Accountant and Independent Consultant Opens First Franchise in Florida; Expands to Offer Nearly 4,800 Area Small Businesses Professional Bookkeeping Services
January 09, 2009 // Franchising.com // Tallahassee, Florida - Bookkeeping Express, the first U.S. franchise focused solely on bookkeeping services, announced today that it has signed a franchise agreement with Jackie Helton to open an office in Tallahassee serving Leon and Wakulla counties in Florida and Thomas county in Georgia. The new Bookkeeping Express office will be the first to open in Florida.
Helton graduated from the University of South Florida and has been a Certified Public Accountant in Florida since 1987. Her professional experience includes more than 11 years in various auditing and supervisory positions for the state of Florida. Since leaving employment with the state to raise her family's two daughters, she fills her time by volunteering at school and church and has continued her professional and business development by becoming an independent consultant. Ready to transition into the next phase of her professional life, Helton has decided to follow her entrepreneurial instincts and become a business owner. Through her education and work experience, she has always been fond of bookkeeping, making Bookkeeping Express a perfect match.
"I'm thrilled about the opportunity to provide skilled bookkeeping services that focus on the small business community," said Helton. "I am excited about becoming an entrepreneur and part of the Bookkeeping Express family. Bookkeeping Express has over 20 years of experience in the industry and their proven business model will provide me with the marketing and operations support I need to help me grow my business, which will help others grow theirs."
With more than 4,800 small businesses in the region, Bookkeeping Express offers a much-needed service to companies that are not equipped or do not wish to handle accounting responsibilities such as setting up charts of accounts and general ledgers, monthly data entry, processing and managing accounts payable and accounts receivable, producing monthly reports and tax reporting. Plus, Bookkeeping Express utilizes a Custom Flex Pricing Model that is based on the clients' needs instead of a one fits all, hourly billing approach.
The expansion into the Tallahassee area is part of the company's aggressive national development plans which call for more than 400 new territories, initially targeting growth throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.
"The small business community is growing in Florida and around the country, and Bookkeeping Express is expanding with it, providing qualified franchise investors with a niche franchise option that caters to this growing segment," said Greg Jones, CEO of Bookkeeping Express and former 1981 Penn State University football team captain. "We are looking to grow with franchise partners such as Helton who are serious about owning a business and sincere about their desire to fill a void in their communities with our distinctive services."
As part of the Bookkeeping Express franchise model, all locations will offer the BKE Connect system, which allows businesses access to all bookkeeping files remotely through an outside server, as well as a dashboard that clearly and visually 'sums' up the business' operations for thorough analysis. Two options available to Bookkeeping Express investors include Master or Area Development territories that can be operated out of home-based or commercial space locations; per territory start-up fees run under $50,000.
About Bookkeeping Express
Bookkeeping Express, a national company focused on providing professional bookkeeping practices to small businesses, was founded in 1984 in California and grew to over 150 locations through licensing agreements. In 2007, Greg Jones, along with Bob Stocker and Merritt Green, purchased the company and launched the new business model in McLean, Virginia in January of 2008. Bookkeeping Express is currently registered to franchise in 41 states.
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