Financial Controller in Lewes

Location: Lewes, England, United Kingdom

About Us

Pivotal London are proud to have partnered with Ancient + Brave, a mission‑driven wellness brand with an award‑winning range of collagen, blends and supplements. They started as all good businesses do, by seeing the opportunity to do things differently in a growing market. To carefully balance people, planet, and profit for the sake of the world around us and our health. They are now shaping the future of wellness with simple daily rituals, thoughtfully and sustainably designed to support women’s health. Their vision is to be the #1 wellness brand in the world, setting new standards for holistic health, sustainability and female empowerment. As a B‑Corp, Ancient + Brave meets the highest standards of social and environmental impact. In June 2024 we have been named 5th in The Sunday Times 100 fastest‑growing private companies and we have recently been recognised as one of the FT 1000: Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies, 2025.

Role

We are open to interim / temporary or permanent applications for this role. We are looking for a Financial Controller to play a key role in driving the success of our Finance function, taking a proactive, hands‑on approach to Financial Control and working closely with the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to ensure everything runs like clockwork. You’ll spot opportunities to improve our systems and processes, boosting accuracy and efficiency as we grow. Leading a small, high‑performing team, you’ll help shape a finance operation that’s agile, forward‑thinking, and ready to scale with the business.

Responsibilities

• Overall financial control of all aspects of the business; reviewing, developing and implementing a strong internal controls environment and taking ownership of the general ledger, technical accounting matters and the month‑end close process and control account reconciliations.
• Full control of internal and external reporting including the preparation of monthly management accounts, overseeing weekly aged debt/cash reporting, analysing financial statements, comparing to budget and forecasts with variance reports, consolidation and preparation of statutory financial statements, working closely with external auditors and assisting the CFO with preparing monthly board reporting and preparation of weekly trade reporting.
• Support the CFO in hiring, training and developing a best‑in‑class Finance function, coaching and mentoring junior team members as needed.
• Partner with the Operations team to ensure that stock reporting is accurate and accounted for, assist with forecasting for stock purchases and own month‑end stock provisioning.
• Ensure that the weekly cash flow is closely monitored, the accounts payables (AP) and accounts receivables (AR) functions are running smoothly, and debts are kept current, reviewing and approving weekly payment runs and supporting new retailer and supplier onboarding via credit checks.
• Oversee the timely filing of UK and EU VAT returns, plus other statutory submissions, work with the tax consultants to ensure that the corporation tax returns are accurate and submitted on a timely basis.
• Support the business’ ambition to remain and improve our B‑Corp credentials by providing support as required to ensure all information, policies and procedures are up to date and in‑line with the ESG and B‑Corp requirements.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA).
• Strong technical accounting expertise and hands‑on experience in financial control, month‑end close, management reporting and statutory accounts.
• Proven ability to streamline finance operations and implement robust internal controls, driving improvements in accuracy, efficiency and scalability.
• Strong leadership and team development skills, with experience coaching and managing finance teams in fast‑paced, high‑growth environments.
• Solid experience in cash flow management, AP/AR oversight, stock reporting and partnering cross‑functionally to support operational and commercial decision‑making.
• Confident managing VAT, tax and audit processes.

Culture Fit

• Hungry: Ambitious, driven with a growth mindset, always seeking ways to learn, develop and be better.
• Humble: No ego, collaborative team player, always acts with integrity and clear sense of accountability, aligned with our B‑Corp values.
• High Performing: Effective, efficient, with a solid work ethic. Operates with self‑awareness that enables them to consistently push for exceptional results while maintaining resilience, balance and self‑care.
• Hustle: Entrepreneurial, innovative, fast‑paced, great communicator. Adept at solving problems and navigating dynamic, ever‑changing situations.

Seniority Level: Mid‑Senior level

Employment type: Full‑time

Job function: Finance

Industries: Wellness and Fitness Services, Online and Mail Order Retail, and Retail Health and Personal Care Products