My story....

The year was 2007, two buddies working in sales for a small startup software company were going to lunch each day in search of a delicious philly cheesesteak…. but it couldn’t be found! The solution? Those two gentlemen decided to quit their mundane, not-so-high paying sales jobs, and start their OWN philly cheesesteak restaurant. 

Great idea, right? They thought so, but quickly found out they were the only ones thinking that way! Family and friends thought they were crazy, and banks thought they were nuts, but luckily, they had the support of their wives, and an insane amount of determination. With a home equity line of credit, maxing out credit cards, and draining savings accounts, the doors opened 6 months later on the 1300 sq ft Cheesesteak restaurant!

The customers who strolled through those doors the first few months had a hard time assessing what the place was. Upon approaching the building no sign or advertising could be seen except for some window paint spelling out the name of the restaurant. Entering through the doors they saw some tables and chairs, a display cooler filled with canned drinks purchased from Costco, completely bare walls, not a picture or painting in sight, a chalkboard menu, and two men in their mid-twenties with aprons on, standing behind the counter ready to serve them a delicious and authentic cheesesteak! 

Fast forward to today and that little startup now consists of multiple locations and more expansion on the way! 

So how did those two guys do it all? How did they work all day and night running the restaurant, prepping food, cooking, serving customers, working with vendors, managing inventory, tracking accounts receivable, accounts payable, hiring employees, managing payroll, and on and on and on……?

The truth is…. they didn’t, most of those details fell by the way side. Their focus was on providing a customer experience that was so great those customers would come back time and time again, and they did!

As business started taking off it became quickly apparent that running a restaurant was much more then just serving food. Who would manage the back-office? How could they get their finances in order? They had heard of bookkeeping, but what did it mean? How could they know what was happening with their revenue? Well, they did what most small business owners do, try to save a dollar and figure it out on their own, with excel spreadsheets, late nights, and large quantities of caffeine. 

Sound familiar?? This is the situation many small business owners find themselves in. The fun and exciting part of owning/running a business is creating an amazing customer experience and seeing the revenue roll in! So then how do you mange your bookkeeping? 

That is why Vested Interest Advisors was born. We’ve been in your shoes. Yes, the story above is a true story and I was in fact one of those two gentlemen in the story. No longer in my mid-twenties unfortunately, but with more passion and excitement for helping small businesses then ever before! 

Your success and growth absolutely will depend on satisfied customers, but equally important is having a clear picture and understanding the health of your business. How do you do both? You can’t! And let’s be honest…... you don’t want to! You want to be in front of your customers, creating new product, and developing new ideas. Let us manage your bookkeeping, give you the insights you need, explain the health of your business and how to make it even more successful, and you keep growing your amazing business!