BDO Invercargill & Glowing Sky
“The ongoing support from BDO is something we wouldn’t be without. We see our relationship expanding with our own growth.” Dil Belworthy, co-founder of Glowing Sky.
Taking its name from Stewart Island’s Maori name Rakiura (‘Land of the Glowing Skies’), funky clothing company Glowing Sky started as a hobby business in 1997 by Stewart Island couple Cath and Dil Belworthy. Their focus was on providing pure Kiwi quality merino garments, 100% New Zealand made, with fabric knitted in Auckland and garments made in the South Island.
From small beginnings, the company has grown and now has shops on both Stewart and Waiheke Islands as well as in Wanaka and Invercargill. Cath and Dil control the entire manufacturing process themselves and relish having a personal relationship with every link in the chain.
A valuable business investment
When Cath and Dil started up the business, a farming friend recommended Greg Thomas at BDO Invercargill. At that stage their business was very small and running to extremely tight budgets. For the first couple of years, Cath and Dil only used BDO occasionally for advice on matters they “couldn’t sort out ourselves” but it was well worthwhile.
“The tiny amounts we spent on Greg’s services during that time would’ve been the most valuable investment we ever made in our business! Greg’s advice was always succinct, prompt, conclusive and pivotal to getting us through the traps we’ve seen many other young businesses fall into.”
“Looking back, I wouldn’t hesitate to say that having a source of advice of the competence and experience of Greg and the combined BDO team was essential to us having the confidence to push our business forward into what is an extremely tough business environment.”
As the business grew, Dil says they quickly realised that it was a false economy to wade through the complexities of its end of year tax obligation themselves: “With tax in particular we have always appreciated the security of knowing this potentially stressful area was completely under control, and we didn’t have to fear any nasty surprises.”
BDO was also able to guide Glowing Sky in choosing an accounting software package that was right for them (MYOB), which took them on in huge leaps and bounds in terms of efficiency.
Long term relationship a real asset
Now that Glowing Sky is bigger, how does Dil regards the relationship with BDO? “The longevity of the relationship with Greg and BDO is now something we recognise as an asset, in terms of the credibility it brings us in various dealings. At times in our growth we’ve pushed into territory that seemed unlikely, and it has always been a major benefit to be able to offer our relationship with BDO as a reference.”
Similarly, Greg and the BDO team love looking after Glowing Sky. “It’s fantastic to have a 100% Kiwi owned and operated business as a client, especially one that’s doing such great things locally,” says Greg. “We look forward to continuing to watch Dil and Cath come up with great ideas and grow them to reality.”
Local commitment and global growth. Backed by BDO.
Visit Glowing Sky's online store here
