Overview
Salary: DOE (c. $250,000 + Superannuation + Incentive)
Location: Sydney
Industry: Retail / Consumer Products
Focus: Network growth, store economics, funding, governance, commercial leadership and AI-driven finance transformation
Target Background: Proven CFO or Finance Director from a multi-site retail environment
The Opportunity
Some businesses hire a CFO to fix things. This one needs a CFO to keep up.
I'm partnering with a successful Australian retail business with a fiercely loyal customer base, an expanding store network, and a strong market reputation.
The business has genuine momentum, and the ambition from here is even bigger. Growth like that changes what a business needs from finance. Our client is looking to bring in a seasoned CFO who has genuinely sat in the seat and can wear two hats comfortably, often in the same afternoon.
The first is the operational hat. Store economics, rent-to-sales, fit-out paybacks, inventory, margin and working capital. The numbers that tell you whether the next site is a great idea or just a beautiful shopfront with a ten-year lease attached.
The second is the corporate hat. Banking and funding, governance, board reporting, financial strategy and the commercial judgement required to help leadership make increasingly significant decisions.
There is another important part to this brief: we want a genuinely AI-native finance leader.
This business is still at a size where it can move quickly. It isn't weighed down by decades of legacy systems, layers of bureaucracy or processes that nobody remembers why they exist.
The opportunity is to build a Rolls-Royce finance function from the outset. One that embraces AI, automation, intelligent reporting and modern systems so that, as the business grows, the back office doesn't simply grow in headcount alongside it.
We want someone who sees technology as a genuine competitive advantage, not another IT project to put on next year's agenda. Someone who constantly asks what can be automated, simplified, or done better, and who can build a lean, digitally sophisticated finance function that evolves with the business.
This business has built its success on understanding its customers, moving quickly, and making good commercial decisions. As it scales, the challenge is to introduce greater financial sophistication without losing that agility.
Nobody wants finance to become the department of "no". They want a CFO who can tell them which bets are worth making, how to fund them and when to double down.
If you know Australian retail, understand what makes a store network tick, and enjoy being genuinely close to the action, this is an excellent opportunity.
Successful Candidate Profile
We're looking for a proven CFO or Finance Director who understands the realities of running a growing retail business.
The distinction is important.
We need someone who knows their way around a physical store network, understands the economics of retail and has the broader corporate finance experience to operate confidently at executive and board level. You will bring:
- Deep Retail Experience: Senior finance leadership within multi-site retail or a closely aligned consumer products environment. Store economics, occupancy costs, inventory and margin performance should be second nature.
- Genuine CFO Experience: Proven accountability for banking, funding, board reporting, governance and financial strategy. This is not simply a larger Head of Finance role.
- Commercial Credibility: The ability to partner with senior leadership, challenge assumptions and turn financial analysis into practical commercial decisions.
- Growth Experience: Exposure to a business expanding its operations, store network or commercial footprint, with an understanding of the financial disciplines required to scale successfully.
- Inventory & Working Capital: Strong understanding of stock-based businesses, gross margins, cash flow and the relationship between inventory decisions and financial performance.
- AI-Native & Digitally Progressive: You genuinely embrace AI, automation and emerging technologies, with a track record of using them to improve finance processes, reporting and productivity. You don't just understand what's possible; you've implemented it. You see a lean, highly automated finance function as an advantage and have the curiosity to keep evolving it as technology advances.
- Leadership & Systems: Experience developing finance teams, improving processes and building reporting capability suited to a growing business.
- Hands-On Approach: Comfortable presenting to the board on Monday and getting into an individual store P&L on Tuesday.
- Qualifications: CA or CPA qualified.
This could suit an established CFO or Finance Director from a growing retail business, or a senior finance leader from a larger retail group who has genuine board, funding and commercial accountability and is ready for a role with broader ownership.
The key is finding someone who can bring the discipline of an experienced CFO without introducing unnecessary corporate machinery.
This is a business that knows how to grow. The opportunity is to help make that growth sustainable, profitable and well funded, while building a finance function that is genuinely fit for the future.
Apply Now
If you meet the key criteria and believe you're a strong fit, please apply now so we can review your application. Please note: We can only consider candidates with full Australian working rights.
About Recruitment Labs
Recruitment Labs is a specialist accounting & finance search firm built on a simple belief: the right hire can change everything. We partner with businesses across Australia and New Zealand to build teams that are aligned to your strategy, culture and commercial goals. We understand how the best finance functions fit together, where the real difference-makers are, and how to build high-performing teams. Visit us: www.recruitmentlabs.com.au.
