touch with your CV at alice.friel@harmonicexecutive.com. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, if you have not heard back from us, please assume your application has unfortunately been unsuccessful on this occasion.
At Harmonic, we are dedicated to fostering an inclusive and equitable workplace. We actively welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and assure you that every candidate will be thoughtfully considered for the roles we represent, without regard to race, religion, gender expression, disability, or sexual orientation.
