6 minute read
Starting Up
Samir Gosrani
TaxAssist Accountants New Malden
Tell us a bit about your business?
At TaxAssist Accountants, we provide a personal and professional accounting service tailored to our clients. We help start-ups, sole traders, partnerships, limited companies, property landlords, contractors, freelancers, and individual taxpayers with all their accounting and tax requirements, as well as providing business advice and support.
What gives your business ‘the x-factor’?
I bring with me 15 years of experience having worked in accounting and tax practices and having dealt with a broad range of clients from large multinationals to the smallest owner managed businesses. This breath of experience and expertise coupled with strong support from a dynamic national franchise network of small business champions makes us ideally placed to consistently deliver excellent services to our clients.
What motivated you to set up in business?
Whilst working for a top tax firm had its own challenges and rewards, I came to realise that my real passion has always been working with small business owners to make a real tangible difference to their businesses and lives. It was extremely important to me that when I did step away from the corporate world, I would use my existing skills and knowledge to better serve the local business community. Towards the end of 2019 I decided to take the plunge and set up my own practice locally as it became obvious that the smallest taxpayers were often overlooked by other advisors.
What do you like most about working for a start-up?
Not only is my business focused towards the needs of the small business owners in the local community, I am a small business owner myself. I can therefore truly understand and empathise with the increasing hardships that other small business owners face. I recognise that small business owners are frequently faced with the challenge of not only running their business, but also having to try and keep up with the burden of rapidly changing reporting and compliance requirements. It is satisfying knowing that we can take away some of the pain from our clients and extremely rewarding when we help save our clients time and money.
What has been your greatest business success to date?
Having started just prior to the pandemic and the first national lockdown with a zero client-base, the past year has arguably been the greatest challenge. Whilst this has meant the business has not been able to grow as much as I would have liked in terms of number of fee paying clients, I am proud to say that we have nonetheless been able to help many small businesses get through this extremely challenging period by using our expertise and being able to guide and support them, from ensuring tax returns were submitted on time to helping them mitigate and manage tax liabilities, from accessing various government assistance schemes such as furlough and grants, to helping them forecast and manage their cashflow, and sometimes by just offering a listening ear or a supportive shoulder.
What has been your lowest moment?
No doubt the uncertainty that Covid 19 has brought has been the lowest moment, as it has meant that even our most prudent business plans have had to be put aside. We fully appreciate the impact that the lockdown and restrictions have had on so many people financially, as well as on their mental well-being. It has been incredibly challenging for us too, but we are determined to come out on the other side stronger and being able to help our clients through these times has helped keep us motivated and grounded.
In terms of business achievements, where do you want to be within the next year 5 years?
We are on track to open attractive shop-front premises in a prominent and highly visible location in New Malden within the next few months. The aim is to be easily accessible not just to existing clients but to potential clients as well and the shop will therefore be welcoming and modern. I believe that within the next 5 years, TaxAssist Accountants will become a trusted, reputable, and wellknown business advisor not just among the local businesses but also the wider community within the Royal Borough of Kingston. As the business grows, we will have opportunities to recruit trainee as well as qualified accountants and we would be delighted to offer roles to local applicants when the opportunity arises.
What would be your top tip to someone thinking of starting up their own business?
Thorough planning is always important, but as the last year has shown us, sometimes being meticulous is not enough. It is equally important to be dynamic, have a positive frame of mind, and be flexible enough to be able to adapt to the situation, to not just survive but thrive despite adversity.
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