Marcus Richards
Arden Bookkeeping is all about empowering new business owners to feel in control of their finances. The accounts are one of the most revered areas of business and we are there to help business owners lose the fear, understand their responsibilities and cut through the jargon helping them own their success and plan for growth using accurate data.
Tell us about yourself?
I have worked in finance for over 20 years, most of that employed in industry working at manufacturing and industrial companies. This helped me gain a welath of knowledge and ultimately led me to have the confidence to go it alone. I set up Arden Bookkeeping after having my daughter and wanting more flexibility and a healthier work/life balance.
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Trust your gut and it will all be ok. Being in business is a scary and sometimes lonely place, even with a team around you. I have had to make some tough decisions over the past couple of years, as most business owners have had to but by trusting my gut and being confident in myself has enabled me to double our business despite a global pandemic.
What problem does your business solve?
We help save business owners time, money and sanity. We save them time by taking the bookkeeping off their hands and allowing them to focus on their business success, we save them money by ensuring they are running in the most tax efficient way and no allowable expenses are missed and we save them sanity by relieving them of the stress and worry that can often come with trying to handle the accounts in house.
What is the inspiration behind your business?
Setting up a business is a terryifying time, no matter who you are, it certainly was for me! There is so much to think about and suddenly it all comes down to you. We want to support new businesses make a success of their dreams and have the knowledge to make informed decisions to ensure they are here for years to come.
What is your magic sauce?
We become part of your internal team, we can handle as much or as little of the accounting function as suits you and work with you to create a streamlined, cloud based, accounting solution so no matter what industry you are in everything runs smoothly, without concern. We also dont use confusing jargon but speak in plain terms so you always know what we are actually talking about!
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
The vision for this business is to continue our growth and support as many businesses as we can, potentially open a second office and grow our national base of clients.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
Employment, for us, is the biggest challenge. Accounting is all about trust and it is a huge thing when a company trusts us with their accounts and we take this very seriously. It is important therefore that we find the right staff who understand and appreciate this and are as passionate about our clients businesses as the business owner. We are a business with heart and it just doesn’t work if someone does not have that same passion for their job as we do.
How do people get involved/buy into your vision?
We would love to help more new businesses make their visions a reality, so anybody setting up for themselves whether as a limited company or as a sole trader would be more than welcome to get in touch to discuss how we can help them. Also if anyone is considering taking that leap but are unsure of what is involved or what they need to do we can have a 1-2-1 consultation and assist with the incorporation if required.
