Your accounting fee shouldn't rise because your business grew.
Accounting, bookkeeping and CFO support for growing, high-volume businesses: F&B groups, retailers and multi-outlet operators whose transactions rise every month.
How accounting providers price growth
When you compare providers, the monthly fee is only half the picture. The other half is what happens to that fee as your business grows. Three models are common.
Revenue bands
Your fee is set by your annual revenue. It is simple and predictable while revenue holds steady.
Worth checking: some plans reconcile at the year end. If revenue lands above the band you selected, the difference is invoiced.
Expense bands
Your fee follows your annual expenses. Hiring, opening an outlet or buying more stock can move you into a higher band.
Worth checking: some plans bill the difference pro rata during the year as expenses rise.
Transaction volume
Your fee follows the number of transactions you process. It is fair in principle, and it reflects the work involved.
Worth checking: businesses with many sales orders a day can find this model costly.
Sensible for most businesses. A poor fit for high-volume ones.
Banded pricing suits a great many small companies well. It starts to strain when one business on a band generates far more work than another.
A consultancy
A handful of client invoices each month, few suppliers, healthy margins.
A multi-outlet F&B group
Daily sales across several outlets, many suppliers, stock and payroll, thinner margins.
Same revenue, same band, same fee. Yet the F&B group needs far more work, which makes it the most expensive client on the plan to serve. Pricing tends to catch up through year-end adjustments, tier changes or upgrades. (Illustrative, not to scale.)
Six questions to ask any accounting provider
Whoever you choose, these answers tell you what your fee will look like in two years, not just this month.
- What is my fee based on?Revenue, expenses, transactions or the work involved.
- What happens when my revenue or expenses rise?Ask for the next band up, and when it applies.
- Can my fee be adjusted for a period already closed?Look for year-end reconciliation or retrospective tier wording in the terms.
- How much notice is given before fees change?And what your options are if you disagree.
- Is multi-outlet, inventory and location reporting included?Or does it sit in a higher plan you will need later?
- Who do I speak to when the numbers look wrong?An accountant who knows your business makes the difference at audit time.
How Paloe works with high-volume businesses
High transaction volume is where Paloe does its best work. That is why F&B and retail businesses are among our most common clients.
Built for volume
Daily sales, many suppliers, stock movements and payroll across outlets are handled as a matter of course, not as an exception to the plan.
Accountants first, CFO when you need one
The team that keeps your books can support audit preparation, fundraising and exit planning as your business moves on.
- Bookkeeping
- Accounting
- Outsourced CFO
- Virtual CFO
- Fractional CFO
- Interim CFO
- Fundraising
- Financial modelling
- Valuation
- Exit planning
When your business needs more than bookkeeping
Most companies come to Paloe at a turning point, often around Series A and B.
Not ready for audit
Records brought into order, with accounts an auditor can work with.
Expanding without visibility
Reporting that shows how each outlet, location or line of business is really performing.
Raising capital
Financial models, valuation and investor-ready numbers for your round.
Exiting within a fixed window
Exit planning that works to your timeline.
How moving to Paloe works
A clear fee and scope, agreed in writing, before anything changes.
1. Conversation
What happens: You tell us how your business runs today.
What we ask about: Monthly transaction volume, number of outlets, your financial year end and how your current provider prices its work.
You leave with: A clear view of whether Paloe is the right fit.
2–4. Review, proposal and handover
2. Review
What happens: We look at your current set-up and the work your books actually involve.
3. Proposal
What happens: Fee and scope set out in writing.
4. Handover
What happens: The move is timed around your financial year end where possible.
Find out what your fee would be based on.
Tell us how your business runs and we will set out a fee and scope in writing.
