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Angela Martinez, Owner, ClearPath Tax & Financial Services

ClearPath Tax & Financial Services helps individuals and small businesses simplify taxes, bookkeeping, and financial planning.

Tell us about your company and the primary products or services you offer.

ClearPath Tax & Financial Services works with individuals, families, and small business owners throughout Northwest Indiana. Our primary services include individual and business tax preparation, year-round tax planning, bookkeeping, and general financial planning.

A large part of what we do is helping clients understand how all of those pieces fit together. Taxes shouldn’t be something you think about for a few weeks every spring. Decisions made throughout the year — from retirement contributions to business purchases and estimated tax payments — can have a significant impact when it’s time to file.

How did you come to lead this organization, and what drew you to your industry?

I started my career working with individual tax returns and gradually began working with more small business owners. I quickly realized that many people were making important financial decisions without having someone they could comfortably call and ask questions.

That was especially true for entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals. They might have a tax preparer, a banker, and an investment account somewhere else, but nobody was helping them connect the dots.

I created ClearPath to provide a more personal relationship. I wanted clients to know who they were talking to and feel comfortable asking questions before making a decision rather than finding out about the tax consequences afterward.

Where do you see the greatest growth opportunities in your market segment right now?

Small business advisory services are a major opportunity. Northwest Indiana has a tremendous number of independent contractors, consultants, tradespeople, and family-owned businesses. Many of them have outgrown the point where managing everything with a spreadsheet and a box of receipts makes sense.

There’s also growing demand for year-round tax planning. People are becoming more aware that tax preparation and tax planning are two different things.

Technology is helping too. Secure document portals and virtual meetings allow us to make the process much more convenient while still maintaining the personal relationship clients expect from a local firm.

What’s a common misconception clients have about your services that you’d like to address?

One misconception is that professional tax planning is only for wealthy people or large companies. In reality, someone who owns a small business or has several different sources of income may benefit from planning even more because they have more decisions to make throughout the year.

Another misconception is that the goal should always be to get the biggest possible refund. A large refund often means you simply paid more during the year than necessary.

We’d rather help clients understand their overall tax situation and develop a predictable strategy than focus on one number at filing time.

Is there a recent client success story you’re particularly proud of?

We recently worked with a small business owner who had experienced significant growth but was still managing the financial side of the company almost exactly as they had when the business started.

We helped organize their bookkeeping, establish a better system for estimated taxes, and create a year-round planning schedule. Nothing about it was particularly complicated, but putting the right structure in place gave the owner a much clearer understanding of the business.

Those are some of my favorite situations because you can see the stress level drop once someone finally feels like they have control over their finances.

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