Meet Belva Anakwenze of Abacus Financial Business Management in Ladera Heights

Today we’d like to introduce you to Belva Anakwenze.

Belva, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I am a Los Angeles native. I am the middle child of my two siblings. We were raised in a house where education was highly valued. Before moving to South Los Angeles, my mother would drive us an hour each direction to ensure we went to the right schools. My parents insisted I attend the magnet high school, Downtown Business Magnet. There I learned about bookkeeping, the stock market, and other financial sectors.

After graduating from high school, I went on to attend UCLA. While at UCLA, I used the financial skills learned in high school, to help pay my way through college. After graduating, I went to work in Corporate America. Corporate America quickly took a toll on me, feeling like a cog in the wheel. I quickly left to start Abacus Financial, which started as a small business bookkeeping firm.

Since Abacus Financial started in 2003, the business has become a boutique Business Management firm handling the day to day financial affairs for actors, writers, producers, and entertainment executives.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road has been extremely bumpy. As an entrepreneur, I had to wear several hats. I had to take care of marketing, sales, technology, client relations, and retention and the list goes on. My training had been in numbers and finance, so I wanted to focus on our work product. It took a great deal of focus and retraining to adapt to my new life as an employer, CEO, CFO, and CMO.

Our firm was doing the bookkeeping for several small businesses and then the recession hit! The recession hit several of our clients and of course, directly impacted our business. We had to figure out how to stay afloat, while some of our clients could no longer afford our services. We had to find new ways to source clients, we had to begin embracing technology changes and adapt to the economy during and after the recession.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Abacus Financial Business Management – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Abacus Financial Business Management is a boutique Business Management firm in South Los Angeles. We manage the day to day financial affairs of underrepresented individuals (youth, women, people of all colors, members of the LBGTQ+ community and more) in the film and TV industry. We save our clients from themselves, ensuring they make sound financial decisions.

We offer straight solutions for the muddy waters of fiscal responsibility. Our clients appreciate our authentic approach and Belva has been recognized by Variety Magazine as an elite Business Manager.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We look forward to continuing our financial impact on the lives and businesses of “Creatives.” Our clients give us purpose, are the backbone of the business and the pipeline for new clients. We are excited to serve more clients and making sure we create wealth.

Contact Info:

• Address: 4722 W Slauson Ave
  Los Angeles, CA 90056
• Website: www.afinancialgroup.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/belvaanakwenze/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abacusfinancial/

Image Credit:
Rob Flate

Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.