Blog

For any sort of planning, whether it’s your Strategic Plan, Business Plan, or Personal Development Plan, you must first know your starting point to plan your journey to where you want to go. The Now, Where, How mindset helps us recognise where we are now, then clarify where we want to be in the future, […]

Do you understand your ‘why’? Does your team understand it? How about your customers? Your ‘why’ is why your business exists for your customers (and it’s not to make a profit!). Your ‘why’ forms the centre of The Golden Circle – a concept developed by Simon Sinek in his book, Start With Why. The Golden Circle challenges us […]

You’re running a business, so you know the legal requirements around producing accounts and submitting tax returns. But do you truly know WHY you’ve engaged an accountant? And do you understand the value that a good accountant and business adviser can add to your company? As a business owner, managing director or CEO, there are […]

Are you undercharging for your services? It can be hard to tell, particularly if you’re in a niche industry or you’re a contractor. Costs have been rising, so it may be time to rethink your own pricing. Here are five signs that you might be undercharging: Nobody ever questions your quotes – Do all your new […]

When you’re self-employed, you’re the one in charge of your KiwiSaver contributions. Without an employer to make contributions on your behalf, you need to decide how much you want to commit to your retirement fund, if anything. If you’re self-employed, why contribute to KiwiSaver? There are two main selling points for KiwiSaver if you’re self-employed. […]

Thinking of buying or selling your business? A new tax rule comes into effect on 1 July 2021 that will have an impact on the way you negotiate. The new rule is designed to create more certainty in purchase price allocation, which is the way the purchase price is divided up between the various types […]

Budget 2021 was all about big spending on benefits, health and infrastructure. With some critics saying the Government was spending too little and others saying it was racking up too much debt, Finance Minister Grant Robertson aimed to find a balance between the two. Not much for businesses For most Kiwi business owners, there were […]

We often get questions about what business expenses are tax deductible, and one of the more confusing topics is clothing. Most jobs have some sort of dress code – whether you wear suits and heels or overalls and steel-toed boots. Work clothes can be a significant expense for any business owner or employee. You only […]

With the minimum wage having recently increased to $20, you might be thinking that it won’t go up again for a while. But in fact you should probably plan for the minimum wage to keep rising. In 2000, New Zealand’s minimum wage was $7.55. Since then it has increased every year, under both National and Labour […]

There’s a new superannuation rate for 2021: from April 1, it increases by at least $10 a week for everyone. Singles living alone will receive $437 a week, up from $423; couples where both partners qualify will receive $672 a week, up from $652. Will you need more? If you’re looking at that and thinking that it’s […]

Improvements can always be made at the margin. Small tweaks to your processes or systems can make a massive difference to the end result. It’s the same with your business margin – a 1% increase in your gross margin on $500,000 of sales is an extra $5,000 on your bottom line.  The best part about […]

The rules for property investors have changed, removing tax deductibility for rental loan payments and extending the bright line test to 10 years. How does this change property investing? The biggest impact of these recent changes is that investment properties are now more expensive to own, since you can no longer offset interest payments against […]

We’ve spent more than the past year responding to things outside of our control. Everyone has experienced huge change, a lot of it while in crisis mode. Upon reflection, some of the changes were inevitable. If we think about digital transformation and flexible working conditions, these were simply accelerated by Covid.  Now that the worst […]

Since 2020, measures to help support businesses adversely affected by COVID-19 have been introduced in several waves. Initially the intention was to boost confidence and help businesses get through the crisis. Subsequently it became clear that support through a recovery period would be needed, as well as ‘just in case’ measures for possible rapid response […]

Turning a profit is at the heart of running any successful company But should profits be the only financial focus if you’re looking to create a stable, long-term business?  Cashflow is the beating heart of your business. Without an even and predictable flow of cash into the company, you can’t cover your overheads, you can’t […]

On April 1, we move into a new financial year for most Kiwi businesses – and the new top personal tax rate comes into effect. For individuals earning over $180,000, that top chunk of income will now be taxed at 39% instead of 33%. This will only affect you if you personally earn more than […]

When someone has just bought from you, that’s a golden opportunity to start building a customer relationship. Take advantage of being top-of-mind and see where it can take you – and ensure you’re offering the best after-sales service to this brand-new customer. Thanking someone for a purchase is usually the start of a cadence of aftersales […]

Applying for funding is tough. Ensure you have all the data to prove the viability of your business, in order to secure the support. We have the experience and tools to help with your funding drive. #smallbizfunding Top tips for successfully securing funding for your business The key enabler for success for many startups and […]

New legislation in NZ tenancy law brings in a number of changes for landlords and tenants. Below are some of the changes: Increasing rent – From 12 August 2020, rent increases are limited to once every 12 months. This is a change from once every 180 days (six months). Required notice periods are changing – If the […]

Should you buy or lease your new equipment? We’ll review your current financial position, cashflow and cost base to decide whether buying or leasing is the right thing for the business. #businessadvice #SmallBusiness But when a critical business asset is required, should you buy this item outright, or should you lease the item and pay […]