Reports, but no answers
You get a P&L every month. Nobody tells you what it means for the hire, the price change or the big purchase you're weighing.
Fractional CFO + tax prep
Know your cash, what you'll owe, and what to do next.
Ferris helps service and retail business owners see where the money is really being made, plan for taxes all year, and make the big calls with a CFO in their corner.
15 years in accounting. When you call, you get Laura, every time. Built for service providers and small and mid-size retail. My specialty: fractional CFO work and tax prep, under one roof.
Sound familiar?
You get the reports. You still don't know what to do with them.
Here's what I hear from owners most.
Cash stuck on the shelves
Money is tied up in inventory, and your reports don't show which products or services actually make you money.
No one to call
You send stuff over and hear nothing back until tax season. By then, the decision you needed help with is long gone.
The year-end scramble
January hits and you're digging for receipts. Your tax preparer has never seen your books, so the return gets filed on whatever's there. Then you find out what you owe.
How Ferris helps
A CFO all year. Taxes done right.
Work with me on one or both. You don't need to hand over your books to get your taxes done, and you don't need a monthly engagement to get a project finished.
The specialty
Fractional CFO Advisory
Someone to call before the big decisions: pricing, hiring, cash flow, loans and owner pay.
See detailsThe return
Tax Preparation & Planning
Business and personal returns, prepared by someone who looks at how your business actually runs. Book it on its own.
See detailsThe one-off
Custom Projects
Sales and use tax setup, custom spreadsheets, inventory help and more, with a clear scope and price.
See details
Bring me the question your reports aren't answering.
A free 20-minute meeting, in person in Kansas City or virtual. We'll talk through where things stand, what you're trying to decide and whether Ferris is a good fit.
Services
A CFO all year. Taxes done right.
Work with me on one or both. You don't need to hand over your books to get your taxes done, and you don't need a monthly engagement to get a project finished.
01
The specialty
Fractional CFO Advisory
Your numbers should do more than close the month.
Someone to call before the big decisions, not after. We look at what your numbers are telling you and what to do about it.
- Cash-flow forecasts
- Pricing and margins by product, job or service
- Hiring and owner pay math
- Getting ready for a loan or big purchase
- Inventory and product costing
- The tax impact before you decide
02
The return
Tax Preparation & Planning
Business and personal returns, prepared by someone who looks at how your business actually runs, not just the forms. You can book tax prep on its own.
- Business returns
- Personal returns, including Schedule C
- Missouri and Kansas state returns
- Quarterly estimated taxes
- Timing big purchases for the tax benefit
- S-corp election math
- Year-end planning before the books close
03
The one-off
Custom Projects
Sometimes you just need one thing set up, built or figured out, by someone who'll get it right and explain what it means when it's done. You get a clear scope, a clear price and a clear finish line before any work starts.
- Sales and use tax setup
- Custom spreadsheets and trackers
- Inventory counts, valuation and setup
- Job costing and WIP setup
- Pricing review
- Cash-flow forecast builds
- Loan and financing packages
- Books cleanup before tax season
Have something that isn't on this list? Bring it to a free 20-minute meeting and we'll scope it together.
The working relationship
First, get the numbers right. Then put them to work.
Learn your business
We start with how money moves through your business, what decisions are coming up, and where your current reports leave you guessing.
Set up your books around you
Your accounting gets organized around your margins, inventory and services, not someone else's template.
Use it to decide
Each month we go over what changed, what it means and what the business can handle, before a decision turns into an emergency.
Bring me the question your reports aren't answering.
A free 20-minute meeting, in person in Kansas City or virtual. We'll talk through where things stand, what you're trying to decide and whether Ferris is a good fit.
Meet Laura Ferris
I spent 15 years running the books inside businesses like yours.
I grew up in Baldwin City, Kansas, the youngest of four sisters. I earned my bachelor's in accounting from Ottawa University, and I've spent the fifteen years since then in the numbers.
I've been a controller for construction companies and retail stores. I've run inventory in the heavily regulated cannabis industry, where every gram has to be accounted for, and I've kept the books for manufacturers and service providers. Inventory and product costing are the work I love most: figuring out what something really costs and where the money is actually being made.
I started Ferris because too many owners were getting financial statements without anyone sitting down to explain them. Every decision has a tax side, so I keep it in the conversation all year. When tax season comes, I can prepare the return myself.
Laura Ferris, Founder
Tax prepBusiness and personal returns
Ottawa UniversityBachelor's in Accounting
ControllerAcross five industries
Baldwin City, KSHometown, now based in Kansas City
Bring me the question your reports aren't answering.
A free 20-minute meeting, in person in Kansas City or virtual. We'll talk through where things stand, what you're trying to decide and whether Ferris is a good fit.
Start with the decision
Bring me the question your reports aren't answering.
No pitch deck and no pressure. Pick a time for a free 20-minute meeting and we'll talk through where your books stand, what you're trying to decide and whether Ferris is a good fit.
Choose in person or virtual and the calendar will switch to that schedule. Everything you need comes with your confirmation email.
[email protected]
Book a free 20-minute meeting
Not ready to meet? Send me a note.