Accountants for product design
Specialist accountants for product designers and design studios
WallsMan Creative handles R&D relief, prototype and tooling costs, crowdfunding and pre-order accounting, and licensing and royalty income.
What we do for product designers
WallsMan Creative is an ICAEW-regulated chartered practice working exclusively with the creative industries, acting for freelance designers, design studios and product companies taking work from sketch to shelf.
- R&D tax relief: identifying what qualifies, building the technical case, filing a claim that survives scrutiny
- Prototype and tooling cost treatment: including when a prototype becomes a saleable unit and when tooling is capital
- Crowdfunding and pre-order accounting: deferred income, VAT timing and the cash-flow trap
- Licensing and royalty income: for designers who licence rather than manufacture
- Corporation Tax and year-end accounts: including Patent Box where you hold protected IP
- Self Assessment: for freelance and consultant designers
- VAT: including import VAT, cross-border sales and pre-orders
- EIS and SEIS advance assurance and investment packs: for hardware businesses raising money
- Management reporting and cash-flow forecasting: against a development and manufacturing timeline, not a calendar year
Who we work with in the design industry
- Freelance and consultant product designers: usually working to a brief for other people’s products
- Design studios: taking client projects from concept through to production-ready
- Product companies and hardware startups: designing, manufacturing and selling their own product
- Furniture and lighting designers: where the picture crosses into interior design and makers
- Designers who licence rather than manufacture: royalty income, no stock, entirely different financial shape
- Crowdfunded product launches: where pre-orders arrive long before the product does
- Designers working across hardware and software: where the position looks partly like tech and software
Reasons why we're the right accountants for product designers
Job by job
We help our clients manage and report on each job to maintain the margins and stay on track.
Tax savings
We help our clients save tax whenever possible including the use of specialist tax claims like R&D.
Clear vision
Our management reporting service creates reports that show you exactly what you need to see, when you need to see it.
Complete service
We can do it all, from the daily tasks to the specialist consultancy, we plug the holes in the management team provide and support as required.
Which sounds like you?
Irregular income, multiple streams and quiet months. We build your numbers around how you actually earn.
- Personal tax
- Self Assessment
- First-time freelancer
- Thinking about going limited
Corporation tax, dividends, payroll & the full suite of creative-sector reliefs. Tailored for your business.
- VAT
- Payroll
- Year-end accounts
- R&D/creative reliefs and funding
“WallsMan Creative are the perfect fit for our agency. Not only accountancy, payroll and tax management services, but advice on broader issues. The services have been first class and delivered in a professional and consultative manner. Communication is personable, patient and advice is always well considered and authoritative. WallsMan Creative are not only a trusted and valued partner but have become a seamless extension of our business team.”
Frequently Asked Questions about accounting for product design
WallsMan Creative works exclusively with creative industries, including product designers and product design studios. With over 10 years of experience, we understand product development cycles, prototyping costs, and design-led businesses.
Absolutely. Product designers often incur costs for prototyping, tooling, testing, and iteration. We ensure these costs are accounted for correctly and efficiently.
Prototyping and development can be expensive. We help you budget for prototypes and access R&D tax credits where available. Our experience in creative industries allows us to differentiate between capitalisable development costs and immediate tax deductions.
Yes. We build financial models and pitch‑deck numbers for crowdfunding platforms or investors. Our connections within the creative sector can also introduce you to potential investors or mentors!
We track production costs, advise on supplier contracts and ensure you reclaim VAT where possible. Our digital systems provide real‑time inventory and cost data.
We provide VAT guidance covering design services, product sales, imports, exports, and mixed VAT activities.
Because we know the ins and outs of the creative industries. Our 10+ years of experience, deep understanding of product design, and practical approach mean advice tailored to how product design businesses really operate.
This might interest you as a designer
Guides and resources to help product designers pay less tax and make smarter financial decisions.
Written by our team, for creative businesses like yours.
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Browse our services and get in contact to find out what we could do for you and your business.