BUSINESS ADVICE
Planning For Your Success
Developing Your Exit Strategy
If there's one thing you can be certain of as a business owner, it's that at some point in the future you will transfer your business interests.
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There are primarily four ways in which this will happen:
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Transferring business ownership to your children
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Selling the business to a partner or employee
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Selling to a third party
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Liquidating
Planning your exit strategy will pay huge dividends both from a tax perspective and for the ultimate sale price that you could achieve.
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To kick start this process, there are a number of important questions to consider including:
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What are your ultimate goals and when would I like to exit my business?
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If you're selling to retire, how much money do you need to enjoy the lifestyle you aspire to?
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How valuable is your business now and what can you do to increase its value?
If you haven't got a plan in place, don't worry you're not alone. Almost 40% of SME business owners have this as one of their most pressing unresolved issues for their business, according to a recent survey.
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WD Nicholls Chartered Accountants can help you with all aspects of the exit planning process such as:
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Succession planning
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Personal investment and insurance advice
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Retirement planning
For many people, a profitable exit represents a lifetime achievement and the opportunity to reap the rewards of many years of hard work. Contact us today on 02 6684 2502 to make sure you give yourself the best chance of optimising the value of your business and achieving all your personal goals.
Planning Your Legacy
Legacy planning: It's a topic that few of us like to think about let alone discuss and proactively plan.
Building your wealth is one thing but protecting it and making sure it is passed on to the people you most want to benefit from it, is quite another.
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Most people assume planning your legacy is just about having a will. In fact, as a business owner it's much more than that. While a will may be a good place to start, a comprehensive estate plan is far more effective in being able to:
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reduce the risk of disputes and
Many people make the mistake of assuming that everything they 'own' including their business, home and super forms part of their estate. In the majority of cases this is simply NOT true.
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The business structure that you operate in can have a significant impact on what you actually 'own'.
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Did you know for example, that assets held in companies, trusts and your super don't necessarily form part of your estate unless you take specific measures to change this?
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Consider what would happen if you are in partnership with someone and something happened to them. How would you pay their estate?
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And what if something happened to you, how would your family access the value held within your business?
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WD Nicholls Chartered Accountants can help you with all aspects of the process including:
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Tax effective strategies to maximise the value of your estate
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Developing your will
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Options for dealing with your superannuation
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Insurance advice
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Establishing a Discretionary Testamentary Trust
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Business owner succession planning
Most of us would prefer to live in the here and now and enjoy what we have now without thinking about what the future has in store. However, none of us know what's around the corner and you hear of too many horror stories to use this as an excuse to procrastinate.
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Not acting now can make the difference between ensuring your assets are protected today and passed to the right people when you're no longer here, or a complete stranger is making decisions about who and where your wealth should go. You've spent too many years building up your wealth to leave it to chance.
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At WD Nicholls Chartered Accountants we are ready, willing and able to assist you in developing your estate plan and can even provide support in accessing the appropriate legal advice. If you haven't looked at your will in the last 2 years, contact us today to arrange an appointment to get your affairs in order.
Protecting Your Assets
Did you know that the way your business is structured could affect the protection that your business and personal assets are afforded?
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Asset protection is one of the most neglected aspects of personal and taxation planning.
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Put simply it involves trying to insulate private family assets and valuable business assets, that you may have spent years building, from possible future financial setbacks, family disagreements over finances and business failure.
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How much your assets are protected depends on the way you structure the ownership of assets, that is, ensuring they're owned in the right names or entities.
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Here at WD Nicholls Chartered Accountants we specialise in finding the most appropriate structure to ensure you and your business are well protected. What's more, by getting expert advice from our team, you may find that choosing a different structure can actually reduce the amount of tax you're paying.
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Give us a call on 02 6684 2502 to discuss whether your assets are adequately protected.
Structuring Your Business
91% of our new business clients did not have the right business structure and were paying too much tax before consulting with us.
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Over the last 30 years, we've heard hundreds of stories from clients who had no idea how much money they were losing because they weren't getting the right advice.
You're almost certainly paying too much tax right now. You might think that you're structured tax effectively but we can almost guarantee that you're not.
Get a second opinion
Most clients automatically assume that they're getting the best advice but by seeking a second opinion you could be $'000's better off.
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With such a complex issue, getting the right advice from an accountant who not only has a deep understanding of both tax laws and corporate structures but also understands the challenges of small business is critical.
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We have specialized in this field and built a strong reputation for setting up the absolute best business structures for our clients.
Improving Your Cash Flow
Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business. Having more money coming in to your business than going out is the ultimate aim for all business owners. However, as business owners ourselves we know it's often not quite as easy as it sounds!
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Ensuring you have enough cash available to meet your tax and super obligations, including GST, PAYG and fringe benefits tax (FBT) can be challenge enough but if you also aspire to grow your business having a solid cash flow plan in place is vital.
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Put simply, a lack of cash will kill a business.
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The key to positive cash flow is profitability. If you're struggling to maintain a positive cash flow, to meet your compliance obligations or to grow your business profitably, there are a number of simple strategies that I recommend for all of my clients.
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If you'd like to spend less time feeling stressed about managing your cash flow and more time focused on building on your successes and growing your business, give us a call today 02 6684 2502.
Growing Your Business
Whether you're in the early stages of a start-up business, an established business looking to expand or you just want to accelerate your growth rate, WD Nicholls Chartered Accountants can help you realise your full business potential.
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Believe it or not your business can grow too fast. We all aspire to develop our business but if you're growing too fast you can experience significant cash flow issues. We can help you achieve a sustainable growth rate, advising you on how much your business can afford to grow without taking on a disproportionate amount of debt.
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As business owners ourselves, we have experienced significant growth over the last few years so we understand the factors that govern profitability and growth in highly competed market sectors.
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Our ability to think, talk and act like business people not simply accountants is what makes our expertise in this area so valuable.
Our expertise in helping expanding businesses includes:
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Budgets and forecasts
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Reporting systems
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Business planning
If you're looking to take your business to the next level, contact us today on 02 6684 2502.