Keeping Business in Harmony: Sadie Hoyt’s Entrepreneurial Journey

According to the National Retail Federation, holiday season retail sales have increased year-over-year since 2008. In fact, the average American plans to spend approximately $932 on gifts this holiday season.

With a calendar full of recitals and church performances, December is also the busiest month for pianist and musical educator Sadie Hoyt. Growing up in a home that valued the arts made Sadie who she is today. “Music has been part of my life for as long as I can remember,” she says. Now, she aims to instill the same gift of music in as many homes and classrooms as possible through her thriving business. 

When you’re looking for ways to support your local businesses this holiday season, Sadie encourages shoppers to consider thinking beyond small business retailers and buying experiences from small businesses, too. She says it’s a chance to create a memory that isn’t outgrown when a new toy comes their way.

An entrepreneurial spirit from an early age

For nearly two decades, Sadie’s been teaching piano lessons to students of all ages. Then in December 2020, when she realized no one would be able to attend Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker live, Sadie created her first listening guide to bring the Nutcracker into people’s homes. From there, she took her business beyond lessons and began to build a library of educational resources.

Transitioning her business model to include educational content and membership offerings has made Sadie’s business more scalable and financially stable. For a monthly fee, students get access to private weekly lessons, monthly peer club meetings, weekly assignments, and two online recitals each year. Sadie can build relationships with her students while knowing exactly what she’s getting paid each month.

With dozens of students in her membership program, Sadie had trouble staying on top of monthly invoices. She was using an invoicing platform to bill her students, but it was a cumbersome, manual process—and it had a fee. With Found’s built-in invoicing features, Sadie set up recurring invoices for her clients and canceled her other invoicing software.

Cruise control for her taxes

It isn’t just Found’s invoicing feature Sadie loves; she also appreciates the accounting features for small business owners. Quarterly taxes often come as a surprise to anyone who is self-employed, and Sadie says it can really hurt if you aren’t prepared for them.

With automated expense categorization and recurring invoices set up, Sadie can focus on what matters most: her passion for education and performance. “It’s extremely exciting to know that your income depends on your work and your passion. Your livelihood depends on it. It’s motivating in a new way.”

She plans to outsource some of her work next year to spend more time creating new listening guides and other classical music resources. “When your work is built around your passion, it doesn’t feel like work.”

Simplify self-employment with Found.

Quarterly taxes can feel daunting to tackle when you are self-employed. Found’s offers powerful tax tools that make it easy to always know when you owe. With every new income or expense, Found updates your tax estimate in real-time. Sign up for an account for free today. 

Want another glimpse into how our customers are building thriving businesses? Check out Garrett and Amber's stories.

This material has been prepared for informational purposes only.