Bookkeeping Express Inks Franchise Agreement to Open New Offices in Northern Virginia and Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area

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Experienced Area Developers Open First Franchise in State; Offer Montgomery County Small Businesses Professional Bookkeeping Services

October 15, 2008 // Franchising.com // MCLEAN, VA – Bookkeeping Express, the first U.S. franchise focused solely on bookkeeping services, announced today that it has signed a pair of area developer agreements with an entrepreneur group operating under the name of Intelligent Bookkeeping to open offices in Montgomery County in Maryland and Fairfax, Arlington and Alexandria counties in Northern Virginia.

The Bookkeeping Express in Maryland will be the first franchisee territory in the state. In Northern Virginia, the new offices join corporate-owned Leesburg, and McLean locations. As area developers, Rick Lowrie, Chris Keenan, and Pramod Raheja will be able to expand their services throughout the region.

"We are thrilled about bringing professional bookkeeping services to Maryland and Virginia. A void exists locally for skilled bookkeeping services that focus on the small business community," said Lowrie, managing partner of Intelligent Bookkeeping. "As entrepreneurs, we are excited about becoming part of the Bookkeeping Express family. Bookkeeping Express has over 20 years of experience in the industry and their proven business model provides us with the marketing and operations support we need to help small business owners focus on growing their business."

Already very familiar with the franchise concept, Lowrie, Keenan and Raheja own and operate a Bookkeeping Express office at 1425 K Street NW, Suite 350 in Washington D.C., which covers seven territories within the city's limits.

The Intelligent Bookkeeping group's roots run deep in the area. For several years, the trio of owners has run five Intelligent Office locations in the metro Washington area, providing the local small business community with virtual office services. Now, they have decided to enhance their small business offerings through the industry expertise and marketing support that comes with the Bookkeeping Express franchise model.

"The small business community is growing 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 Lowrie, Keenan and Raheja, who are serious about owning a business and sincere about their desire to fill a void in their communities with our distinctive services."

The expansion into Maryland and Virginia 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. Lowrie, Keenan and Raheja have already signed seven territory agreements for the Washington, D.C. area, now bringing the new franchise concept to local small business owners.

With more than 27,000 small businesses in Montgomery County and over 38,000 in Fairfax, Arlington and Alexandria counties, 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 an Alternative Pricing Model that is based on the clients' needs instead of a one fits all, hourly billing approach.

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. For more information, please visit www.bookkeepingexpress.com or contact 877-525-5337.

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