California Snow

Article Tools

• August 2007 Issue
• Post a Comment
• Print This Article
• Email This Article to a Friend
• Save This Article
• Order a Reprint

From the August 2007 Issue

Southern California has long been a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts, from surfers and hikers to skiers and snowboarders. For Christy Snow, these activities are fine, but she prefers fun that includes the roar of an engine and has a little more RPM, especially dirt bikes, water sports, racing cars and dune buggies. She also loves working on the vehicles, which is why she works as a pit crew chief for a race team, and with a chase team during buggy events, including the Baja 500 and 1000.

What makes this Orange County resident stand out even more from the pack is her profession: She’s an Enrolled Agent and principal of Snow’s Financial Services (www.SnowsFinancialServices.com), a general accountancy practice in Orange, California, about 25 miles south of Los Angeles. While many might see this as an odd combination — an accountant and grease monkey/gearhead — it makes perfect sense for Christy, who along with her husband Daniel also owns an auto repair business. After all, she has mechanics on both sides of her family, so you could say that motor oil is in her blood.

Christy started her accounting and tax practice in 2004, leaving her position as a corporate controller for the more independent entrepreneurial life. With 20 years in the profession, she had been in various corporate accounting roles since the age of 14, when she discovered a natural knack for the subject and was asked to manage the books for a private business. Yes, 14. Apparently accounting is in her blood, as well. “I was probably an accountant in a past life; it just comes to me so easily. I love financial forecasting and analysis. It’s just fun for me,” she said. Fortunately, she’s as comfortable in a business suit as she is in a mechanic’s jumpsuit, and has created a well-tuned practice. Originally from Chicago, she was the youngest of seven kids, which she explains is why she’s so loud. “I had to scream just to be heard.”

After only three years, her accounting practice has grown quickly (more than 340 percent last year) and now has a full-time staff of nine, primarily focused on bookkeeping/accounting services, business taxation, consulting, and business and financial planning. The largest part of her client base includes various contracting businesses and auto repair shops, businesses she says are easy for her to attract as clients.

“I’ve worked around mechanics and contractor services all of my life, so I understand their business processes and can speak to them in their language and with the terms they know.” She says that business development hasn’t been as much a focus as her growth might suggest; it’s just worked out well through networking opportunities and membership in several business and civic groups. The business environment is also healthy in her area. “People are still starting up companies all the time, so they need accounting services.” The tip she would like to give to more people, though, is this: “Don’t open a restaurant. Restaurants seem to fail so quickly because of problems with staff management and keeping overhead down when the business is slow.”

In addition to the more than 200 California-based businesses for which the firm provides accounting and consulting services, Snow’s Financial Services has a growing base of international clients, including retailers and wholesale clothing vendors, some with offices in South America and Australia. “Technology has helped us reach beyond traditional borders and take on clients that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.”

With her business experiencing triple-digit growth, Christy also quickly found that staffing was one of the biggest challenges for a small practice. “Some people don’t know what they say they do. So we now have working interviews where I’ll put somebody to work for a week to see how they function in a real work environment. I can usually tell within two or three days if they’re going to work out.” She has also been expanding her own capabilities, and is currently working toward CMA and CFP credentials.