VAI Strategic CFO by The Vitamin CFO
Free tool · E-commerce unit economics

The Contribution Ladder

Your dashboard shows gross margin. This shows what one order really leaves after product, delivery, fees, returns and ads, and whether that pays your fixed costs.

8 numbers in3 floors outNo sign-upNothing stored on a server
One order, three floors
Where the money in one average order goes. Hover a bar.
Order valueCostsFloor 1Floor 2Floor 3
Pool vs fixed costs
Floor 3 × orders, against what the business costs to run.
ROAS vs break even
Break even ROAS = 1 ÷ floor 2 margin.
What to look at first
Worked out from your numbers, in order.
    How every number is calculated
    Which products pay the bills
    Ranked by what each adds to the floor 3 pool every month. Ads per order = spend on that product's campaigns ÷ that product's orders.
    Floor 3 a month, by product
    Hover a bar. Orange = flagged.
    Pays its wayBestseller trap or thin (<10%)Loses money
    Floor 3 over time
    Save each month end from Your store. Saved in this browser only. Six example months loaded.
    Want the wider picture beyond margin?

    Take the free founder readiness assessment. It checks the finance habits behind these numbers.