In the world of wholesale and distribution, controlling your cash flow and managing your inventory are critical. Our accountants and consultants can help you do both: We’ll present you with the best insights into your inventory turns, margins and cash flow. Over the years, we’ve helped scores of other wholesale and distribution companies deal with exactly the same issues you’re facing—and now you get to benefit from all those years of experience.
Control your cash flow
Know when and how much to invest in inventory, and when to make your capital expenditures. We’ll advise you on timing and tax ramifications that affect your bottom line.
Manage your inventory
Our extensive accounting experience means we can help you manage your inventory cost-effectively. We’ll help you maximize your warehouse/facilities use and flow as well as balance your working capital needs against the inventory you need to have on hand so both the cash flow and the stock are at optimum levels.
The cost of transportation
A critical concern for the distribution industry is the cost of transportation. When gas prices go up, for example, your costs are affected and you must react quickly. With our firm helping you determine what your costs really are, you’ll be equipped to react skillfully to every shift in transportation cost.
Doing business elsewhere
Filing and paying income tax outside of the state is distribution specific. Do you know which taxes to pay in another state or country? We do. And we’ll make sure you pay the right ones. Our membership in Nexia International keeps us tapped into resources throughout the nation and the world. As a result, we’re equipped with expert advice on taxes in other states and countries.
Make informed decisions
We can help you make informed capital investment decisions. If your business has outgrown your space, for example, we’ll consider the things you need to make a financially sound choice about moving—whether you should lease or buy, for example, or what time of the fiscal year works best for your accounting system. Or perhaps it’s time to invest in a major piece of equipment: What’s the best way to finance it? Will the timing impact the financial ramifications of a purchase? By looking forward and investigating every possible outcome, we can help you make smarter financial decisions now to improve your profitability in the future.
We’ll advise you on complicated transactions too, such as mergers and acquisitions, buy/sell agreements, and even how to structure your business to manage your risks and tax liabilities: whether to choose a corporation or LLC, for example.
For more about our wholesale and distribution experience, read our client spotlight:
Shannon & Associates does monthly compilations, annual audits and tax returns for City Beverages, an Anheuser-Busch distributor. Among other financial tasks, we’ve helped them with a change in ownership, the acquisition of another distributor, and the like kind exchange of territories. During these transactions, Shannon & Associates has acted as an advisor on tax consequences, possible alternatives, agreed upon procedures and audits. As City Beverages’ management consultant and accountant, we’ve helped the company to analyze their accounting and distribution software and procedures. We’ve set up internal controls and procedures at a new distributorship. And we’ve trained their staff on QuickBooks and set them up on an accrual basis.
