Case study · Staff Accountants
Cash-basis QBO to GAAP accrual in 45 days, no W2.
Northvale Outfitters rebuilt 18 months of accrual financials in 45 days for first-round investor diligence.
Client snapshot
Industry · DTC e-commerce — outdoor apparel
Size · $8M revenue, 40% YoY growth
Region · Pacific Northwest
Stage · Bootstrapped, evaluating first institutional round
Cash-basis QBO, 90-day diligence window, no W2 commitment.
Northvale Outfitters ran cash-basis books on QuickBooks Online with a part-time bookkeeper who reconciled inventory twice a year. Two prospective investors required accrual-basis monthlies, a proper inventory waterfall, and SKU-level cost of goods — none of which the existing setup produced.
The diligence window ran 90 days. The founder needed accrual financials, SKU-level COGS attribution, and weekly inventory reconciliation.
Three phases of The Continuous Close Method™.
Debit & Co. rebuilt 18 months of accrual financials in 45 days and shipped the investor packet 2 weeks early.
1. Match and Foundation, Days 1 to 10
Debit & Co. matched a Staff Accountant with DTC e-commerce experience to Northvale on Day 1. The accountant audited the cash-basis QBO books, mapped Shopify and Amazon order data to GAAP revenue-recognition rules, and built the accrual-conversion model. Aaron Ressel, Senior Controller, approved the COGS-attribution methodology before any historical rebuild posted.
2. Activation, Days 11 to 45
The accountant rebuilt 18 months of historicals on accrual basis, mapped SKU-level COGS attribution, and instituted a weekly inventory-reconciliation cadence. The Custom Playbook™ documented the marketplace-fee normalization rules, the inventory-cutoff procedures, and the gift-card deferral logic. Aaron and Kevin Cahill, CFO, reviewed inventory variances and COGS attribution every Friday.
3. Steady-state, Day 46 onward
Monthly close completes within 8 business days. The investor diligence packet shipped two weeks ahead of the 90-day window. When diligence opened, both lead firms pulled from the same monthly artifacts — zero rework hours.
Three measured outcomes inside the 90-day diligence window.
18 months in 45 days
18 months of historicals rebuilt on accrual basis within 45 days, ready for investor review.
2 weeks early
Investor diligence packet delivered 2 weeks ahead of the 90-day diligence window.
$72K vs $108K
Annual cost ran $72K with Debit & Co. against $108K all-in for a W2 staff accountant, 33 percent saved.
Founder quote
“We insisted on in-house only. Seven months later, we’re expanding our engagement.”
Founder, Northvale Outfitters
$8M DTC e-commerce, Pacific Northwest · 18-month accrual rebuild, 33% W2 saved
45-day accrual rebuild, zero W2 commitment.
The engagement resolved the bind that had stalled the founder’s hiring decision: a five-month traditional-hire ramp running directly through the diligence window. The accountant produced an accrual reconstruction in 45 days — a scope any new W2 hire would have spent three months to map. The founder kept capacity flexibility: no equity grant, no severance exposure, no fixed-cost commitment ahead of round close. Inventory reconciliation runs weekly, not semi-annually, and SKU-level margin sits in the founder’s Tuesday packet.
Investor-ready financials, GAAP Day 1, no W2 commitment.
Pre-trained, GAAP-certified, productive Day 1. Controller and CFO oversight included on every cycle.