Northern Enterprise Awards 2020

19 | Northern Enterprise Awards 2020 Oct20452 Best Accountancy & Business Support – Cheshire Purple Accounts was established in 2007 in the spare room of Charted Management Accountant David Parker and his wife, Helen, a professional marketer MCIM. David has small business in his blood having been raised in a corner shop in Warrington, Cheshire and selling plants grown from seed at just seven years of age. After several years in the City of London and the surrounds, Purple Accounts was created following redundancy. Today, it consists of four small business centres in Warrington and one in the Isle of Man. Our mantra is “Everything your small business needs to grow” and this is central to our mission to be the ‘go to’ for small businesses in Warrington,” David explains. “We aim to always be one step ahead of customer expectations and to understand the unique needs of small business owners, whilst demonstrating care and empathy for the ups and downs this can bring.” He continues to elaborate on the services Purple Accounts offers and it’s not just traditional number crunching, far from it. It can also offer proactive support for business owners; personal finance, mortgages and wealth management; business funding; start-up advice; and business growth. The traditional accountant files annual accounts and advises of tax liabilities that are due. Some even still utilise a ‘ticking billometer’ that starts every time a customer calls or emails. Purple Accounts is changing all of this. Not only is it the trusted advisor for the business owner in all aspects of starting, growing and scaling a business, but its monthly package includes expert support, 24/7 access to financial information via Xero and all the compliance work for one fixed fee. “We get to know our customers really well and as it can be lonely being a business owner, that expert ear to bend when needed is invaluable.” In July 2020 Purple Accounts was awarded Gold Partner status with Xero, the world’s leading online accountancy software. This was a huge accolade and testament to the dedication to small businesses. Purple Accounts includes XERO with all of its packages, so business owners have complete control of their finances 24/7. This powerful combination of professional expertise and XERO cloud accounting, has enabled small businesses to access services, information and expertise that are usually the domain of larger businesses. “It’s actually more important for smaller businesses, as they can act upon up-to-date financial information quickly without big business barriers.” Since the outbreak of Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdowns that followed Purple Accounts has experienced significant growth, despite the Government restrictions. Throughout these times of hardship, Purple Accounts remained ever present, albeit socially distanced, but very much accessible when it suited the customer via Zoom, phone, email or branch. Customers also got hands-on help with grants, loans, furlough and other issues they may have experienced without any extra charges. “This was a big help,” enthuses David. “This small gesture brought an unexpected increase in new customers wanting to be looked after like this too.” David’s mission for 2020 was to take Purple Accounts paperless in an effort to become more sustainable. Not only is this simple step much easier for customers and the team, but it also saves huge amounts of paper and time. The idea was trialled in one Purple Accounts branch from August last year and was subsequently rolled out across all branches last October. For 2021, David believes small businesses will want the accessibility of a bricks and mortar expert accountant with the ease and flexibility of being able to use the facilities online. Purple Accounts therefore will be providing this ‘blend of both’ approach to best service its customers for the future. “Small business needs a more holistic approach - bean counting and compliance work once a year is no longer enough,” he explains. “The gap left by high street banks has hit small businesses as they have little access to ongoing support.” Purple Accounts launched its own Start-Up Academy in August 2020. This was in anticipation of an increase of individuals taking the leap and starting their own business as a result of redundancy or uncertainty due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The course is free, easy to access and aspiring business owners can start up in as little as seven days. “We firmly believe that every business owner should have access to these resources to get started sooner and with confidence.” Company: Purple Accounts Contact: David Parker Web Address: www.purpleaccounts.co.uk Easing the strain of accounting for small business owners, the husband-and-wife team behind innovative firm Purple Accounts tell us more about their ethos and how the future is looking bright.