Today we’d like to introduce you to Ara Oghoorian.
Ara, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m originally from Pasadena but moved away for nearly 20 years before realizing that Los Angeles is the best place on Earth and that there is no place else I’d rather be. I have always been an entrepreneur and a diligent saver from a very young age. In middle school, I used to buy candy in bulk to resell to my classmates (slightly naughty but very entrepreneurial, don’t you think) and realized then that I wanted a career in finance. My passion for finance and accounting was further developed when I took my first accounting class in 9th grade and it continued to grow from then. While still a junior in college, I was hired at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco in the Banking Supervision Department. I rose up the ranks at the Fed over nearly ten years before taking a position overseas as a diplomat with the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Upon my return to the U.S. I lived in the Washington DC area and worked at a wealth management firm until I was able to take the deep dive into starting my own firm. I moved back to Los Angeles in 2009, started ACap Advisors & Accountants and this year, we celebrate ten years!
While I have worked hard to build my business, I could not have done it without the support of my loving family. I have been married for 15 years and have two boys and two pets. Giving back to our community is extremely important to our family which is why I am on the executive board of the Water Buffalo Club (WBC). The WBC is a non-profit focused on helping small charities in LA that help underserved kids. We are essentially a venture capital fund for small charities that don’t have access to large, corporate grants. Our tagline says it perfectly; we are “Big Kids Helping Little Kids”.
When I’m not working, spending time with my family, or donating my time, I am on the court playing tennis. I play on a friendly league with people I enjoy far beyond the court. When I have the chance, I also enjoy spectating tennis tournaments and have been to Wimbledon in London, England, Rolland Garros in Paris, France, and Indian Wells in California. On my bucket list is a trip to Melbourne, Australia for the Australian Open.
As I work with my team and centers of influence to continue to grow my business and provide our clients with outstanding service, I look forward to what the future holds.
Has it been a smooth road?
That’s a great question. I don’t think any entrepreneur would say that they’ve had a smooth road to success. Starting your own business has many challenges because you are wearing every hat possible – you are responsible for marketing, operations, HR, technology, and everything in between. If your computer stops working, that’s an entire day of unproductively because you can’t simply call help desk. Luckily, I now have a great team of specialists I can delegate to so that I can focus on what I do best, which is working with clients. I am also part of an amazing networking group that allows me to meet with other like-minded professionals to build relationships.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with ACap Advisors & Accountants – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
The name of my company is ACap Advisors & Accountants. We are both a wealth management and full-service CPA firm. We work with both individuals and with companies. With individuals, we primarily do retirement planning and money management for our clients, as well as personal tax preparation. We also love working with small companies by becoming their financial backbone offering bookkeeping, accounting, payroll, tax, and business advisory services.
There are a few things that sets us apart. First, since we offer both financial planning/advice and tax services, we understand the interrelatedness of both and can better advise our clients. Also, many financial planners/advisors are transactional or salespeople in disguise because they are selling some products pushed by their parent company; we are a fully independent Fee-Only firm, which means we do not sell anything and the only person that pays us is our clients. As a result, we have no conflicts of interest.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I absolutely love Los Angeles. Having lived in San Francisco, overseas, and on the east coast, LA is hands down the best of them all. We have diversity, great food, friendly people, and of course, ideal weather for just about anything. I’m very fortunate in that my commute to/from work is very short, but taking advantage of all the things LA has to offer is sometimes challenging because LA is so huge. For example, if I want to go to an opera downtown or go to the beach, it’s not just a quick trip in the car or ideally on a train.
Contact Info:
- Address: 16133 Ventura Blvd. Suite 600
Encino, CA 91436 - Website: www.acapam.com
- Phone: (818) 272-8511
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acapadvisorsaccountants/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ACapAdvisorsAccountants/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/acapam
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/acap-advisors-and-accountants-encino
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/acapadvisorsaccountants
Image Credit:
Ara and Carina
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