6 Product Profitability Analysis tax and accounting engagements in full — what the client came to us with, what we did, and what it was worth. Each one is specific to product profitability analysis work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · CRA review defended
$98,000 Proposed Adjustment Withdrawn In Full — Family Business Planning Succession, Lethbridge
Client: A family business planning succession · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Adjustment withdrawn$98,000
File closed in11 weeks
Penalties assessedNone
The situation
A family business planning succession in Lethbridge, Alberta received a proposal letter opening a review of product profitability analysis. The CRA had identified revenue up 40% year over year and a bank balance that kept falling and proposed an adjustment of $98,000, with 30 days to respond.
What we did
We treated the response as an evidence exercise rather than an argument. We rebuilt the reporting around gross margin by service line, which showed two of five offerings were losing money at the current price, then indexed every supporting document against the specific line the auditor had questioned.
The result
The proposed adjustment was withdrawn in full — all $98,000 of it. The file closed in 11 weeks with no change to the assessed amounts and no penalty.
Case Study 2 · Objection and relief
Notice Of Objection Allowed In Full, $75,000 Reversed — Technology Company Preparing to, Hamilton
Client: A technology company preparing to raise · Where: Hamilton, Ontario · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Amount reversed$75,000
ObjectionAllowed in full
Account balanceNil
The situation
A technology company preparing to raise in Hamilton, Ontario had been reassessed for $75,000 and had 7 days left on the objection deadline. The reassessment rested on a covenant breach discovered only when the bank called.
What we did
We filed the objection inside the deadline with a complete submission rather than a placeholder, and built a rolling thirteen-week cash-flow model, tightened collections, and renegotiated supplier terms so the growth stopped consuming the bank balance.
The result
The appeals officer allowed the objection in full. $75,000 was reversed and the account returned to a nil balance.
Case Study 3 · Scaling without breaking
Growth Handled Without A Missed Filing, $113,000 Freed — Clinic Group Acquiring a, Kitchener
Client: A clinic group acquiring a competitor · Where: Kitchener, Ontario · Engagement: 3 weeks, fixed fee
Cash freed$113,000
Compliance failuresNone
ReportingMonthly
The situation
A clinic group acquiring a competitor in Kitchener, Ontario was opening in a second province — different filing obligations, a different payroll regime, and a growth plan with no forecast behind it and no financing lined up already in the file.
What we did
We produced a board-ready monthly package — cash, margin, pipeline and covenant headroom — that replaced a spreadsheet nobody trusted and put monthly reporting in place so the owner could see the cash effect of growth while there was still time to act on it.
The result
Growth was absorbed without a compliance failure. $113,000 of cash was released, and the monthly reporting now flags a problem while it is still small.
Case Study 4 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $33,000 Of Annual Savings — Distributor Entering a Second, Toronto
Client: A distributor entering a second province · Where: Toronto, Ontario · Engagement: 8 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$33,000
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation
The structure at a distributor entering a second province in Toronto, Ontario had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and pricing set by feel, with no visibility into margin by service line had become expensive.
What we did
We modelled the covenant ratios monthly and restructured the debt before the next test date rather than after it. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result
$33,000 of annual saving, achieved on a tax-deferred basis. The minute book, elections and valuations are all in the file.
Case Study 5 · Planning that cut the bill
Remuneration Review Saved $11,500 Across Corporate And Personal Returns — Subscription Business Tracking Churn, Surrey
Client: A subscription business tracking churn · Where: Surrey, British Columbia · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Combined saving$11,500
ScopeCorporate + personal
Future yearsNo rework needed
The situation
Nothing was wrong at a subscription business tracking churn in Surrey, British Columbia — the filings were on time and accurate. What they were not was planned. An owner making hiring decisions on last quarter’s bank balance had never been reviewed.
What we did
We rebuilt the reporting around gross margin by service line, which showed two of five offerings were losing money at the current price, and ran the numbers across both the corporate and personal returns so the saving was real rather than deferred into someone else's hands.
The result
$11,500 came off the combined corporate and personal tax bill, and the structure holds for future years without further work.
Case Study 6 · Backlog brought current
$12,000 Of Arbitrary Assessments Vacated After 7 Years — Construction Company Bidding Larger, Red Deer
Client: A construction company bidding larger contracts · Where: Red Deer, Alberta · Engagement: 6 weeks, fixed fee
Arbitrary tax vacated$12,000
Years brought current7
Account statusCurrent
The situation
7 years of unfiled returns had turned into notional assessments at a construction company bidding larger contracts in Red Deer, Alberta, with revenue up 40% year over year and a bank balance that kept falling underneath. Collections had already started.
What we did
We built a rolling thirteen-week cash-flow model, tightened collections, and renegotiated supplier terms so the growth stopped consuming the bank balance, then filed every outstanding year in chronological order so the CRA could vacate the notional assessments cleanly.
The result
All 7 years were accepted as filed. $12,000 of arbitrarily assessed tax was vacated, collections action stopped, and the account is current for the first time in 7 years.
Reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Certified Tax Accountant. Figures describe representative engagements of this type; outcomes depend on your own facts. Client names and identifying details are omitted for confidentiality.
