March 6, 2025 • 28 mins
In our second installment of the Small Business Starter Kit series - we’re tackling a topic that’s sometimes tricky, sometimes confusing, but ever-present: taxes. Hosts Austin and Jannese have an insightful conversation with entrepreneur Isabella Rosal who started 7th Sky Ventures, an exporter and distributor of craft spirits, beer, and wine. Having lived and worked in two different countries and started a company in a heavily-regulated field, Isabella is no stranger to navigating the paperwork-laden and jargon-infused maze of properly understanding taxes for a newly formed small business. Join us as she shares her story and provides valuable insight into how to tackle your business’ taxes - so they don’t tackle you.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Ruby.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
The views, information, and opinions expressed during this podcast are
solely those of the individuals involved and do not represent
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(00:29):
revising any information presented. Listeners should verify statements before relying
on them. Hey, everyone, welcome back to another episode of
Mind the Business Small Business success Stories, a podcast brought
to you by Into It QuickBooks and Ruby Studio from iHeartMedia.
I'm Janise Torres.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
And I'm Austin Hankwitz and this episode, we're talking to
another awesome small business owner here in Tampa, Florida, and
I can't wait to dig in.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
It has been so much fun getting to know my
local small businesses and this episod eisode is no exception.
We've got a very exciting topic to discuss today. We'll
be talking to an incredible small business owner about something
that Benjamin Franklin would call one of the only two
things we can be certain about in this world.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Well, Denis, if we were talking about death, that would
be a very different podcast. So I'm assuming we'll be
talking about taxes.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Correct taxes, but not your everyday taxes. We're talking about
how to manage and file your taxes as a small
business owner as part two of our small Business Starter
Kit miniseries. This episode, we're focusing on everything you need
to know about understanding your taxes as a newly formed
small business. It is not an easy subject to tackle,
but it is a necessary one. Every small business owner
(01:41):
has to be on top of it.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
And that's what's so great about into it QuickBooks. You
have access to live tax experts on the platform who
can help you organize your filings, maximize your deductions, and
answer any questions you have about your taxes. But Denis,
I'm curious to hear about some of the biggest lessons
you've learned about filing taxes for your business.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I would say it's definitely don't bury your head in
the sand, Okay, your taxes are not going to magically
go away just because you decide not to acknowledge that
they are due, and it's something that you have to
be diligent with. A great example for me is like
I didn't even know about estimated taxes when I started
as a small business owner, so I would get a
nice big tax bill at the end of the year
(02:21):
until I realized, oh, I actually have to be proactive
about this and plan this out.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
So it's been quite the learning lesson, Austin, I'm right
there with you.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
I think one of my biggest lessons is there's a
lot of people out there that say you should have
a zero dollar tax bill at the end of the year, right,
And in my humble opinion, the only way that happens
as a small business owner is if one you're not
making any profit, which I don't know about, Eugenie, but
I'm in business to make some profit. And then two
(02:50):
if you are spending money and doing crazy deductions and
amateurization all these like crazy tax strategies. Don't get me wrong,
people do that in a very great way. But in
my experience, my biggest lesson throughout the last five years
of filing taxes as a small business owner is it's
okay to pay taxes because that means you made a profit. Right,
(03:11):
And the money that's in your bank account after you
pay those taxes is money you can do whatever you
want with. And in my situation, I like to invest it,
I like to spend it, and I like to enjoy it.
So that's why we're in business for ourselves, right, so
we can make money, pay some taxes on it, and
then enjoy the fruits of our labor.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
That's a really good point, Austin. I recently bought a
home as a self employed person, and so just understanding
that those numbers matter. Right, If you're showing no profits
on your tax returns, good luck getting mortgage. So it's
not just about writing everything off and making sure you
don't have any liability. You want to make sure that
your numbers tell a story because that could directly affect
(03:48):
the goals that you're able to.
Speaker 1 (03:49):
Hit one hundred percent, if it's getting a mortgage, getting
business funding, or anything in between. I'm right there with
you on that note. Let's introduce our small business guests
for this episode.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Let's do it.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
Isabella Roussel is a proud Filipino American, a Navy veteran, spouse,
and a mother of two. She's been an entrepreneur her
whole life, selling candy off the back of her skateboard
as a kid and running an unofficial uniform patch sewing
business for members of the Armed Services while her husband
was stationed overseas. Shortly after her husband left the military,
(04:22):
they moved to Florida, where Isabella worked for a financial
services firm before branching out into another small business journey,
a teahouse and wholesale tea shop called Tea Bowls and Desserts.
The shop was a success, and she eventually sold it.
After selling her tea business, Isabella was on the lookout
for her next business venture. Her mother, a master distiller
(04:43):
in the Philippines, mentioned to her over the phone that
they were making a new brand of rum, and Isabella's
first thought was that she was going to be the
one to bring it to the United States. So she
filed the necessary paperwork for an alcohol importer business, and
Seventh Sky Ventures was born. The business is now boutique
licensed importer and exporter of beer, wine, and spirits. Isabella
(05:05):
champions the ideas of economic empowerment, civic responsibility, and sustainability
in business and life. In twenty twenty two, she became
the youngest woman in America to achieve the Certified Ramelier status.
Shortly after that, she became the first woman and the
first Filipina Master Ramelier, the highest professional designation in the
(05:26):
rum industry. Isabella, Welcome to the show. So excited to
be here in the offices of Seven Sky Ventures right
here in downtown Tampa. Thank you for coming and we're
glad to have you guys. So let's start off with
the name Seventh Sky. That's such a cool name. How
did you come up with that?
Speaker 4 (05:42):
Well, seventh Sky came from my kids. So I got
two kids and both of them were July, so it's
like seven to seven, all right. But the deeper layer
to that is our second child. He has actually a twin,
but he didn't make it, so that where that's where
the sky came from. So it's July in the sky.
And in fact I named him Alfred Sky. So that
(06:04):
kind of like gives me a whole deeper meaning of like.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Listen, I can't give up on this. This is the baby.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
It's a starting the legacy right from the beginning. Yes, yes,
that's incredible. So this whole venture into the alcohol industry
is not a fluke. I would say you have a
whole family connection to this, Can you tell us about that?
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yes, ma'am, And definitely not a whim that I can
tell you. I'm a sugar baby. I was born and
raised in a sugarcane farm in a distillery in the Philippines.
And I mean that distillery has been around four decades,
but my mom is still out there.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
She came out of retirement probably six seven times. And again,
if it's in your blood, it's in your blood. And
one day she told me they're finally going to create
a bottle, own bottle of the rum that distillery is making.
And in my head, I'm like, oh, man, you know
who's the best person to tell the story of this bottle? Like,
(07:02):
of course it's me. I was born and raised in
this form. This was my whole childhood, my whole life.
I don't have to bring out or hire a marketing
person to write my spiels.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
I already know this is me. This is my childhood.
Speaker 4 (07:15):
So that's part the whole idea of the import and
export thinking that I can actually bring that bottle over
here and expand them in the US market.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
That's amazing. I love the fact that you have a
connection to the rum industry being from the Philippines. My
family's from Puerto Rico. We're famous for that too, So
it's like, even though we're from different parts of the world,
there's so much commonality, which is really cool.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
You are certainly no stranger to entrepreneurship. Can you tell
us more about the first time you went into business
for yourself and how those businesses have evolved over time.
Speaker 4 (07:46):
My first self project in the US was when we
were deployed in Italy.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
We were living there for three years.
Speaker 4 (07:53):
We lived on base and there's definitely not many Americans
speaking vendors or services.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Right.
Speaker 4 (08:00):
I told my husband, I was bored out of my mind.
I can't find the work over here. It's just not
working out. What am I gonna do? And he's like, well,
you do what you do, I'll support you. I started thinking,
I'm like, in the military, you get ranking up almost
every quarter, if not every quarter, and they got to
change all these patches in their uniforms. We're talking about
at least five patches in each of your uniform okay,
(08:23):
from all the arrows and the hats. I'm like, you
know what, let me do that five dollars per patch
is apparently the going rate over there. So this one
was like I just posted it in the military spouse community,
you know, and in that group, and I'm like, hey,
I'm doing patch changing and They're like, oh, okay, let
me go with you, lo and behold man, I was
(08:45):
making cash, like just imagine, one uniform is twenty bucks,
to the point where my husband's like, yo, it's seven o'clock,
why are they still ringing the door? But I was like,
you gotta forgive them. They just got out of work,
like there's no way for them to bring their uniforms.
And that service expanded to the wives because of the
(09:08):
Chief Ball the Gallas, and they would have dresses delivered
from the US. The moment it went to Italy, it's
two weeks after they gained a little weight or they
lost more weight, like.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Can you let this in? Can you take it out?
Can you put a button over here?
Speaker 4 (09:23):
Can you sue this little And I was registered on
base with the legal office and it was called Mississpia
by Isabella.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
That's so cool.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Yeah, you have it in your blood, that's what it
sounds like. You have entrepreneurship in your blood. This was
your destiny, yep, I can't run away from it.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
And then after that, you of course opened Drone t shop.
Here in the States, we.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Came up with a tea shop.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
It's called Teebows and Desserts, right after my husband got
out of the military, and at that time, this was
around twenty sixteen twenty seventeen, and we love.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Milt Teese and Bobas. Nobody in the.
Speaker 4 (09:58):
Area was doing you brew as you order, no using
of powders. We're actually using real milk. We're making bulbus
on the spot. So that kind of like sparked the
whole idea, and then it came to the transition point
of me. You know, man, I don't think really corporate
world is not for me, and that timing just came
(10:21):
together and we actually want best tea with best of
Tampa Bay and we beat our biggest competitor at that
point in our first year.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Yeah, that's amazing. Entrepreneurship is such a fun discovery process
of just figuring out, like, what are those things I'm
curious about, and then how do I make money?
Speaker 3 (10:38):
Join us? And we sold right before COVID. That's probably
a good move.
Speaker 4 (10:43):
I can imagine crazily enough. From that experience is when
I learned that whenever you start a business, you also
want to start your exit strategy, even if you're not
trying to exit. I'm like, this is how you sell
a business. You sell it like a handbook. Here's what
you're buying from me, here's your color scheme. It's franchise ready.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
So you actually have a lot of experience with taxes
before you got into your entrepreneurial journey. So can you
tell us a little bit about your career in the
financial sector.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Yeah. Sure.
Speaker 4 (11:09):
Right after I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in
a trial science in the Philippines, I started working with
JP Morgan Chase and the Philippines servicing the US, and
then I married my husband military you know how that's
going to go.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
You get to move around and whatnot.
Speaker 4 (11:25):
And then at the end of the tour where we
were like, okay, where are we going to move, we
moved to Tampa and luckily, lo and behold, I started
working for PWUC here in Tampa.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
Pricewaterhouse Cooper's first.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
Project was handling employee tax credits, and then I got
moved to a different project and ended my career there handling.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Stayed in local taxes and corporate taxes. You know, one
of the funny things that I've heard from a lot
of folks who've gone from finance to entrepreneurship is how
unprepared they felt when it comes to managing their finances,
because when you're doing corporate taxes, you're not necessarily having
the same experience you can translate, especially from a personal
(12:06):
finance perspective to your business. So can you tell me
where you identified some gaps in your financial knowledge once
you decided to go your own way?
Speaker 4 (12:15):
Yeah, so you start thinking about your longer term of
now you're personal, Right, what's your household income? How do
you take advantage of your household income? And truly, they
don't really teach you that much, even in school and
in the office. Right, even if I was preparing, I
don't know hundreds of tax documents every year. It doesn't
(12:37):
dawn on me to lie, Okay, this is how I
should do it in my own until I was actually
the one in the business figuring out, Okay, how should
I file it? What kind of corporation should I do it?
What kind of entity should I do it?
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Yeah, most of the time we kind of have to
learn by the school of hard knocks, right. I can
imagine that in a very highly regulated industry like the
alcohol industry, it's even more important for you to have
your paperwork together. What tools are you using to make
sure that your books are clean and that you have
all the information that you need?
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Yes, for sure, and definitely I've been using into it
for quite some time for my other ventures as well.
I've been using it and maintaining the books, not just
for financing books, but we had a lot of books
to maintain from inventory, the movement of in and out
of your stocks. I mean, that's what the state looks for.
(13:27):
In fact, I just had two inspections last week and
one was yesterday. They inspect every single license that we
have on the alcohol industry. Every alcohol beverage percentage you
see in that bottle is equal to a different tax value.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
Yes, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
That sounds such a daunting thing to be able to
maintain track of, you know, I can imagine that takes
a big burden off of you, just knowing that all
those systems are kind of working in the background and
you don't have to be manually tracking this stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yes, ma'am, you have had white the journey going from
industry to industry. How does tax season look different today
than it did when you worked back then?
Speaker 4 (14:08):
No overtimes, that's one. I don't have to be going
crazy for work for overtime. We had established, at least
in my household a timeline. We already started figuring out
all the books, so apart from Seven Sky Ventures, I
also have a different entity from there, separate least, so
I should be able to manage all of these things
in come January. Second week of January, you know when
(14:29):
paperwork from a third party comes through. I'm ready for
my accountant before February first. And I've never had to
filate ever. Almost ten years that we've been in here,
doing business or without business, we've never had to filate.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
That's amazing. So it seems like there's a lot more
predictability with what you're doing now, and there's a lot
more structure in the processes that you've put in place.
You've gone from running sort of this tea shop and
now you're doing the Seven Sky Ventures. What are some
of the biggest surprises that you've experienced today that maybe
just we're not happening back then.
Speaker 4 (15:02):
The biggest surprise is to me, I'm like, how am
I able to generate this much with not having fifteen
people in the payroll?
Speaker 3 (15:12):
That's one because you know how it is with the storefront.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
If you have five full time people, you got to
have seven more in the back end for a part
time if you don't want to be working yourself at
the front.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
That's just how it's going to go.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
But in my industry, I started as an importer, an exporter,
not even with a distribution. That service alone is not
forcing me to have fifteen ten five people on a
full time basis and we still get the same amount
of revenue at the same time. Again, it just depends
on how many clients you got, but the effort, there's
more juice that's coming out versus me being in a
(15:48):
store working sixty hour weeks.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
So that's definitely a big difference.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
And what about the biggest similarities.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
If a client.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
Loves you or a customer loves you is always the
five star. But if they will hate you, they will
just hate you everywhere Google, I don't know, yell you
know how those feedback will go right and it will
sting you. So to me, it's like a small client
or big client, small business, big business, small brand, big brands.
Every business problem is always the same. That's definitely a
(16:20):
similar problem, and that's one of the biggest reasons why
I added a distribution channel.
Speaker 3 (16:25):
I thought, I'm not, you know, going to see.
Speaker 4 (16:27):
This problem anymore, But it's it's the same problem, different version.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Coming up on Mine the business small business success stories.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
If that worksheet folder has been organized from the beginning,
there should be no reason for you to.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
Worry about if you get audited. The best preparation really
is to be able to.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
File your current tax years properly, so you don't have
to worry about what's coming or what has been passed.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
We'll be right back. Welcome back to Mind the Business.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
There seems to be so many more layers to what
you're doing today is from a tax perspective than what
you were doing before. Who taught you those layers? Were
you sitting down with accountants and CPAs and learning from them?
How did you become so articulate in this industry's tax landscape.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
It just stemmed out from what I had learned in general,
lots of studying, self thought, and a combination of me
asking the right people like going straight to the state,
you know, going straight to the source of truth.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
How is this done? Is this the right way to
do it? Can I do this? Can I do that?
Speaker 4 (17:45):
I'm not risking, you know, the question to a third
party that may or may not tell me the right
thing based on their experience.
Speaker 3 (17:53):
You'll never know that.
Speaker 4 (17:54):
So I just go straight to the source, and if
they tell me this is how you're going to do it,
they give me links on what I should be reading
on a Florida statutes.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
It's crazy. You can become a lawyer overnight.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
I love that answer.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
I love that you mentioned reaching out to the source
of truth right of like not being afraid of the
government entities because they are literally there to help you
be successful as an entrepreneur. I had to do that too.
When I was starting my business here in Florida. I
got to notice that I had to file sales tax
and I was like what. So I called them up
and they're like, wait a minute, what do you do?
(18:31):
And I was like, I sell online education programs. And
then they were like, you don't need to file sales tax.
So I could have just been going through the motions
of being anxious or preparing for stuff that wasn't even
necessary just by not asking the question. So I think
it's a good reminder when in doubt reach out. Okay,
so navigating state level taxes is one thing, but you
(18:53):
also have to deal with the lovely folks the federal government.
So what are your strategies for making sure that you're
handling both and that you have the information that you
need to make sure you're on time for both of those?
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Yeah, so definitely one.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
Making sure that timeline is pasted anywhere that you know
it's going to stick to you, whether it's in your
fridge or in your phone. I don't care as long
as we know these are the go dates, like and
go dates meaning we're not just talking about the actual
deadline right, go dates meaning I need this part of
the thing today, I need this part of the thing
(19:27):
in two weeks, and we got to stick to it.
A dan Forday, A lot of people do processes, but
the problem becomes how do you implement, do you follow?
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Do you stick to it?
Speaker 4 (19:36):
So far, if that system is not broken, it's been
working for me and for my family for the past
I don't know ten years. It will stay that way.
But following the process is key for me.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Is there anything that you do proactively as a business
owner to just be prepared for a federal audit in
the event that one does happen, Yes, for sure.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
And it's about the similar way that you know organizing
a folders right because at the end of the day,
if you had submitted your annual tax for example, twenty
twenty taxes, if that worksheet folder has been organized from
the beginning, there should be no reason for you to
worry about if you get audited. Right, maybe if it's
already a couple of years back. All you need to
(20:19):
prepare for is make sure you know.
Speaker 3 (20:20):
Where you kept it.
Speaker 4 (20:22):
That's the biggest problem I have with my husband, like
where's my twenty twenty two taxes? Like yo, I gave
you copies of everything, links to everything. So the best
preparation really is to be able to file your current
tax years properly so you don't have to worry about
what's coming or what has been passed.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
So taxes can obviously vary in complexity based on the
industry you're in, the state that you're operating in, but
there are also benefits taxes, like tax breaks. So what
have you discovered as far as tax breaks that you've
been able to take advantage of in your business?
Speaker 4 (20:57):
So what are the biggest tax breaks that not many
are utilizing, at least in my industry? Is the trade treaties,
for example, is the US Mexico Canada treaty? Right, there
is an existing agreement out there about what you ship,
what do you cross in the border, what are the
taxes and whatnots that you benefit from, And it usually
(21:18):
comes out on those kinds of transactions like a country
to country based tax breaks. We also now have a
rental and that also like adds another layer to your
personal taxes as a whole. So definitely read up on
even the weirdest places like who knew about US Mexico
and Canada trade agreement?
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Yeah, And you know, I think it's important to take
advantage of these systems because they exist, right, So I
think a lot of people are probably intimidated. They don't
want to quote unquote do their taxes wrong. And this
is why it's important not only to work with a
great system like into a quick books, but also tax professionals.
The tax code in this country is one of the
most complicated in the world. So like, why would you
want a DIY this when you could potentially be losing
(22:01):
out on thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars
of tax breaks just because you don't know what is
actually allowed. I remember having a mind blowing conversation with
my CPA where I work from home, so I get
a home office deduction. But then they introduced me to
the benefits of ANES Corp. And the fact that I
could write off a part of my landscaping and my
home maintenance and my bills. I'm like, what, you know,
(22:25):
if more people knew this, more people would probably be
incentivized to maybe not even start a full time business.
But you can take advantage of these things as a
side hustler too. You know, something interesting that I found
out from the IRS recently is because of all of
the small businesses that were affected because of the recent
hurricanes here in Florida, they've actually extended the filing date
(22:46):
by two weeks. So if you've been directly impacted by
Hurricane Milton Helene, make sure that you are staying updated
on any kind of accommodations that the IRS is making,
because any little bit helps, especially when you're trying to navigate,
restart your business, and then to think of like, oh
my god, I sound to find like taxes so that
two weeks can make a big difference too.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
I have a funny feeling that you are a lifelong entrepreneur,
So what is next for you beyond as we continue
to scale your company.
Speaker 4 (23:15):
Company wise, I know we're on the growth phase. You know,
I call it the exodus plan right now, Like we
have a lot of our brands exiting their current places
to actually move to us.
Speaker 3 (23:26):
It's the exodus project.
Speaker 4 (23:27):
But truly, for me on a deeper level as a person,
like my next level is to make sure now that
I have a nine year old, she has more sense
to what's happening. I just want her to understand, like
why sometimes I have to be home late, or why
do I have to be staying up late at some night?
Why am I talking in a different language sometimes? You know,
why do I have to travel? If my kids would.
Speaker 3 (23:50):
Understand why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
That to me is the biggest thing that's so important. Yeah,
because at the end of the day, we just got
to be real about it. Right. Sometimes you can be
very successful at business, but there's always a part of
your life that's suffering, and for the most part is
your family or your personal life. And I'm just very
fortunate that I have a husband, you know, who's like
five hundred percent supportive about what we're doing and he accepts.
(24:12):
I guess this whole personality that this is may I'm
made for this. We've tried something else it didn't work,
so that to me is my next step making sure
the family, the kids are out there.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So you're also a master romolier, which is a huge accomplishment.
Your family is in the run business. It is in
your blood, just like you said. So I have to
ask you what may be the most important question of
the interview, what's your favorite style of rum and what's
your favorite rum cocktail to enjoy? And you can't say
Rob and Coke.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Definitely not rom and coke.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
When I got into this industry, going through that course
of being a master romia, we're supposed to taste and
grade like hundreds, you know, we're talking about hundreds and
distillery visits.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
So I just started to learn how.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
To enjoy my just like how it is neat, like
sometimes with ice, sometimes without ice, but I just like
it that way. And if you ask me for a cocktail. Definitely,
an old fashioned is proper. But I mean you can't
put it, you know, in your tea or anywhere else.
Rum is rum.
Speaker 3 (25:18):
I'm partial to pina coladas. Place give me a pina
colada or in your smoothies.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
You know.
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I've had a little r and D with one of
the smoothie shops over here and we made a good
pina kolado with their pineapple coconut smoothie added white rum,
and there was like, if this could get me dried
your summer drink.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's amazing, Isabella, this has been a fascinating conversation. I'm
so intrigued by the background story of Seven Sky Ventures.
I love your family connection to the industry. I love
that your family's involved, and I have a feeling this
is gonna be something that stands the test of time.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
So good luck to you and.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
The team, and I'm really looking forward to trying to
cocktail once I'm not pregnant anymore.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
What an awesome addition, Jennie's to our small business Startukit
miniseries that we're doing here on the show, Isabella was wonderful.
What was some of your biggest takeaways from our conversation.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
You know, I really loved how she emphasized that you
don't have to navigate this alone. It's a good reminder
that into it QuickBooks has built in support, and it's
also a good idea to take a look at your
local resources just to figure out what you need to
be doing from a tax liability perspective. It does not
need to be intimidating to be a business owner and
(26:39):
to deal with your taxes. But knowledge is power, and
having that extra support I think is also really powerful.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
How about you, Austin, I totally agree.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
I think this idea of organization and processes everything that
she had mentioned. As it relates to the timelines, right,
she said that, hey, November December, we are expected to
do ABC XYZ. In January, we're sitting down for three
days and we're executing upon some of this organization. I mean,
just having those timelines in place and those strategies I
(27:10):
think is so important because as small business owners, we
have so many things to do, so many things on
our mind. We want to grow, we want to maintain,
we have to do taxes. It just gets very overwhelming,
and having that structure I think is really really important.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
I know I needed this episode when I was first
starting out as a business owner, so I hope that
y'all enjoyed this. You can find me on social media
at Jociero Dineto podcast.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
And you can find me at Austin Hankwitz. You can
follow Into It QuickBooks on all social media at QuickBooks.
To get the tools you need to start, run, and
grow your business, head to QuickBooks dot com today. While
you're there, check out the latest blog post to learn
more insights about managing a business.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
And don't forget to follow this show wherever you listen
to podcasts so you can stay up to date on
future episodes.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
We also want to hear from you, so be sure
to leave us a rating and a review.
Speaker 3 (27:59):
See you later.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Nothing in this episode constitutes tax advice. This podcast is
a production of iHeartMedia's Ruby Studio and Into It QuickBooks.
Our executive producer is Molly Sosha, Our supervising producer is
Nikiyah Swinton, and our writer is Eric Leja.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Our head of Push Production is James Foster, and our
mixing engineer is Paul Vitrulen's of Audiography
Ruby.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
The views, information, and opinions expressed during this podcast are
solely those of the individuals involved and do not represent
those of Into It QuickBooks or any of its cornerstone
brands or employees. This podcast does not constitute financial, legal,
or other professional advice or services. No assurance is given
that the information is comprehensive, accurate, or free of errors,
and the information presented is for information purposes only. Into
It QuickBooks does not have any responsibility for updating or
(00:29):
revising any information presented. Listeners should verify statements before relying
on them. Hey, everyone, welcome back to another episode of
Mind the Business Small Business success Stories, a podcast brought
to you by Into It QuickBooks and Ruby Studio from iHeartMedia.
I'm Janise Torres.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
And I'm Austin Hankwitz and this episode, we're talking to
another awesome small business owner here in Tampa, Florida, and
I can't wait to dig in.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
It has been so much fun getting to know my
local small businesses and this episod eisode is no exception.
We've got a very exciting topic to discuss today. We'll
be talking to an incredible small business owner about something
that Benjamin Franklin would call one of the only two
things we can be certain about in this world.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Well, Denis, if we were talking about death, that would
be a very different podcast. So I'm assuming we'll be
talking about taxes.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Correct taxes, but not your everyday taxes. We're talking about
how to manage and file your taxes as a small
business owner as part two of our small Business Starter
Kit miniseries. This episode, we're focusing on everything you need
to know about understanding your taxes as a newly formed
small business. It is not an easy subject to tackle,
but it is a necessary one. Every small business owner
(01:41):
has to be on top of it.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
And that's what's so great about into it QuickBooks. You
have access to live tax experts on the platform who
can help you organize your filings, maximize your deductions, and
answer any questions you have about your taxes. But Denis,
I'm curious to hear about some of the biggest lessons
you've learned about filing taxes for your business.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I would say it's definitely don't bury your head in
the sand, Okay, your taxes are not going to magically
go away just because you decide not to acknowledge that
they are due, and it's something that you have to
be diligent with. A great example for me is like
I didn't even know about estimated taxes when I started
as a small business owner, so I would get a
nice big tax bill at the end of the year
(02:21):
until I realized, oh, I actually have to be proactive
about this and plan this out.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
So it's been quite the learning lesson, Austin, I'm right
there with you.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
I think one of my biggest lessons is there's a
lot of people out there that say you should have
a zero dollar tax bill at the end of the year, right,
And in my humble opinion, the only way that happens
as a small business owner is if one you're not
making any profit, which I don't know about, Eugenie, but
I'm in business to make some profit. And then two
(02:50):
if you are spending money and doing crazy deductions and
amateurization all these like crazy tax strategies. Don't get me wrong,
people do that in a very great way. But in
my experience, my biggest lesson throughout the last five years
of filing taxes as a small business owner is it's
okay to pay taxes because that means you made a profit. Right,
(03:11):
And the money that's in your bank account after you
pay those taxes is money you can do whatever you
want with. And in my situation, I like to invest it,
I like to spend it, and I like to enjoy it.
So that's why we're in business for ourselves, right, so
we can make money, pay some taxes on it, and
then enjoy the fruits of our labor.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
That's a really good point, Austin. I recently bought a
home as a self employed person, and so just understanding
that those numbers matter. Right, If you're showing no profits
on your tax returns, good luck getting mortgage. So it's
not just about writing everything off and making sure you
don't have any liability. You want to make sure that
your numbers tell a story because that could directly affect
(03:48):
the goals that you're able to.
Speaker 1 (03:49):
Hit one hundred percent, if it's getting a mortgage, getting
business funding, or anything in between. I'm right there with
you on that note. Let's introduce our small business guests
for this episode.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Let's do it.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
Isabella Roussel is a proud Filipino American, a Navy veteran, spouse,
and a mother of two. She's been an entrepreneur her
whole life, selling candy off the back of her skateboard
as a kid and running an unofficial uniform patch sewing
business for members of the Armed Services while her husband
was stationed overseas. Shortly after her husband left the military,
(04:22):
they moved to Florida, where Isabella worked for a financial
services firm before branching out into another small business journey,
a teahouse and wholesale tea shop called Tea Bowls and Desserts.
The shop was a success, and she eventually sold it.
After selling her tea business, Isabella was on the lookout
for her next business venture. Her mother, a master distiller
(04:43):
in the Philippines, mentioned to her over the phone that
they were making a new brand of rum, and Isabella's
first thought was that she was going to be the
one to bring it to the United States. So she
filed the necessary paperwork for an alcohol importer business, and
Seventh Sky Ventures was born. The business is now boutique
licensed importer and exporter of beer, wine, and spirits. Isabella
(05:05):
champions the ideas of economic empowerment, civic responsibility, and sustainability
in business and life. In twenty twenty two, she became
the youngest woman in America to achieve the Certified Ramelier status.
Shortly after that, she became the first woman and the
first Filipina Master Ramelier, the highest professional designation in the
(05:26):
rum industry. Isabella, Welcome to the show. So excited to
be here in the offices of Seven Sky Ventures right
here in downtown Tampa. Thank you for coming and we're
glad to have you guys. So let's start off with
the name Seventh Sky. That's such a cool name. How
did you come up with that?
Speaker 4 (05:42):
Well, seventh Sky came from my kids. So I got
two kids and both of them were July, so it's
like seven to seven, all right. But the deeper layer
to that is our second child. He has actually a twin,
but he didn't make it, so that where that's where
the sky came from. So it's July in the sky.
And in fact I named him Alfred Sky. So that
(06:04):
kind of like gives me a whole deeper meaning of like.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Listen, I can't give up on this. This is the baby.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
It's a starting the legacy right from the beginning. Yes, yes,
that's incredible. So this whole venture into the alcohol industry
is not a fluke. I would say you have a
whole family connection to this, Can you tell us about that?
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yes, ma'am, And definitely not a whim that I can
tell you. I'm a sugar baby. I was born and
raised in a sugarcane farm in a distillery in the Philippines.
And I mean that distillery has been around four decades,
but my mom is still out there.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
She came out of retirement probably six seven times. And again,
if it's in your blood, it's in your blood. And
one day she told me they're finally going to create
a bottle, own bottle of the rum that distillery is making.
And in my head, I'm like, oh, man, you know
who's the best person to tell the story of this bottle? Like,
(07:02):
of course it's me. I was born and raised in
this form. This was my whole childhood, my whole life.
I don't have to bring out or hire a marketing
person to write my spiels.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
I already know this is me. This is my childhood.
Speaker 4 (07:15):
So that's part the whole idea of the import and
export thinking that I can actually bring that bottle over
here and expand them in the US market.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
That's amazing. I love the fact that you have a
connection to the rum industry being from the Philippines. My
family's from Puerto Rico. We're famous for that too, So
it's like, even though we're from different parts of the world,
there's so much commonality, which is really cool.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
You are certainly no stranger to entrepreneurship. Can you tell
us more about the first time you went into business
for yourself and how those businesses have evolved over time.
Speaker 4 (07:46):
My first self project in the US was when we
were deployed in Italy.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
We were living there for three years.
Speaker 4 (07:53):
We lived on base and there's definitely not many Americans
speaking vendors or services.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Right.
Speaker 4 (08:00):
I told my husband, I was bored out of my mind.
I can't find the work over here. It's just not
working out. What am I gonna do? And he's like, well,
you do what you do, I'll support you. I started thinking,
I'm like, in the military, you get ranking up almost
every quarter, if not every quarter, and they got to
change all these patches in their uniforms. We're talking about
at least five patches in each of your uniform okay,
(08:23):
from all the arrows and the hats. I'm like, you
know what, let me do that five dollars per patch
is apparently the going rate over there. So this one
was like I just posted it in the military spouse community,
you know, and in that group, and I'm like, hey,
I'm doing patch changing and They're like, oh, okay, let
me go with you, lo and behold man, I was
(08:45):
making cash, like just imagine, one uniform is twenty bucks,
to the point where my husband's like, yo, it's seven o'clock,
why are they still ringing the door? But I was like,
you gotta forgive them. They just got out of work,
like there's no way for them to bring their uniforms.
And that service expanded to the wives because of the
(09:08):
Chief Ball the Gallas, and they would have dresses delivered
from the US. The moment it went to Italy, it's
two weeks after they gained a little weight or they
lost more weight, like.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Can you let this in? Can you take it out?
Can you put a button over here?
Speaker 4 (09:23):
Can you sue this little And I was registered on
base with the legal office and it was called Mississpia
by Isabella.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
That's so cool.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Yeah, you have it in your blood, that's what it
sounds like. You have entrepreneurship in your blood. This was
your destiny, yep, I can't run away from it.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
And then after that, you of course opened Drone t shop.
Here in the States, we.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Came up with a tea shop.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
It's called Teebows and Desserts, right after my husband got
out of the military, and at that time, this was
around twenty sixteen twenty seventeen, and we love.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Milt Teese and Bobas. Nobody in the.
Speaker 4 (09:58):
Area was doing you brew as you order, no using
of powders. We're actually using real milk. We're making bulbus
on the spot. So that kind of like sparked the
whole idea, and then it came to the transition point
of me. You know, man, I don't think really corporate
world is not for me, and that timing just came
(10:21):
together and we actually want best tea with best of
Tampa Bay and we beat our biggest competitor at that
point in our first year.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Yeah, that's amazing. Entrepreneurship is such a fun discovery process
of just figuring out, like, what are those things I'm
curious about, and then how do I make money?
Speaker 3 (10:38):
Join us? And we sold right before COVID. That's probably
a good move.
Speaker 4 (10:43):
I can imagine crazily enough. From that experience is when
I learned that whenever you start a business, you also
want to start your exit strategy, even if you're not
trying to exit. I'm like, this is how you sell
a business. You sell it like a handbook. Here's what
you're buying from me, here's your color scheme. It's franchise ready.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
So you actually have a lot of experience with taxes
before you got into your entrepreneurial journey. So can you
tell us a little bit about your career in the
financial sector.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Yeah. Sure.
Speaker 4 (11:09):
Right after I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in
a trial science in the Philippines, I started working with
JP Morgan Chase and the Philippines servicing the US, and
then I married my husband military you know how that's
going to go.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
You get to move around and whatnot.
Speaker 4 (11:25):
And then at the end of the tour where we
were like, okay, where are we going to move, we
moved to Tampa and luckily, lo and behold, I started
working for PWUC here in Tampa.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
Pricewaterhouse Cooper's first.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
Project was handling employee tax credits, and then I got
moved to a different project and ended my career there handling.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Stayed in local taxes and corporate taxes. You know, one
of the funny things that I've heard from a lot
of folks who've gone from finance to entrepreneurship is how
unprepared they felt when it comes to managing their finances,
because when you're doing corporate taxes, you're not necessarily having
the same experience you can translate, especially from a personal
(12:06):
finance perspective to your business. So can you tell me
where you identified some gaps in your financial knowledge once
you decided to go your own way?
Speaker 4 (12:15):
Yeah, so you start thinking about your longer term of
now you're personal, Right, what's your household income? How do
you take advantage of your household income? And truly, they
don't really teach you that much, even in school and
in the office. Right, even if I was preparing, I
don't know hundreds of tax documents every year. It doesn't
(12:37):
dawn on me to lie, Okay, this is how I
should do it in my own until I was actually
the one in the business figuring out, Okay, how should
I file it? What kind of corporation should I do it?
What kind of entity should I do it?
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Yeah, most of the time we kind of have to
learn by the school of hard knocks, right. I can
imagine that in a very highly regulated industry like the
alcohol industry, it's even more important for you to have
your paperwork together. What tools are you using to make
sure that your books are clean and that you have
all the information that you need?
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Yes, for sure, and definitely I've been using into it
for quite some time for my other ventures as well.
I've been using it and maintaining the books, not just
for financing books, but we had a lot of books
to maintain from inventory, the movement of in and out
of your stocks. I mean, that's what the state looks for.
(13:27):
In fact, I just had two inspections last week and
one was yesterday. They inspect every single license that we
have on the alcohol industry. Every alcohol beverage percentage you
see in that bottle is equal to a different tax value.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
Yes, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
That sounds such a daunting thing to be able to
maintain track of, you know, I can imagine that takes
a big burden off of you, just knowing that all
those systems are kind of working in the background and
you don't have to be manually tracking this stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yes, ma'am, you have had white the journey going from
industry to industry. How does tax season look different today
than it did when you worked back then?
Speaker 4 (14:08):
No overtimes, that's one. I don't have to be going
crazy for work for overtime. We had established, at least
in my household a timeline. We already started figuring out
all the books, so apart from Seven Sky Ventures, I
also have a different entity from there, separate least, so
I should be able to manage all of these things
in come January. Second week of January, you know when
(14:29):
paperwork from a third party comes through. I'm ready for
my accountant before February first. And I've never had to
filate ever. Almost ten years that we've been in here,
doing business or without business, we've never had to filate.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
That's amazing. So it seems like there's a lot more
predictability with what you're doing now, and there's a lot
more structure in the processes that you've put in place.
You've gone from running sort of this tea shop and
now you're doing the Seven Sky Ventures. What are some
of the biggest surprises that you've experienced today that maybe
just we're not happening back then.
Speaker 4 (15:02):
The biggest surprise is to me, I'm like, how am
I able to generate this much with not having fifteen
people in the payroll?
Speaker 3 (15:12):
That's one because you know how it is with the storefront.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
If you have five full time people, you got to
have seven more in the back end for a part
time if you don't want to be working yourself at
the front.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
That's just how it's going to go.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
But in my industry, I started as an importer, an exporter,
not even with a distribution. That service alone is not
forcing me to have fifteen ten five people on a
full time basis and we still get the same amount
of revenue at the same time. Again, it just depends
on how many clients you got, but the effort, there's
more juice that's coming out versus me being in a
(15:48):
store working sixty hour weeks.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
So that's definitely a big difference.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
And what about the biggest similarities.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
If a client.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
Loves you or a customer loves you is always the
five star. But if they will hate you, they will
just hate you everywhere Google, I don't know, yell you
know how those feedback will go right and it will
sting you. So to me, it's like a small client
or big client, small business, big business, small brand, big brands.
Every business problem is always the same. That's definitely a
(16:20):
similar problem, and that's one of the biggest reasons why
I added a distribution channel.
Speaker 3 (16:25):
I thought, I'm not, you know, going to see.
Speaker 4 (16:27):
This problem anymore, But it's it's the same problem, different version.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Coming up on Mine the business small business success stories.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
If that worksheet folder has been organized from the beginning,
there should be no reason for you to.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
Worry about if you get audited. The best preparation really
is to be able to.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
File your current tax years properly, so you don't have
to worry about what's coming or what has been passed.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
We'll be right back. Welcome back to Mind the Business.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
There seems to be so many more layers to what
you're doing today is from a tax perspective than what
you were doing before. Who taught you those layers? Were
you sitting down with accountants and CPAs and learning from them?
How did you become so articulate in this industry's tax landscape.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
It just stemmed out from what I had learned in general,
lots of studying, self thought, and a combination of me
asking the right people like going straight to the state,
you know, going straight to the source of truth.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
How is this done? Is this the right way to
do it? Can I do this? Can I do that?
Speaker 4 (17:45):
I'm not risking, you know, the question to a third
party that may or may not tell me the right
thing based on their experience.
Speaker 3 (17:53):
You'll never know that.
Speaker 4 (17:54):
So I just go straight to the source, and if
they tell me this is how you're going to do it,
they give me links on what I should be reading
on a Florida statutes.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
It's crazy. You can become a lawyer overnight.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
I love that answer.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
I love that you mentioned reaching out to the source
of truth right of like not being afraid of the
government entities because they are literally there to help you
be successful as an entrepreneur. I had to do that too.
When I was starting my business here in Florida. I
got to notice that I had to file sales tax
and I was like what. So I called them up
and they're like, wait a minute, what do you do?
(18:31):
And I was like, I sell online education programs. And
then they were like, you don't need to file sales tax.
So I could have just been going through the motions
of being anxious or preparing for stuff that wasn't even
necessary just by not asking the question. So I think
it's a good reminder when in doubt reach out. Okay,
so navigating state level taxes is one thing, but you
(18:53):
also have to deal with the lovely folks the federal government.
So what are your strategies for making sure that you're
handling both and that you have the information that you
need to make sure you're on time for both of those?
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Yeah, so definitely one.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
Making sure that timeline is pasted anywhere that you know
it's going to stick to you, whether it's in your
fridge or in your phone. I don't care as long
as we know these are the go dates, like and
go dates meaning we're not just talking about the actual
deadline right, go dates meaning I need this part of
the thing today, I need this part of the thing
(19:27):
in two weeks, and we got to stick to it.
A dan Forday, A lot of people do processes, but
the problem becomes how do you implement, do you follow?
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Do you stick to it?
Speaker 4 (19:36):
So far, if that system is not broken, it's been
working for me and for my family for the past
I don't know ten years. It will stay that way.
But following the process is key for me.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Is there anything that you do proactively as a business
owner to just be prepared for a federal audit in
the event that one does happen, Yes, for sure.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
And it's about the similar way that you know organizing
a folders right because at the end of the day,
if you had submitted your annual tax for example, twenty
twenty taxes, if that worksheet folder has been organized from
the beginning, there should be no reason for you to
worry about if you get audited. Right, maybe if it's
already a couple of years back. All you need to
(20:19):
prepare for is make sure you know.
Speaker 3 (20:20):
Where you kept it.
Speaker 4 (20:22):
That's the biggest problem I have with my husband, like
where's my twenty twenty two taxes? Like yo, I gave
you copies of everything, links to everything. So the best
preparation really is to be able to file your current
tax years properly so you don't have to worry about
what's coming or what has been passed.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
So taxes can obviously vary in complexity based on the
industry you're in, the state that you're operating in, but
there are also benefits taxes, like tax breaks. So what
have you discovered as far as tax breaks that you've
been able to take advantage of in your business?
Speaker 4 (20:57):
So what are the biggest tax breaks that not many
are utilizing, at least in my industry? Is the trade treaties,
for example, is the US Mexico Canada treaty? Right, there
is an existing agreement out there about what you ship,
what do you cross in the border, what are the
taxes and whatnots that you benefit from, And it usually
(21:18):
comes out on those kinds of transactions like a country
to country based tax breaks. We also now have a
rental and that also like adds another layer to your
personal taxes as a whole. So definitely read up on
even the weirdest places like who knew about US Mexico
and Canada trade agreement?
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Yeah, And you know, I think it's important to take
advantage of these systems because they exist, right, So I
think a lot of people are probably intimidated. They don't
want to quote unquote do their taxes wrong. And this
is why it's important not only to work with a
great system like into a quick books, but also tax professionals.
The tax code in this country is one of the
most complicated in the world. So like, why would you
want a DIY this when you could potentially be losing
(22:01):
out on thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars
of tax breaks just because you don't know what is
actually allowed. I remember having a mind blowing conversation with
my CPA where I work from home, so I get
a home office deduction. But then they introduced me to
the benefits of ANES Corp. And the fact that I
could write off a part of my landscaping and my
home maintenance and my bills. I'm like, what, you know,
(22:25):
if more people knew this, more people would probably be
incentivized to maybe not even start a full time business.
But you can take advantage of these things as a
side hustler too. You know, something interesting that I found
out from the IRS recently is because of all of
the small businesses that were affected because of the recent
hurricanes here in Florida, they've actually extended the filing date
(22:46):
by two weeks. So if you've been directly impacted by
Hurricane Milton Helene, make sure that you are staying updated
on any kind of accommodations that the IRS is making,
because any little bit helps, especially when you're trying to navigate,
restart your business, and then to think of like, oh
my god, I sound to find like taxes so that
two weeks can make a big difference too.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
I have a funny feeling that you are a lifelong entrepreneur,
So what is next for you beyond as we continue
to scale your company.
Speaker 4 (23:15):
Company wise, I know we're on the growth phase. You know,
I call it the exodus plan right now, Like we
have a lot of our brands exiting their current places
to actually move to us.
Speaker 3 (23:26):
It's the exodus project.
Speaker 4 (23:27):
But truly, for me on a deeper level as a person,
like my next level is to make sure now that
I have a nine year old, she has more sense
to what's happening. I just want her to understand, like
why sometimes I have to be home late, or why
do I have to be staying up late at some night?
Why am I talking in a different language sometimes? You know,
why do I have to travel? If my kids would.
Speaker 3 (23:50):
Understand why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
That to me is the biggest thing that's so important. Yeah,
because at the end of the day, we just got
to be real about it. Right. Sometimes you can be
very successful at business, but there's always a part of
your life that's suffering, and for the most part is
your family or your personal life. And I'm just very
fortunate that I have a husband, you know, who's like
five hundred percent supportive about what we're doing and he accepts.
(24:12):
I guess this whole personality that this is may I'm
made for this. We've tried something else it didn't work,
so that to me is my next step making sure
the family, the kids are out there.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So you're also a master romolier, which is a huge accomplishment.
Your family is in the run business. It is in
your blood, just like you said. So I have to
ask you what may be the most important question of
the interview, what's your favorite style of rum and what's
your favorite rum cocktail to enjoy? And you can't say
Rob and Coke.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Definitely not rom and coke.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
When I got into this industry, going through that course
of being a master romia, we're supposed to taste and
grade like hundreds, you know, we're talking about hundreds and
distillery visits.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
So I just started to learn how.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
To enjoy my just like how it is neat, like
sometimes with ice, sometimes without ice, but I just like
it that way. And if you ask me for a cocktail. Definitely,
an old fashioned is proper. But I mean you can't
put it, you know, in your tea or anywhere else.
Rum is rum.
Speaker 3 (25:18):
I'm partial to pina coladas. Place give me a pina
colada or in your smoothies.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
You know.
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I've had a little r and D with one of
the smoothie shops over here and we made a good
pina kolado with their pineapple coconut smoothie added white rum,
and there was like, if this could get me dried
your summer drink.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's amazing, Isabella, this has been a fascinating conversation. I'm
so intrigued by the background story of Seven Sky Ventures.
I love your family connection to the industry. I love
that your family's involved, and I have a feeling this
is gonna be something that stands the test of time.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
So good luck to you and.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
The team, and I'm really looking forward to trying to
cocktail once I'm not pregnant anymore.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
What an awesome addition, Jennie's to our small business Startukit
miniseries that we're doing here on the show, Isabella was wonderful.
What was some of your biggest takeaways from our conversation.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
You know, I really loved how she emphasized that you
don't have to navigate this alone. It's a good reminder
that into it QuickBooks has built in support, and it's
also a good idea to take a look at your
local resources just to figure out what you need to
be doing from a tax liability perspective. It does not
need to be intimidating to be a business owner and
(26:39):
to deal with your taxes. But knowledge is power, and
having that extra support I think is also really powerful.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
How about you, Austin, I totally agree.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
I think this idea of organization and processes everything that
she had mentioned. As it relates to the timelines, right,
she said that, hey, November December, we are expected to
do ABC XYZ. In January, we're sitting down for three
days and we're executing upon some of this organization. I mean,
just having those timelines in place and those strategies I
(27:10):
think is so important because as small business owners, we
have so many things to do, so many things on
our mind. We want to grow, we want to maintain,
we have to do taxes. It just gets very overwhelming,
and having that structure I think is really really important.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
I know I needed this episode when I was first
starting out as a business owner, so I hope that
y'all enjoyed this. You can find me on social media
at Jociero Dineto podcast.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
And you can find me at Austin Hankwitz. You can
follow Into It QuickBooks on all social media at QuickBooks.
To get the tools you need to start, run, and
grow your business, head to QuickBooks dot com today. While
you're there, check out the latest blog post to learn
more insights about managing a business.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
And don't forget to follow this show wherever you listen
to podcasts so you can stay up to date on
future episodes.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
We also want to hear from you, so be sure
to leave us a rating and a review.
Speaker 3 (27:59):
See you later.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Nothing in this episode constitutes tax advice. This podcast is
a production of iHeartMedia's Ruby Studio and Into It QuickBooks.
Our executive producer is Molly Sosha, Our supervising producer is
Nikiyah Swinton, and our writer is Eric Leja.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Our head of Push Production is James Foster, and our
mixing engineer is Paul Vitrulen's of Audiography
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