Meet Mark Caruso of SC Accounting in Camberwell Junction

If you think accounting and finance are dry or dull subjects, you haven’t met Mark Caruso.

The principal and director of SC Accounting in Camberwell Junction is passionate and his enthusiasm is infectious.

For Mr Caruso, giving good financial advice isn’t a boring number-crunching job – it’s the business of changing lives.

“Enabling people to be financially independent for the next stage of life or, for example, to be skilful in managing business cash flow, is to improve their lives,” Mr Caruso said.

“Good, professional financial help allows people to flourish.”

Soothing money worries

Managing money, whether in a business or saving for retirement, can be very stressful for many people.

At SC Accounting they know that and see their role as removing that stress for their clients.

“Money worries are a mental health burden and add stress to life. Our aim is to take that away,” Mr Caruso said.

“And we don’t have a cookie-cutter approach. Everyone is different – has different needs – so we partner with people to get them where they need to be financially.”

The majority of SC Accounting clientele are business owners and family groups with associated businesses. The firm also works with business start-ups.

The company offers a range of services including accounting and tax, superannuation, bookkeeping, business advice, financial planning and more.

‘We also partner with two legal firms,” Mr Caruso said.

“We are effectively a one-stop-shop for your financial needs.”

Putting clients first

There are eight staff at SC Accounting, two associated financial advisors and two associated bookkeepers.

Together they offer a wide range of expertise and experience and all take a people-centric approach to their service provision.

A client will have one contact within the company who can tap into the skills of the others and deal directly with the client to ensure trust and ease of service.

“It’s about listening and understanding what people want and need as much as it is about us offering our experienced advice,” Mr Caruso said.

“We don’t want to throw general advice out; we want to offer a solution that is meaningful and tailored to the family or business owner or whoever is seeking a bit of help.”

Mr Caruso said Camberwell Junction is a perfect location for the business.

“It’s ideal, really. [It has] Good amenities, transport, beautiful parks and interesting history,” he said.

“It’s fantastic for families and has a quite consistent demographic.”

While a lot of SC Accounting clients are from the Camberwell area, the company has clients from Mount Waverley to Bayside too.

Falling in love with accounting

Mr Caruso was originally in corporate finance and became a successful equity partner. When consulting with a firm in Mount Waverley, he “fell in love with accounting” and set out on his own.

“I loved the client-based nature of the work – the ‘get stuck in and help someone’ nature of it,” he said.

Early on, when he came across a couple paying high rates of tax and knew how he could help reduce that in various ways, he knew this was the work that can make a huge difference in someone’s life.

That energy and motivation helped grow a successful business and when things snowballed, Mr Caruso merged with SC Accounting.

They outgrew their old building in Oakleigh and moved to Camberwell Junction.

“Dreams do come true,” Mr Caruso joked. “I used to drive past Camberwell on the way to university and always loved it,” he said.

And he loves providing a boutique, tailored service that helps transform lives.

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