Learn how these attributes served our clients well.
Story 1: Counsel Chaos Contained
The owner of a small law firm consisting of one Principal and two Associates asked BonBon for help “getting their sh*t together.” They had just switched payroll providers, which was a huge PIA, and the failed implementation of a cloud-based document management system had left their virtual back-office a mess. Our initial assessment revealed significantly more onsite problems.
Disorganized and divided, the Principal spent way too much time on administration: Payroll, Insurance, IT, HR, etc., leaving precious little for business development and billable hours. His office computer system was also ancient and out-of-date, and there was no project management to speak of – it all lived in his head. So much turmoil wreaked havoc on his ability to produce (not to mention his stress levels), manifesting in overwhelm and “stuckness”.
We began by taking over the ongoing payroll transition, insurance & 401k administration, and created centralized and organized document storage for the whole team. We sourced and hired a new IT specialist to upgrade the Principal’s hardware, and implemented both SaaS project management and time tracking tools. Finally, we helped to hire additional staff – including more Associates and an Executive Assistant – handling the whole process from writing job descriptions and screening applicants, to conducting initial interviews and onboarding the new hires.
After working with BonBon, the firm enjoyed its best month—in 40 years!
Story 2: Property Management Perfected
A small property management company needed help building their short term rental enterprise. The Solopreneur owner began with 10 units on Airbnb, but was so overwhelmed he couldn’t handle more. Concerned with getting bad reviews that could tank his business, he worked grueling hours — seven days a week, at all hours of the day.
He had no life.
After studying his operations, we helped him hire a full-time property manager to take over much of the daily operations. This gave him time to dream — and scale. We implemented a project management tool (Asana), team communications (Slack), external communications (RingCentral), organized their chaotic cloud storage, and created systems & SOPs around recurring processes like onboarding new units, orienting property owners, managing guest communications, and training new hires. We also ran and managed hiring campaigns for additional staff, and coordinated other service providers.
Our client went from 0 to 10 employees, from managing 10 units to 60+, and from $100K in annual revenue to more than $1M.
Story 3: Distribution Slam Dunk
The alcoholic beverage industry is fraught with peril — not only is competition fierce, but the industry is highly regulated.
Our client imported and distributed eco-friendly, organic beer to wholesalers and retailers in California, New York, and New Jersey. He had great products and superb branding, but he only managed to reach regional grocers, small liquor stores, and a few restaurants.
Expanding would not only require him to sell more, but also apply for and maintain the regulatory paperwork required at both the Federal and State levels — something he had no time to do himself.
We researched, prepared, submitted and monitored the required licensing, permits, certifications and monthly reporting to stay compliant, interfaced with various distributors, suppliers and 3rd Party Logistics partners, and acted as the intermediary to his offshore sales team. We also helped to systemize his processes, organize documentation, and manage communications with a global team in the US, UK, Australia, Denmark, and the Philippines.
Ultimately, we helped this company expand from 3 to 10 states and to sign with marquee retailers like Whole Foods and Total Wine. We also supported the owner with several other projects, including his Houston-based restaurant, the development of a house whiskey brand, and a hemp-infused beer.
Story 4: Fewer Moving Parts, More Horsepower
An established engineering firm came to BonBon with a good problem and a hidden one. The technical work was excellent, the reputation was solid, and the firm was growing. But the way the business ran hadn’t kept up with how good it had gotten. A lot of the day-to-day lived in individual people’s heads — manual steps, undocumented processes, workarounds that held together right up until they didn’t. And like most firms this size, coordination and decisions kept looping back to the owner.
Nothing was on fire. That was almost the problem — the strain was the quiet kind you tolerate for years, because the work still ships and the money still clears.
We started with a full read of the business — operations, systems, team structure, and strategy all at once, instead of one silo at a time — and turned it into a short list of things actually worth doing. From there we modernized and digitized the manual processes, moved the firm off aging on-premise servers onto cloud infrastructure, and rolled out Microsoft 365, Newforma Konekt, and Pipedrive so project visibility and internal communication stopped depending on who you asked. We built a real HR foundation where an informal one used to be, brought in AI where it earned its keep, and coordinated a bench of outside advisors — legal, leadership, finance, recruiting — translating their input into plans the team could execute instead of a stack of recommendations no one owned.
Here’s the part nobody expects: the firm got smaller.
Not by accident — on purpose. With the right systems and automation carrying the weight people used to carry by hand, the team was intentionally right-sized. Same quality of work. Same profit. Fewer moving parts. And an owner with room to run the business instead of being run by it.
Sometimes scaling up starts with getting lean.
