Virtual CFO
Pricing and unit economics
Company wide margin hides a lot in a Canadian business selling across channels or provinces: the number that matters is what a single order, customer or subscription earns after fees, shipping and GST or HST, and that number is usually different from what the top line margin suggests.
13-week cash forecast
Illustrative client · August 2026
CAD
- Cash today
- $244,220
- Lowest week ahead
- 239,800
- Largest outflow
- Payroll, 46,300
Illustrative. An example of the document, not a client's figures.
The average lies
A business can post a healthy overall margin while one product line, one channel or one customer segment quietly loses money on every sale, subsidized by everything else. Unit economics work exists to catch that, breaking margin down to the level where a pricing decision actually gets made.
What changes the math in Canada
GST and HST treatment differs by province and by whether a sale is business to business or business to consumer, and that difference flows straight into net margin on cross border and interprovincial sales in a way a US-built template misses entirely. Marketplace and payment processing fees, converted where a sale settles in a foreign currency, are the other line item that quietly erodes margin faster than most owners expect.
Building the real picture
We pull cost of goods, processing and marketplace fees, shipping, and applicable sales tax treatment into a per unit or per customer view, channel by channel where your business sells through more than one. For a subscription business the same exercise runs on acquisition cost, hosting and support cost against lifetime value instead of a physical unit cost.
Then we model the change
Once the baseline is clear, we run the scenario: a price increase, a fee change from a payment processor, a new bundle. You see the margin effect of each option side by side. The final call on price stays yours; our job is making sure you are choosing with the real number in front of you, not the blended average. Feeds directly into KPI design once the metric earns a permanent spot on the dashboard.
Questions
Frequently asked questions: Pricing and unit economics
Does provincial sales tax variation actually change our margin picture?
Yes, meaningfully, for a business selling across provinces or into Quebec. GST/HST treatment and rate differ by destination, and that difference belongs in the unit economics, not just the tax filing.
Can you separate margin by sales channel?
Yes. Direct to consumer, marketplace and wholesale channels each carry different fee structures, and blending them into one number hides exactly the gap you need to see.
Do you tell us what price to actually set?
We show the margin outcome of each option you are weighing. Setting the final price is a business call that stays with you.
How often should this get recalculated?
Quarterly is a reasonable rhythm for most businesses; a business changing pricing, suppliers or channel mix quickly should check it monthly instead.
What exactly is included in pricing and unit economics?
Unit economics broken out by product, plan, SKU or customer segment, and customer acquisition cost and payback period, where the data supports it. This work runs inside Excel or Google Sheets, whichever your business already has in place, and it rolls into your regular monthly close rather than sitting off to the side as a separate, unreconciled process.
What data do you need to calculate unit economics?
Sales detail by product or customer, your cost of goods or delivery, and any platform or processing fees taken out of each sale.
Can this work for a subscription or SaaS pricing model?
Yes. For subscription businesses we build the model around customer acquisition cost, lifetime value and churn rather than per-unit product cost.
Will you tell us what to charge?
We show you the margin at different price points so you can decide. Setting the final price is a business call that stays with you.
What is included in pricing and unit economics?
Pricing and unit economics covers unit economics broken out by product, plan, SKU or customer segment and customer acquisition cost and payback period, where the data supports it. The exact scope is agreed and set out in writing before work starts, so you know precisely what is and is not covered before the first deliverable arrives.
Related services
- Virtual CFOKPI designA short list of the numbers that actually run your business, defined once and tracked consistently, instead of a dashboard nobody opens.
- Virtual CFOFP&AOngoing financial planning and analysis: budget-to-actual tracking, margin and cost analysis, and the monthly pack that explains why the numbers moved.
- Virtual CFOFractional CFOA senior finance lead who works your numbers on a part-time basis: monthly reviews, board and investor prep, and a second opinion before a big decision.
Industries
Next step
Talk to the team that would run your books
A short call covers your setup, your software and what a first month would look like. You get a written scope and price after it.