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44 Accounting, entrepreneurship


for small farms Farmers from City Beet share key elements for success


by RONDA PAYNE


SURREY – Maddy Clerk and Elana Evans know how hard it is to be successful at farming. The pair took over the urban yard farm, City Beet, from its founders in 2017 and have doubled its size to 15 front and backyards in Vancouver. The pair shared tips from their own experience with accounting and entrepreneurship at the small- farm session the Society Promoting Environmental Conservation hosted at Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s campus in Surrey, February 15. Clerk entered farming armed with a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree and her Chartered Professional Accountant designation. She sees the connection between her training and present occupation. “I think they’re very related,”


she says. “Numbers and farming. The thing to get out of today is sort of a mindset shift. The more we can plan for risk and the things that come up, the better we can prepare for that.”


Clerk notes that farming and accounting follow similar cycles, beginning with planning, then selling and spending, followed by reporting and finally analysis and strategy. A lot of the


planning is initially based on assumptions, but she adds this gets easier with time. Planning needs to include budgeting, complete with expenses like capital items (green house construction, irrigation, etc.) and input costs (fertilizer, seeds, etc.). By knowing expenses up front, it’s easier to calculate the sales required to pay for those costs. “You can think about, ‘How


many CSA boxes do I need to sell in order to cover my expenses?’” she says. Clerk calculates profitability


by the foot as well as by the crop to know which spaces and crops are most profitable. However, she notes this must be balanced with customer preference. Sometimes even loss-leaders can add to success because they help sell other items at the market or keep CSA customers coming back. “You’ll read a lot of the farming books and they’ll suggest planting salad crops and selling to restaurants because that’s the most profitable, but there’s so much more to think about,” she says. Cash flow, or a lack of it, is one of the biggest reasons small businesses fail, she notes. Avoiding the pitfalls requires a cash-flow template (there are many available


Maddy Clerk, left, and Elana Evans shared their accounting and entrepreneurship experience with small-lot farmers at a workshop hosted by SPEC in Surrey, February 15. RONDA PAYNE PHOTO


online). When looking at electronic and automated tools, she recommends sales systems that transfer transaction data directly to accounting software, as well as expense apps and programs. This will ensure accurate data input while also making reporting easier. Reporting includes taxes, balance sheets and income statements. Many accounting tools, like QuickBooks, make generating these reports easier.


Personal goals


While Clerk’s knowledge about numbers is important to the business, she is also aware of the bigger picture in knowing how things are working for a farmer personally. While analysis includes looking at how the business grew or advanced financially, other factors are equally important. “We have to know if this is working for us or not,” she


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says. “You need to think about your overall goals, too.” Reviewing goals and purpose annually is an important part of farming because things change, such as land access, objectives, lifestyle as well as personal and financial needs and priorities. She suggested a broad diversity of goals covering the farm as a whole, several finance-based goals, personal development goals and personal balance goals. The broad range is important to maintain motivation so that if one goal isn’t reached, others will be.


These goals don’t mean that farming shouldn’t be financially viable. “You have to be able to


make money,” she says. “Set really clear and measurable goals for each season.” Having a marketing plan is


essential, she says. “As we do this more and


more, I see it as something necessary,” she says of a


marketing plan. “You’re going to have a diversity of customers. Who is your ideal customer? What’s the product or experience they are after and what do they believe?” It requires work to get the message out about benefits and products available to potential customers. Evans says this must be communicated from the heart in order to build trust and relationships. “They want to be


connected not just to their food, but to their farmer,” she says. “It’s about being clear and up-front with people so that you’re minimizing surprises. The more you keep what you’re doing the same or similar, the more likely you are to retain those customers.” Part of connecting to customers comes from sharing the farm’s story. City Beet has a weekly newsletter for subscribers to its box program that includes information about current activities, recipes and other farm-related details. Evans says customers greatly value the information and have complained if the newsletter is late.


She doesn’t suggest every


farm create a newsletter, but she does suggest finding one or two marketing activities to engage in consistently, regularly and well. Many farmers aren’t comfortable with the marketing side of things, so finding a team member who does like the activity is an option. “In sharing your story, you need to tell people what you stand for,” she says. “Be as compelling and engaging as possible. Think about what your skills are and play to them. There’s no shortcuts or silver bullets when you’re running a business.”


COUNTRY LIFE IN BC • MARCH 2020


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