Lydia Ahn says VSH sees itself as a firm of the future.
The Bellingham-headquartered certified public accounting firm, founded in 1997, has grown from a small local business to one with dozens of employees, multiple offices and clients across the United States and the world.
Its future, Ahn said, is one focused on deepening strategic financial partnerships with clients, expanding high-impact advisory services and streamlining operations through technology — freeing up the firm’s experts to deliver even more clarity and value.
“We’re really focused on not letting geographic boundaries define how we operate,” said Ahn, a partner who leads the firm’s cross-border and global families department. “We have a really dynamic up-and-coming partner group that we’re really excited about.”
Ahn is currently joined at VSH by Managing Partner Chris Sullivan, partners Matt Roetcisoender and Kathy Herndon, and soon-to-be-partner Madison Price Zender — in addition to nearly 50 other employees who work in their Bellingham or Burlington offices or remotely elsewhere in Washington state.
Herndon plans to retire in 2026, with a thoughtful succession plan already in place to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for her clients. The firm’s leadership is committed to continuity, with trusted partners stepping in to carry forward Herndon’s standard of clarity, care and long-term partnership.
What accounting firms provide
There often are misconceptions, Ahn said, about what CPA firms can provide a business owner.
Beyond financial compliance and tax matters, VSH provides a multitude of business advisory services and long-term strategy. These include identifying operational “pain points,” improving cash flow management, guiding ownership transitions, navigating tariff planning and handling expansions (including into additional states or countries) and internal accounting matters. The firm also offers financial statement compilations, reviews, audits and business valuations.
While there are a number of CPA firms throughout Bellingham and the region, Ahn said VSH stands out for its locally owned structure and boutique-level, relationship-driven approach.
“Long-term relationships with our clients are really important to us,” she said. “We want to be a strategic partner with business owners.”
Roetcisoender and Price Zender bring expertise in advising owner-operators and family-owned businesses, which are plentiful throughout Whatcom and Skagit counties. Meanwhile, nearly half of the firm’s client base is international, primarily in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Other clients have footprints throughout the United States, as well as in Europe, Asia and South America.
When it comes to dealing with the rocky landscape of international tariffs, Ahn said VSH is being proactive, supporting clients with ideas and resources and encouraging them to prepare as much as they can to weather any storms. The volatility of tariffs under the present US administration has made that planning extra challenging, she added.
VSH also has the ability to provide expert accounting resources well beyond its own offices through its membership in the US arm of the BDO Alliance, an international association of local and regional accounting, consulting and service firms.
That wealth of resources allows VSH the ability to enhance client services and broaden its capabilities with the latest industry information, providing better flexibility and cost-effectiveness.
The tools of tomorrow
VSH also is making investments in accounting technology, Ahn said, including the thoughtful integration of artificial intelligence into accounting software.
So far, AI has proven to be a helpful tool for the firm’s professionals, helping automate routine processes but not replacing the humans who make the job possible.
“We are excited for it,” Ahn said of further AI advancements. “We’re not using it to do the job of an accountant but to enhance the value that we bring to our clients. It’s freeing up time to focus on the advising and consulting aspects of our work so we can better do the analyses and make recommendations on the numbers instead of spending all our time in the numbers.”
Ahn emphasized that incorporating AI isn’t about lowering costs — it’s about elevating the quality of service, empowering the firm’s experts to spend more time on the complex, forward-looking work on which clients truly rely.
Gains in efficiency and focus, she added, will likely help VSH advance its 10-year vision: expanding its advisory services and strengthening its position as a strategic partner to business owners.
A third brick-and-mortar office may eventually be in the offing, but for now, Ahn said the firm is maximizing the use of its existing spaces: the Barkley Village office on Rimland Drive, which VSH has called home since the early 2000s, and its Burlington office, which came to fruition around 2015.
The next generation
In addition to having an energetic and talented partner group, VSH also is working to inspire and teach the next generation of up-and-coming accounting professionals.
The firm sits on the accounting advisory committee at Western Washington University and provides presentations on various topics to accounting students and members of Beta Alpha Psi, the university’s honors accounting society. Ahn also sits on the accounting and finance advisory committee at Whatcom Community College.
Presentations include such topics as what it’s like to be a public accounting professional, so that when students enter the job market, they have a better understanding of what awaits them at firms like VSH.
“We’re very active in mentorship opportunities and in providing internships for college students,” Ahn said. “We’re usually doing something with Western every quarter.” ■