Tax Tips for Entrepreneurs, March 22, 4 p.m. in the LaunchPad

Jim Capparelli and Matt Gardner in the LaunchPad

You’ve been working hard on building your business, but now it’s tax season and there is more you need to learn.  If you have paid anyone for work, what forms do you need to provide them?  If you are a sole proprietorship or incorporated, what forms do you need to file?  Do you still need to report if your net business income was zero or less?  What’s reportable?  What tax deductions disappeared in 2018 and how do new tax laws affect you?  How can you minimize your tax liability?  And what should you do to plan ahead for next year?  A good accountant is an essential advisor as you build your venture.

CPAs Matt Gardner and Jim Capparelli will lead a “Toolkit Session” at 4 p.m. on Friday, March 22, with insight and advice for startups on what they need to know in terms of taxes — especially with new tax laws that have taken away some key deductions that small businesses have traditionally relied upon.  In other cases, some of these changes benefit business owners, but only if they make adjustments to business strategy to leverage them.  It’s more important than ever to have a trusted tax advisor to help understand the landscape, and craft a roadmap that makes sense for your business.

Gardner & Capparelli was founded in 2016 and has grown from the two co-founders to 13 people in just 2 ½ years, by reimaging what a CPA can do as a boutique, integrated services solution for small and medium sized businesses.  They are pioneering the Virtual CFO and Accounting Services model, providing a team-based delivery approach with expertise in accounting, finance, tax, and human resources. They also provide the traditional tax preparation, compliance and attestation services that are found at traditional accounting firms.

The culture at Gardner & Capparelli aligns with young startups, with styles and personalities that are approachable.

Gardner has over 12 years of experience in the accounting and finance industries. His role within the organization includes providing overall vision, leadership and he also heads the firm’s sales, marketing and branding initiatives.  He leads the VCFO and Accounting Services practice, with his team serving over 30 companies.  He is the acting CFO for most of these businesses contributing to overall the financial strategy and strategic plans. This involves managing banking relationships including refinancing initiatives, and supporting his clients through mergers, acquisitions and fundraising endeavors. He also leads the company’s attestation practice, providing review and compliance services to businesses in a variety of industries.

His expertise is in the software, technology, gaming, professional services, construction, manufacturing and distribution industries, and start-up organizations, amongst others.  For almost 10 years prior to founding Gardner & Capparelli, he was with a local, large public accounting firm as a senior audit manager. During his career, he also served as treasurer for the largest olive oil importer and distributor in the U.S.

Capparelli co-founded the firm and provides overall vision, leadership and operations. He leads the Company’s tax practice servicing clients all over the U.S. in a multitude of industries. Jim also quarterbacks the company’s specialty tax work including R&D tax credit studies, 179D studies, Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) transactions and mergers & acquisitions.

As a major contributor to the VCFO and Accounting Services practice, he responsible for overseeing the tax strategy and compliance for over 30 companies. He is also the acting CFO for a number of businesses contributing to their global financial strategy, managing banking relationships including refinancing initiatives, and supporting his clients through mergers, acquisitions and fundraising endeavors.  His expertise is in the software, technology, professional services, construction, manufacturing and distribution industries, amongst others.

He has over a decade of public accounting experience. He got his start at a small CPA practice, gaining extensive experience working with small businesses, and spent the five years prior to founding Gardner & Capparelli with a local, large public accounting firm as a tax supervisor.

Gardner & Caparelli offer free “Launch Hours” consultations in the Blackstone LaunchPad at Bird Library.