How it works

No intake interview and no sales pitch. One conversation, a plain assessment, a scope and fee in writing before any paid work begins, and then we do the work ourselves. Here is what each step actually involves.

The four steps

1. The call

   Thirty minutes on the phone, or a text exchange if that is easier. You walk us through the debts you know about, such as merchant cash advances, loans, credit lines, leases, tax bills, and vendor balances, and what is happening in the business around them. Rough numbers are fine. We listen, ask direct questions, and form a real view of the situation.

   If something is urgent, such as a frozen account, a bounced debit, or a process server, say so at the start and we triage that first.

   Have handy, if you can

   • Monthly revenue, roughly
   • Each funder or lender, and what it pulls how often
   • Rent, payroll, and any notice with a deadline

2. The assessment

   We tell you what we think the actual problem is, which options fit, which do not, and what we would do if it were our business. The options on the table are usually negotiation, settlement, contract and lease restructuring, a cost audit, turnaround, and, less often, a bankruptcy alternative or a bankruptcy referral.

   We also share what we notice on the operating side, such as pricing, payroll structure, owner draw, and reporting, because that is usually what decides whether the relief holds.

   What you leave with

   • A priority order for the debts
   • The options that fit, and the ones that do not
   • A plain answer on whether we are the right firm

3. The engagement

   If you want us to run it, we scope the work and put the scope, the fee, and the timeline in writing. There are no upfront fees and no surprises after that. If you want time to think, take it. If you want a second opinion, get one. There is no pushy follow-up.

   In writing before we start

   • What we will do, and what we will not
   • The fee
   • The timeline we expect

4. The work, and the follow-through

   We open contact with each creditor by name, write the counter-offers, restructure the contracts, and sit in the lease conversation until it is resolved. For work that requires a license we do not hold, such as a bankruptcy filing, litigation, or tax defense before the IRS, we bring in a partner we have worked with for years and stay in the room with you.

   Then we circle back to the operating items from the assessment and work through them with you, so the business that comes out of this is stronger than the one that went in.

   Who does what

   • Negotiation, restructuring, cost audits, consulting: us
   • Bankruptcy, litigation, tax defense, forensic accounting: a vetted partner, with us in the room

What we do directly

Debt reduction and negotiation, merchant cash advance relief, contract renegotiation, commercial lease renegotiation, business consulting, and cost reduction. These are the eight services on the Get Help pages, and the first six are run by us, not referred out.

What we bring partners in for

Bankruptcy filings. Litigation. Tax defense before the IRS or the state. Forensic accounting. SBA workouts. A full corporate turnaround with a chief restructuring officer. Each of these requires a license or a specialty we have not built, so we bring in a vetted partner, stay in the room, and keep the engagement on track. You are never handed off and forgotten.

How long it takes

Stopping the bleeding can move in days: pausing or reducing daily debits, invoking a reconciliation clause, getting a frozen account released. Negotiated settlements and lease restructures usually take weeks. The operating-side changes that keep the relief durable are often a quarter or two of steady work. We give you a realistic timeline for both at the start, and we tell you when something is going to take longer than you hoped.

What we will not do

• Sell you a product because it is the product we sell. If another path fits better, including one we do not offer, we say so.
• Take an upfront fee, or a fee on the back of a stressed operating account.
• Pretend the debt is the only issue when the operating picture deserves attention.
• Tell you what you want to hear. The first conversation is direct about what we see and candid about what we do not yet know.