INTRODUCTION
A Client with a startup in the health and wellness sector did not have appropriate personnel to look after their accounting needs. Thus, they contacted Mercurius to outsource their bookkeeping needs. They were operating their business on various E-commerce websites and the sales records were incorrectly recorded. We, after scrutiny of the books of accounts, rectified all the records on the designated platforms.
DISCUSSION
This client has a business that is a premier provider of safety products to all kinds of businesses, schools, nonprofits, and US government agencies. They deal in contract manufacturers of private label safety products for large retailers, and theme parks, like custom masks, hand sanitizer, and apparel for major retailers, restaurant chains, hotels, promotional companies, and others. They have strong supply chains across Central America and Asia, with better values on custom programs. The company is situated in Miami, USA and is owned and operated as a family business. Family values influence the way of operating their business, i.e., from the most friendly and responsive customer service to after-sales support. The Company’s only goal is to distribute “WOW” and never rest until the customers are delighted.
REQUIREMENTS
The company had a few employees for bookkeeping and was maintaining it in the software QBO, Zoho, and other supporting online platforms Shopify, Stripe, Amazon, etc. The main challenge faced by our client was that they don’t have dedicated employee(s) to look after the account and depend on outsourcing bookkeeping services. Their previous service provider was recording incorrect sale values, and costs. So, the client wasn’t able to depend on the numbers to know the actual position of the business. They required a competent accountant who could record the entries accurately on a timely basis. Further, they didn’t file tax returns for the financial year 2020 and the returns were still pending for the year 2021 and 2022 due to inaccurate records. The client was provided with unorganized financial reports. Also, the client wanted to calculate COGS for each month, to move to strategize their actions accordingly.
SOLUTION
Mercurius is a well-trusted accounting agency, having a team of experts well-trained in handling books on various online platforms. These teams are headed by professionals with extensive experience of over a decade in serving clients from varied sectors with similar services.
We first observed that:
- The categorization of transactions was not correctly maintained by the previous provider,
- No accounting rules/principles were followed,
- Accounting procedures were inappropriate,
- Payments and invoices did not match between QBO and Zoho Inventory.
This newly associated client approached us to outsource their bookkeeping requirements. They maintained their accounts on QBO software; tracked sales orders, and invoices in the Zoho Inventory software; received payments through Stripe, Amazon, and Shopify; and payouts through PayPal accounts. Initially, we were appointed on part time basis with restricted hours per month for bookkeeping for the month Apr’23. Being satisfied with our services, they provided us with updated books for the previous period i.e., Jan’23 to Mar’23, and financial year 2022 with extended working hours per month.
We started with updating the book’s proper categorization of transactions of credit cards and bank statements; and matched the invoices, payments, accounts receivables, and accounts payable of QBO with Zoho Inventory, Amazon, Shopify, and Stripe. Our experts reconditioned the books for the period from Jan’23 to Mar’23 and the year 2022. Now, we are working on books for May’23 and are determined to deliver our service and updated books as quickly as possible. A great initiative has been taken to refurbish the books accurately. In the end, we generated proper financial statements and accounts receivable reports for the client along with the COGS calculation with a proper explanation of COGS calculation.
CONCLUSION
Our client sought a reliable accountant who could reconcile their originally inaccurately maintained books. When they contracted us, they shifted all their bookkeeping burden to our team. With our systematic approach to bookkeeping, we extracted AR reports, financial statements, etc. timely. The client was then relieved from all the accounting concerns and was able to focus on core areas and make effective decisions.
