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Introducing Bernd and his business: Bernd is a German baker. He came to London two years ago, where he opened the first fully organic German bakery that can be found in London. No chemicals and genetically modified ingredients are used for all of the products Bernd creates.
Bernd and his passion: When one speaks to Bernd it doesn’t take long to realize that being an organic baker is his passion. One needs to bear in mind that being a baker is a really tough job. It is hard work, time consuming and requires a lot of love and passion for the craft. Bernd definitely meets all of these criteria.
The bakery: On the back of Bernd’s bakery store there is a wonderfully traditional bakery, where the bred, cookies, biscuits and all products are made. This is not an industrial factory production; it’s the real deal! When Bernd starts to work in his bakery at three in the morning, at first the dough is prepared and then baked in the oven until the store opens at seven in the morning.
The origins of Bernd's passion: Considering Bernd’s passion, one may be surprised by the answer given when he is asked why he has gone into the organic bakery business. Bernd will tell you that he used to want to be a footballer, dreaming of becoming the next Klinsmann (the top German footballer of the late 80s). However, his family was quite traditional and wanted him to do ‘a proper job’. His father was a baker himself, and hence brought forward the idea that Bernd should try to become a baker as well.
Bernd agreed to at least try to do an apprenticeship at a local bakery in Paderborn, Germany. To his own surprise he realised that, on an elevated level, he really thoroughly enjoyed himself!
Choosing London: Bernd met his English wife of five years, Rosie, during her studies to become a teacher in Germany. However, it was always clear for Rosie that she would want to go back to the UK at some point. They recognised that the bakery profession is useful in any major town and decided to go for it in London. 
Setting up the business: They put all of their savings and a small inheritance into opening a shop with a bakery near the ‘City’, the financial centre of London. From seven in the morning onwards business people from the city come to the bakery shop to have breakfast and lunch, to pick up snacks for the office or have a coffee with biscuits and cookies. Furthermore, Bernd provides direct catering preparation for corporate meetings including everything from sandwiches to coffees and cookies freshly made that very morning.
Finding St Matthew eAccounting: When it comes to baking, Bernd approaches business from quite a manual-labour perspective. Although he is a very smart guy, he simply doesn’t want to have to deal with accounts or be stuck in an office as he finds much more satisfaction from working in the bakery. Rosie helps in the bakery as well but has never run a business, so they looked for a solution online and found St Matthew eAccounting’s website. They saw that St Matthew eAccounting has a lot of German speaking clients who have started a business in London. Bernd contacted us and we set up a solution for him, which included all aspects that had to be considered as well as the bakery business.
How we help Bernd: Bernd has some small investments in Germany. He is therefore, in terms of interests on his foreign earnings, registered as a non dom in the UK. Bernd has eleven employees, for which St Matthew eAccounting does the payroll on a monthly basis as well as both Bernd’s and Rosie’s personal income tax. We deal with their tax returns and advise him on aspects of general business strategies.
How is bernd doing now? Bernd never regretted coming to London. In many ways, he has hit gold, both in the business and the personal sense. The bakery is doing well with a turnover of 25k a year and a passionate, hands-on, traditional and caring baker, who has all the support he needs in order to do what he loves but at the same time run a business.
 Find out more about our service: To find out more about how the Head Office London, Personal Tax and Business Advice service that Bernd is using with us could fascilitate your own business situation, we invite you to join us in an initial consultation over the phone. This includes an assessment and analysis of your situation. Our services apply to many business related situations, however, if we come to the conclusion that our service is not the right solution for you, we will not take you on as a client.
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