Hey there,

$120K freed. Zero extra sales.

This is the story of a DTC brand that liberated $120K in working capital without selling a single additional unit.

The brand: $2.4M annual revenue. DTC skincare. Growing 35% YoY. Profitable on paper. But always broke.

Their Cash Conversion Cycle was 94 days. Nearly $650K trapped in inventory at any given time.

Here's what we did.

I walked through this entire case study on YouTube — including the spreadsheets we used, the conversations with the founder, and the week-by-week timeline of how we freed $120K. If you want to see exactly how the math worked, start there.

Below is the summary. But the video shows you the receipts.

47 SKUs total. 12 hadn't sold in 60+ days.

Founder: "But what if someone wants it?"

Me: "How much is that 'what-if' costing you?"

We bundled slow movers with bestsellers. Sold some B2B at cost. Converted others to samples and GWP (gift with purchase).

Six weeks later: $38K freed.

They were ordering based on gut feel — consistently 4-6 weeks early.

We implemented the formula from Week 3: (Daily Rate × Lead Time) + Safety Stock.

Same products. Ordered at the right time instead of "just in case" time.

$42K freed.

This case study is exactly what we cover in the live workshop: Inventory Is a Loan You Took From Yourself.

If you're reading this and thinking "I probably have $50K+ trapped in my own inventory" — you're probably right. Most DTC brands at $1-5M do.

What you'll learn:

→ Why "months of supply" is meaningless without velocity context — and what to measure instead

→ How to calculate your Cash Conversion Cycle by SKU (and what "good" looks like for DTC)

→ A reorder timing system that stops the bleeding — based on actual data, not gut feel or fear

→ The same 4 tactics from this case study, with templates you can use immediately

This is for founders who feel trapped by their own inventory. You'll leave understanding where your cash is stuck, when it comes back, and how to stop starving the business while "fully stocked."

They were holding 8 weeks of safety stock. Why? Because they stocked out once. Two years ago.

One bad memory was costing them tens of thousands in trapped cash.

We analyzed their actual lead time variability. Max variance? 9 days.

Reduced safety stock to 3 weeks. Still conservative. Still protected.

$22K freed.

$30K in inventory over 120 days old. Dead weight.

We created a liquidation plan: bundles, flash sales (email-only, no public discounting), B2B at cost.

Recovered 60 cents on the dollar. Not ideal. But 60 cents moving is better than $1 sitting.

$18K freed.

Where it went:

→ $40K paid down supplier debt (stopped the interest bleeding)

→ $50K funded Q4 ad spend (previously couldn't afford)

→ $30K cash reserve (first time in 18 months)

Same revenue. Same products. Different relationship with inventory.

Check 1: Flag every SKU with zero sales in 60+ days. Calculate the total value sitting there.

Check 2: Review your last 5 POs. Were they based on a formula or a feeling?

Check 3: Compare your safety stock to your actual lead time variability. Are you holding fear or data?

Check 4: Everything over 90 days old. What's the plan? If there's no plan, that's the problem.

Add it up. That's your trapped cash.

Week 1: Inventory is a loan you took from yourself.

Week 2: Cash Conversion Cycle — the number that explains your cash problem.

Week 3: Reorder timing system — gut feel is not a strategy.

Week 4: The proof — $120K freed.

Coming in April: The Hidden Costs Killing Your Margins.

I trained an AI version of myself on Delphi.ai. It knows everything from Inventory Month — the CCC formula, reorder points, safety stock calculations, all of it.

If you're running your audit and get stuck, or you want to talk through your specific numbers, you can ask AI Lara. It's like having me in your pocket, except it doesn't need coffee and it's available 24/7.

It won't replace the workshop or 1:1 work, but for quick questions and gut checks? It's surprisingly good.

Reply with your audit findings. I read every response.

See you in April,

Lara

P.S. If you missed any of Inventory Month, go back and do the work. Week 1 reframes how you think about inventory. Week 2 gives you the diagnostic. Week 3 gives you the system. This week shows you what's possible. It's worth it.

P.P.S. That founder? Her Q4 was her best ever. Not because revenue spiked — because she finally had the cash to invest in growth. Same business. Different systems.