Dream Accounting: Back from the brink
Andrea Pearce, Owner of Dream Accounting
Article by: Chris Sheedy OF The Hard Word
When Andrea Pearce contacted Kev Ryan desperate to sell her business, a remarkable journey of reinvention began.
Christmas of 2023 wasn’t a time of rejuvenation for Andrea Pearce, whose accounting and business advisory company Dream Accounting had become more like a nightmare.
That holiday period was a time of reckoning. She faced the return to work feeling burnt out, burdened by financial debt and not sure of where to turn.
“I felt really stuck,” Andrea says. “I’m really passionate about what I do, but the business model was broken. My business was one of my only assets. The only way out that I could see was to sell it, to get some cash.”
She reached out to several brokers, as well as transaction advisor KevRyan.
“Most people didn’t even ring me back,” she says. “When I spoke with Kev, I got such a huge level of reassurance that he was the right man for the job, and that he knew exactly what he was talking about.”
“There was no beating around the bush. He knew I had a job on my hands to be able to demonstrate the value of my business, but I felt very supported by him to do that. More importantly, he saw strengths in me and in my business that I hadn’t even recognised.”
Reality check
Andrea says she wanted someone to tell her that selling was the right move, the only move. That wasn’t the message she received from Kev.
“He reassured me in a different way,” she says.
Kev helped her to get her business in shape for a sale, then worked to put her in front of interested buyers. But at the same time, he also advised of other options.
“It was clear from the beginning that Andrea is a star,” Kev says. “She’s passionate about helping her clients and a visionary for the firm of the future.”
“She was generous in supporting her team, but ultimately, everything still relied on her. As a result, selling wouldn’t have reflected her hard work or vision. But her potential was clear, and I wasn’t the only one who saw it.”
Andrea gradually realised that a sale, merger or joint venture wasn’t the only way forward. Then, during a meeting with a potential buyer, she had an epiphany.
After conducting due diligence, that buyer said to her, “You know exactly what you need to do. Why don’t you just do it?”
“That was a turning point for me,” she says.
A new strategy is developed
The clarity she had gained through almost selling her business enabled Andrea to see a new path ahead. It would require a restructure, and some personnel pain. But it would mean the business could begin to make its way back to full health.
Dream Accounting employed too many administrative staff, rather than skilled accountants. That created inefficiencies and drained resources. “It was like a pinball machine, where so many people were touching things but nothing was actually getting out the door,” she says.
“It was tough to let a few people go, but my back was against a wall. I’d been in business for 12 years and had nothing else to tip in, financially or emotionally.”
“Then, it was like dominos falling – the team that was left around me didn’t want to go in the new direction, and they all fell away.”
“I needed to reinvent the business and had the confidence that I was moving in the right direction. And, thanks to Kev, I had regular support from someone who really knew what he was talking about, as well as a network of people he had introduced me to.”
A fresh start for Dream Accounting
The new Dream Accounting business, once a team of nine and now leaner and far more efficient with just six people, has been through a tough 12 months of transformation.
“At some stages, the workload was overwhelming,” Andrea says. “There were several 16-hour days, some vulnerable conversations with clients and plenty of moments that tested my resilience.”
“It has been incredibly hard, but once I decided that Dream 2.0 would exist, there was no going back.”
What has made the journey easier, Andrea says, has been the constant support from Kev.
“It went beyond strategy,” she says. “He provided stability in a period of chaos and constantly offered practical advice without judgement. I never felt like I was chasing him for advice, he was just always there. It actually felt like true collaboration, and he never made a sale from the process!”
“For some, it might be tempting to just flip a client for a success fee,” Kev says. “But that’s not the right thing to do. We operate from a position of strength, so we can prioritise the needs of clients.”
“When they’re under cashflow pressure, people may not see the alternative. Part of my role is to present sustainable options beyond short-term pain. Quick bucks are rarely the right choice.”
The recovery isn’t yet complete. It will take at least two years, Andrea says. But she can see a clear way forward and is extremely confident in the path she has chosen.
“Right now, I have to be the world’s most conscious businessperson. I can’t afford to lose my focus for a moment,” she says. “Twelve months ago I thought my only option was to walk away, but now I see that I can have success, and I can have it on my own terms.”
The priority right now is to ensure the business remains sustainable.
“Bigger is not necessarily better in business,” Andrea says. “Putting on more staff, unless you’re putting them in the right seat on the right bus, simply doesn’t work.”
Maybe one day in the future she will sell her business, she says. But if she does, this time it will be on her own terms, and with Kev managing the process along the way.
MORE ISSUES
