Good times and bad
What’s the right approach for your business?
Being in business has its ups and downs as most people know. As an accountant I get to see a wide variety of businesses, some doing incredibly well, plenty doing okay and a few struggling. Businesses in each of these categories need a different approach and type of service from their accountant.
Cash is King
A business doing well may need their accountant to help plan to stay in control of the growth. Perhaps producing cash flow forecasts to make sure they don’t bite off more than they can chew. Remember the much overused clichés
“cash is King”
“sales for vanity, profit for sanity”
In the current climate and with funding being increasingly hard to come by its vital that businesses control their cash flow. Keeping accounting records up to date is a must to make sure you have a good handle on how your business is performing, Xero is great for helping business owners achieve this.
Business decisions
One of my longest standing clients had been struggling for some time, profits falling and cash flow worsening. We took the decision recently to close the business down. There have been some dark days and high levels of stress over the past few months. Once the paperwork had been signed and there was the realisation that it was all finished there was a huge sense of relief from him.
He can now look to the future. His other business is trading well and he will benefit from the lessons learned, one of them being to make a decision.
The worst thing you can do is to make no decision, especially if it involves your struggling business. Things are not always as bad as they may seem and there are often a variety of options available.
So, if your business is struggling and you can’t see a way out, make sure you speak to your accountant – he (or she) should be there to help in good times and bad.