New economy accounting

When Jeff Allain was a young accountant, working for financial-services giant Pricewaterhouse Coopers, he was assigned to the technology group.

The work connected him with young tech executives, who were starting new businesses and products and whose work spaces and habits made him realize they occupied a different slice of the business world.

“Here I am the accountant, in a stuffy suit, wing-tip shoes,” Allain said. “They were bright people, doing cool things.”

By 2013, Allain had launched his own venture, focused on the needs of entrepreneurs and young companies. New Economy CPA now has five employees and another five working as contractors.

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Its client list numbers more than 85 companies and crosses into nine states.

The company began after Allain left Pricewaterhouse Coopers and moved to Rhode Island. In Providence, his work introduced him to the needs of small companies and entrepreneurs.

He started working with Betaspring, and small startups. He performed the traditional work of a CPA, preparing compliance paperwork and filing tax returns, but soon his work expanded to broader tasks of financial planning.

In effect, he was a functional chief financial officer, working with the CEOs to understand the business model, then develop methods to expand it.

“With the entrepreneurs, what I was learning was there was a lot of white space,” Allain said. “When you’re trying to go out and raise money from an investor, and you’re building out projections, it’s a hard thing to do. You need credibility behind the numbers.”

Good fortune struck. By 2013, a few of the companies had raised several million dollars. They wanted Allain to work for them.

At the time, Allain had a wife and two small children. He started his business with the family’s blessing.

What makes a startup different from an established small business, in terms of its financial-service needs?

For many companies, they need help allocating capital.

“If we raise $1.5 million, where are we going to put that money?” Allain said.

The accountants also work differently.

At New Economy, the work is technology-focused. “In terms of the way we work, we work like our companies,” Allain said. “Fast-paced and using technology.”

New Economy, which has offices in Pawtucket, doesn’t have a telephone line, a copy machine or a fax machine.

The business also structures its financial fees differently than many accounting firms, by offering a series of services for fixed fees.

The structure allows young, growing companies to choose whether they need an accountant, a controller or a chief financial officer.

“We are a financial-services firm,” Allain said. “But what I believe we are doing is enabling entrepreneurs and small-business owners to reach their fullest potential.” •

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