CLEAR WATER PRESS / THE ONE YEAR ADVENTURE NOVEL

The Situation

As Dan himself admits, he and his wife Carrol didn’t aspire to be business owners when they originally began developing educational materials.  Their high school writing curriculum, The One Year Adventure Novel and writing workshops began growing in popularity.   Dan and Carrol were faced with handling business processes like payroll, bookkeeping and maintaining a home-grown customer database. Dan was working 12-15 hours per day and Carrol was juggling working in the business and being a full-time mom. Neither Dan nor Carrol were inclined to develop the proficiency needed to manage the organizational details of their business.

The Solution

Fulling Management and Accounting:

• Used the data Dan provided to develop an initial Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss statement. This provided Dan a snapshot of where his business was financially.

• Provided a guide for paying off all short term debt and worked with the bank to establish a line of credit for future business growth needs.

• Attended The One Year Adventure Novel workshop to better understand Dan’s company and develop solutions that would benefit both Dan and his customers.

• Converted client data into a workable cloud-based QuickBooks file. This allowed Dan to maintain his historical client data but use it in a standardized software platform.

• Lessened Dan’s personal exposure by assisting him in moving from a sole proprietorship to an S-corporation.

• Now prepares monthly financial statements and meets with Dan on a monthly basis to review the financial data, discuss growth strategies, and management planning.

The Results

Dan has been able to leverage accounting and management functions and focus on the creative side of the business.   Through monthly management meetings with Fulling, Dan is able to more clearly see and understand the financial side of the company without having to get bogged down in the details.   This has provided him with time to resume writing his next book, launch new products, and experience growth – manageable growth.

Testimonial

“Fulling Management has helped me be more efficient by helping me to face things head on that I would naturally avoid. I really value their outside perspective from angles that I am not used to seeing.  Our business is about creative things. We do creative projects. I want to put myself into those projects, not get stuck in managing or running a business. Unlike attorneys, Fulling Management never makes you feel that you are being timed for their service. Even if I am taking up too much time, I never feel that way. They seem to focus on ‘What does Dan’s company need to grow?’ I feel like we’re on the same team working together to accomplish the same vision. These sorts of things give you confidence that you’re dealing with someone who has integrity and who is genuine.  They seem to get what we want to do, not just as a company, but personally. Not just the things that fulfill us as a business, but also the things which fulfill us personally.” - Daniel Schwabauer, Owner, Clear Water Press