Ebay, stock and accounts

[freelancesam]

Hi, I'm helping my brother-in-law expand his small plumbing and heating company. He's just got new office and storage space which he will be using to sell plumbing parts through ebay as an extra income.

He's also looking at hiring people to work for him and I'd like to make sure everything is above board and running correctly from day 1. What is the best way to do this?

I believe quickbooks can handle a lot of it, would that be the best option? and what's the best way to keep track of stock numbers, costs and sales with VAT etc?

Looking for any good guides to read as this is something I'm new to as well.

Thanks

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

I would say this may be the time to speak to an accountant most offer a free consultation.

Is he looking to employ people on PAYE basis or hire subcontractors via CIS there is big difference.

Is he a limited company or sole trader?

Why is he VAT registered did he go above the VAT threshold? what VAT scheme is he on and why?

Is he using the most tax efficient way to take money from his company or sole trader business.

Why sell on Ebay could he not sell through his own website?

Why quickbooks there are other accounting software, the information that comes out is only as good as you put in.

These are just some of the questions you could ask any good accountant and receive the best advise possible.

There is only so much you can get on a free forum when you will not want to disclose all his personal and business circumstances.

Hope his business does well.

 

[freelancesam]

Thanks for the response. Yes, when I say small business, it's just a small two-man family business but they turned over £250k last year. I've told him to talk to his accountant but the accountant hasn't been a lot of help so far in terms of the running of the business. We're just looking for as many views/opinions as possible.

They're already selling some things on ebay and making a good return but needed the storage space to expand.

He uses Commusoft as a CRM which integrates with quickbooks (or sage and a few others), but I've heard of a lot of people using/switching to quickbooks.

Just looking for general advice really from people who may know this situation/setup better than we do.

Thanks again

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

Your welcome.

If he is not happy with his accountant i would suggest get a new one ASAP as you are paying for this advice.

You want to engage an accountant who you can have regular contact via meetings, email and phone and not the old skool meet once a year!

With regards Commusoft this will integrate with most accounting software, the big ones in no particular order:

Xero
Freeagent
Clearbooks

My advice would be is use a free trial and see which one you get on with best, although you new accountant will mostly likely be able to say which is best for you.

We have many clients like your brother's company and i speak from experience having a good accountant that is an asset to you business will be part of helping it grow.

 

[freelancesam]

Thanks for the advice, I'll pass on the info, I just want to make sure everything is in place properly now so HMRC are happy and things like stock management/payments etc are logged in the most accurate and effective way so we're not wasting any time or doing anything wrong.

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

Your welcome.

Just with so many questions to ask, accounting system, taking on staff, PAYE or CIS etc it really is best to have professional advice.

Always a good idea to Keep HMRC!!

Do you not have an accountant Sam as maybe that person could help?

 

[freelancesam]

I'm just a freelance sole trader and do my own accounts hence why LTD company accounts and staffing is so new to me.

As there are so many questions, would it better to pay a business advisor? Or is there any other ways to get advice? Don't mind paying the right person to help with the initial set up as having the right workflow will cover those costs multiple times over.

Thanks

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

The accountant you choose will be part of your business advice.

I would say speak to a few accountants and see who you get on best with.

A good accountant will save you money that will more than cover there fee,however as i said previously look at you accountant as an asset and not a cost.

An accountant would be the best person to speak to for any advice but i am a tad bit biased

 

[Pish_Pash]

Quickbooks is a good option, but it's inventory management is quite basic...better to use something like linnworks (order/stock managment software) & export your sales from linnworks to quickbooks every day using something like transaction pro importer (no affiliation).

If you intend purchasing destop s/w (vs. cloud), bear in mind that Quickbooks 2017 is released next month, so it would make sense to wait for that.

 

[freelancesam]

@Pish_Pash Thank you, I've noticed you've commented on other threads about this same issue in the past. Is there still not a good one-stop solution yet for eBay sync + stock/warehouse management + accounts software? Currently paying for commusoft to handle the service/job side of the business. Just need to integrate software for sales and accounts

 

[Pish_Pash]

@Pish_Pash Thank you, I've noticed you've commented on other threads about this same issue in the past. Is there still not a good one-stop solution yet for eBay sync + stock/warehouse management + accounts software? Currently paying for commusoft to handle the service/job side of the business. Just need to integrate software for sales and accounts

There isn't a one stop that I'm aware of.

The closest you can likely get is something like Linnwork-> tradebox-> Sage ....but IMHO Sage take the mickey with their product/pricing structure....so I won't touch sage with a bargepole.

That said, I notice that Linnworks themselves are offering Quickbooks integration now...so that might be a good contender..

Edit: just found this - a 3rd party company offering LW/QB integration ....

)

I'd have to say though, the costs quickly ratchet up for the convenience!

 

[freelancesam]

Thanks for the replies, that looks interesting @Pish_Pash.

While i'm here. Is it better to merge the ebay sales in with the plumbing company or set it up as it's own separate thing?