After living in Europe for three years and working as an accountant, Chris Capone and his wife decided to return to Wilmington to build a business.

A graduate of the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Cameron School of Business with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting, Capone returned to Wilmington in 2018 and founded Capone & Associates in 2022.

“I wanted to be more in control of my own destiny and build something that could create a positive impact in our communities,” Capone said. “We act as an outsourced accounting department for most of our clients in which we oversee all aspects of the finance and accounting department. We offer bookkeeping and fractional CFO services.

“What this means is we can be your fully outsourced accounting department, from the basic accounting needs to complex financial planning analysis, transactions and strategy. For small businesses, this is perfect because they could use a CFO for certain parts of their business but can’t afford to hire a full-time person. We are able to provide significant value-add services for a fraction of the cost of hiring full-time staff.”

The firm has grown rapidly in just under three years, Capone said, adding that the company takes an entrepreneurial approach to its services.

“We have grown from zero to 16 employees and extended a team of more than 20, serving more than 90 small businesses in two-and-a-half years,” he said. “There is a serious potential for us to continue scaling.”

According to the website, Capone & Associates firmly believes “… that every business owner deserves a financial partner who shares their level of excitement in building their business. We are process-driven and results-oriented, making even the most mundane financial tasks enjoyable. We go beyond the numbers, utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data to provide unparalleled insights that drive informed decision-making in the toughest circumstances.”

Capone also is active in the local entrepreneur community.

He hosts a podcast called Fractional on YouTube where he interviews fellow local business owners and entrepreneurs who can offer advice and solutions for common issues.

He also has been developing a project to offer space to other business owners.

“We are very involved in the community. We are contributing to the revitalization of downtown Wilmington with the renovation of 717 Market St.,” Capone said.

The 717mkt Office Collaborative was made by renovating a roughly 13,000-square-foot Market Street building. The collaborative plans to lease office space while offering tenants a range of amenities, including an on-site gym, podcast studio, conference rooms and a rooftop terrace.

The structure was gutted down to its brick and cinder block walls. New electrical and plumbing systems were installed along with HVAC upgrades and a new roof.

Aside from this major project, Capone has big plans for the future of Capone & Associates.

“I hope to create an infrastructure and culture that attracts and retains the very best talent,” he said, “so that we are able to provide the best-in-class bookkeeping and fractional CFO services for small businesses.”

Correction: This version has been updated about Capone & Associates' revenue info because those figures referred to Chris Capone's former company and not the current firm.

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