Interim Controller - Retail/Apparel
Location: Stamford, Connecticut
Work Arrangement: Hybrid-three days per week onsite
Schedule: 40 hours per week, Monday-Friday
Initial Duration: Six months, with potential extension
Start Date: As soon as available
Target Compensation: $90-$100 per hour W2, with access to medical benefits, PTO, and 401(k). C2C through the consultant's own established LLC may also be considered.
About the Company
Our client is a growing premium performance-apparel and lifestyle company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The business operates through a multichannel model encompassing direct-to-consumer e-commerce, company-operated retail stores, wholesale relationships, and third-party distribution partners.
The company combines the pace and entrepreneurial energy of a growing consumer brand with the operational and accounting complexity of an inventory-intensive retail environment.
Position Overview
The company is seeking an experienced Interim Controller to provide immediate accounting leadership following the departure of its current Controller. This individual must be able to quickly understand the existing environment, establish credibility with the accounting team, and assume day-to-day ownership without an extended learning curve.
Reporting to the Vice President of Finance and Accounting, the Interim Controller will ensure continuity across financial close, reporting, inventory accounting, internal controls, audit support, and core accounting operations.
This is a true player-coach position. The selected consultant must be comfortable leading and reviewing the work of others while personally preparing journal entries, reconciliations, schedules, and other accounting deliverables when necessary.
Key Responsibilities
Accounting Operations and Financial Close
- Lead monthly, quarterly, and year-end close activities, ensuring accurate and timely reporting.
- Oversee general-ledger activity, balance-sheet reconciliations, accruals, prepaid expenses, fixed assets, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and other core accounting functions.
- Prepare and review journal entries, including personally booking select entries as needed.
- Prepare and review financial statements, account analyses, and management-reporting deliverables.
- Ensure accounting activity is properly supported and compliant with U.S. GAAP.
- Investigate discrepancies and unusual variances, identify root causes, and ensure timely resolution.
- Maintain reliable accounting operations throughout the leadership transition.
Inventory and Cost Accounting
- Provide senior-level oversight and hands-on execution across inventory accounting, inventory valuation, cost of goods sold, and related balance-sheet accounts.
- Reconcile inventory across warehouses, third-party logistics providers, retail stores, e-commerce operations, and other sales and distribution channels.
- Review inventory receipts, transfers, adjustments, returns, damages, shortages, and related transactions for appropriate accounting treatment.
- Oversee reserves for aged, obsolete, excess, or slow-moving inventory.
- Review purchase-order, receiving, warehouse, and vendor information to identify and resolve discrepancies.
- Support cycle counts and annual physical inventories, including coordination with operating teams and external auditors.
- Analyze inventory and COGS variances and communicate significant findings to leadership.
- Partner with supply chain, planning, merchandising, retail, operations, and finance stakeholders to improve inventory accuracy and processes.
Controls, Audit, and Process Improvement
- Maintain and strengthen accounting policies, procedures, documentation, and internal controls.
- Identify immediate reconciliation, reporting, control, or workflow gaps and implement practical solutions.
- Coordinate external-audit activities and prepare schedules, documentation, and responses to audit requests.
- Ensure key accounting judgments and supporting documentation are appropriately maintained.
- Improve the efficiency, accuracy, and scalability of accounting and close processes.
- Support ERP, reporting, and accounting-system enhancements as needed.
- Assist with technical-accounting questions and other time-sensitive finance initiatives.
Team Leadership and Business Partnership
- Provide day-to-day direction, review, and coaching to the accounting team.
- Establish clear ownership, deadlines, and quality expectations while working directly alongside the team.
- Partner closely with finance leadership and the broader FP&A organization.
- Collaborate across supply chain, merchandising, planning, retail, e-commerce, and operations.
- Communicate accounting matters clearly to both financial and nonfinancial stakeholders.
- Approach the assignment with urgency, sound judgment, accountability, and a low-ego willingness to address work at every level.
Required Qualifications
- CPA designation is required.
- Substantial progressive accounting experience, including recent Controller, Assistant Controller, or comparable accounting-leadership responsibility.
- Extensive, directly demonstrated inventory and cost-accounting experience within an inventory-intensive business.
- Strong command of U.S. GAAP, financial reporting, balance-sheet accounting, and month-end close.
- Demonstrated ownership of accounting operations (not solely advisory or oversight exposure).
- Willingness and ability to personally prepare journal entries, reconciliations, schedules, and supporting analyses.
- Experience leading accounting teams while remaining actively involved in execution.
- Strong external-audit support and internal-control experience.
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and experience working within an ERP-based accounting environment.
- Ability to enter a transitioning organization, absorb information quickly, and make an immediate contribution.
- Ability and genuine willingness to work onsite in Stamford three days per week.
Preferred Qualifications
- Controller-level experience within retail apparel, footwear, activewear, consumer products, or a comparable inventory-driven business.
- Experience supporting an omnichannel environment encompassing e-commerce, company-operated stores, wholesale accounts, and third-party logistics.
- NetSuite experience.
- Equity-related accounting and reporting experience.
- Experience within a rapidly growing, investor-backed, or privately held company.
- Experience improving accounting processes, close procedures, reporting, or ERP workflows.
- Prior success completing interim or transitional accounting-leadership assignments.
Engagement Details
This is initially a six-month interim assignment with the possibility of extension. Both interim-only and interim-to-permanent candidates may be considered. Potential permanent conversion would depend upon business needs and mutual fit.
About Korn Ferry
Korn Ferry unleashes potential in people, teams, and organizations. We work with our clients to design optimal organization structures, roles, and responsibilities. We help them hire the right people and advise them on how to reward and motivate their workforce while developing professionals as they navigate and advance their careers. To learn more, please visit Korn Ferry at www.Kornferry.com
