Interview by Mallika Malhotra

Mallika Malhotra: I would love for you to tell everybody what you do.

Paige Gott: I am what you call a fractional CFO or virtual CFO and accountant for small to medium-sized businesses, mostly online entrepreneurs. We do bookkeeping and a lot of financial strategies, such as budgeting and projections. We help business owners, mostly women, scale and grow their businesses and understand their numbers. 

MM: It’s so important to feel empowered to know your numbers! Curious, have you always been a number cruncher and good at math? 

PG: No, I'm a little type A, very organized, so I think that's how I discovered it. My mother-in-law, before she was my mother-in-law had a bed and breakfast for almost 40 years, and they didn’t have bookkeeping for the first 30, so I started doing it for them. Then I got more into it and started working for an accounting firm in Portland with eight other women. They were CPAs and financial planners and I got more into accounting through them, they taught me a lot. I then went to school for accounting and took it from there. I love the organization of numbers and the way you can plan with them, you can look back and forward, it’s concrete and tangible. I have a whole other side of my brain that’s the opposite, but this side works well for my job. 

MM: How long have you been an entrepreneur?

PG: Really ever since I started working. I mean, I did all sorts of random things before I started doing accounting, but I've had my bookkeeping and accounting business for eight, almost nine years now.

MM: Speaking about finances, your job is to help women feel empowered to understand their numbers, and feel informed. Is there something bigger, a mission behind your business or why you do this work in the first place?

PG: I think it has a lot to do with empowerment. I feel like, traditionally, it's been more of a man’s place to be in charge of the numbers. In my relationship with my husband, he usually has little idea what's going on. I do try and talk to him about it and involve him in the finances as much as possible. It's so important to know about your numbers and finances, and the more you know it is likely that not only will you make more money, but your business will expand, too.

I definitely feel strongly about women and entrepreneurs knowing what's going on in their business, even in their personal life with numbers. I think it's really helpful to know. When it comes to entrepreneurship and running your own business, the whole point of doing it eventually comes down to supporting yourself and your family. Without understanding the financial side of your business, there’s a limit to how much you can grow, in my opinion. 

MM: Yes. It’s about confidence, right? When you feel like you understand the numbers and finances behind your decisions, it’s almost like you’re more of a CEO of your business rather than just a service provider or someone who makes products. You need to know all those facets to grow your business and confidence to then grow your business even more!

PG: Yeah, there are so many different stages. When you’re starting a new business, knowing what’s going on with the numbers can be empowering to want to keep going. It gets a fire going under you. It’s not all about the money, but when you do see that what you’re doing is somewhat successful in the beginning, then it gets you fired up even more. It gives you another reason to keep doing what you’re doing. 

MM: Definitely. What do you see as the biggest mistake that women are doing when it comes to their finances?

PG: The biggest mistake is not looking at it enough. 

MM: Ignoring it, right!? 

PG:  I don't even need to show you every detail, we do look at the details, but what it comes down to is reviewing what's happening; what does your revenue look like and your income? How much money are you spending? And take a look at your dream numbers. How much money do you want to make at the end of this year, or at the end of the next five years? I think the biggest mistake is ignoring it thinking it's going to take care of itself. 

MM: This is a public service announcement, all women in business, you have to look at your numbers!

PG: I know it's not the most glamorous part of a business. Although I think that's changing because of the whole, make six figures or get to seven figures, or 10k/100k a month. I think a lot of entrepreneurs have a creative brain so they may think they are bad with numbers when they aren’t. You just need to pay a bit more attention. If you need someone to walk you through it, you can pick it up quickly as soon as you start getting into it. I don’t think saying, I’m bad with numbers is the right way to look at it. Look at what your numbers are doing and that is a perfect start! 

MM: Yeah, that’s a good start! So, are you a Mainer? 

PG: I was born and raised in Texas. My husband was born and raised in Maine, and I moved here probably 15 years ago. 

MM: How does being in Maine affect your business, if anything?

PG: I think it’s about inspiration. Maine is one of those places that’s unique. I don’t know the per capita stats, but I would love to. I feel like Maine is just filled with entrepreneurs. You can start a business and make money easily in Maine. I don’t know if it’s tourist-driven or if it’s because there aren’t a lot of other options such as manufacturing. Probably 95% of our friends are entrepreneurs. Being here, it is inspiring to see people doing different things and supporting themselves with their businesses. 

MM: There are so many makers in Maine. There is a real creative population here.

PG: Yes there really is!

MM: You mentioned you’ve been an entrepreneur for eight years. I’m curious, what are some of the big lessons you’ve learned along the way in your journey? 

PG: To accept change, that's a big one! If I feel like I’ve got it all figured out, my mind starts going and the next day I’m thinking, Oh, I could do this with my business or start a new business. Accepting the fact that my mind does go there and not get annoyed with myself has been a big lesson. Accepting change is a huge challenge that I’ve come across. Also, the fact that everything weighs on you, you’re not employed by someone. If you have a difficult client, you’re the person that has to handle the situation, you can’t call your boss to deal with issues that come up. Taking on the best and worst parts, all of that responsibility is a lot. 

MM: One hundred percent! You can have the freedom and the creativity to do whatever you want but it is all on your shoulders whether you’re successful or not. So, who has been a big supporter or influenced you as you started your entrepreneurial career? 

PG: It sounds cliche, but my husband has supported me no matter what I've done. If I was to say I’m going to become a professional organizer, which happened 12 years ago, he was like, you should do it! Then I said I was going to go back to school and get my Master’s in accounting, he said you should do it! I think growing up in a family that’s filled with people who started their own businesses allowed him to never get freaked out about the fact that he wanted to keep starting businesses. With this business, in particular, I had to go to school while we had babies. He’s supported me no matter what and vice versa. Definitely him and other women in my life that have their own businesses, they have been a great support system and everybody’s at different stages of their business. If you have questions or are wondering whether something is failing, you can bounce those challenges off of your friends that are also running their own businesses. 

MM: Community is key! Having a support network of women that help you and each other, what does being a woman-owned business mean to you? 

PG: Being a woman-owned business feels like progress. My grandmother was supported by my grandfather but she always had businesses on the side, like a balloon business or selling her plants. I don’t think she was taken as seriously back then and it was thought of more like a hobby that you make a little money from. So to me, it feels like progress. Maybe it’s because I’m in this world, but there seem to be so many more women starting businesses now and it’s becoming the norm and we are making good money off of them, we are supporting ourselves and our families. That’s a huge deal compared to my grandmother’s time when she thought of her businesses as “hobbies”. 

MM: There are so many more opportunities now. Being a CFO, does that feel different to you, when the finance industry is predominantly men? 

PG: It’s funny because I was trying to figure out my ideal client and this and that and I was thinking I just wanted to work with women.  But I do have a few male clients who take me incredibly seriously and listen to my advice.  I know a lot of successful female CPAs and accountants so I think the scale is tipping.  I do find that many women to want to support other women, which is wonderful.

MM: Is there anything else about the culture of Maine that’s special or different from other places you’ve been to or lived? 

PG: As far as entrepreneurship goes, it's more than acceptable to own your own business, it’s not a weird thing. I feel like we support each other too. When I did my rebrand I wanted to work with strictly Maine vendors. It felt really nice that I could find all these resources close to home. 

MM: There is so much talent here in Maine. When you get outside of Maine, nobody even knows. 

PG: The makers are insane here, especially the women!

MM: Speaking of which, who would you like to give a shoutout to?

PG: I have so many, a lot of my friends are women entrepreneurs. One of my friends has an interior design business and shop, her name is Nicki Bongiorno, she owns Spaces by Nicki Bongiorno, she’s been in business for a long time. My friend Jill Matthews creates beautiful art. Sam of Wild Child Tattoo in Portland, I just booked an appointment to get a tattoo with them and went through an application process because they are so busy, which is amazing! 

This year I helped a woman who runs a business with her husband called Hills & Trails and they’re in Biddeford, and I helped another woman named Marie who has a charcuterie company called CharcutaMarie who started her business during COVID.  The list is endless!

MM: That’s great, thank you! To wrap up, is there anything else that you’d like to share about you and your business? 

PG: No matter what stage you are at in your business, there is progress you can make with your financial knowledge; it doesn’t have to be scary or intimidating. And for me personally, I love when people reach out with questions. I want people, especially women, to feel empowered to learn more about their numbers. Reaching out and getting help when you need it is key. 

MM: Thank you so much! The work you do is important, helping people become better business owners, so thank you for that! 

PG: Thank you! 

Thank you, Paige, for taking the time to talk with Maine Vibes Magazine!

Web: https://tidewater-consulting.com

Instagram: @tidewaterconsulting

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