Who is Buds Group?
Buds Group is a cannabis accounting, tax and compliance practice led by CPAs. Founded by Rick LaNeve, CPA, we serve licensed cannabis operators nationwide from our headquarters in Fort Lee, New Jersey, across accounting, tax, compliance, advisory, funding, HR and security.
Buds Group helps cannabis businesses with the financial and regulatory work that the industry makes harder than it is anywhere else: Section 280E, inventory costing, state licensing, seed-to-sale compliance and growth across state lines. Our team includes CPAs, tax and compliance specialists, and advisors who have built and run cannabis businesses, so we understand both the numbers and the day-to-day realities of a licensed operation.
We work with dispensaries, cultivators, processors and multi-state operators, from single-location businesses to operators with facilities in several states, and we serve them nationwide.
Our mission
To give cannabis operators the same level of financial expertise and strategic guidance that businesses in any other industry can take for granted, despite the regulatory challenges unique to cannabis. Every cannabis business deserves a financial partner who speaks its language and understands its challenges.
Our values
- Integrity. Our first value. It drives everything we do and informs all our other values.
- Passion for problem solving. We bring energy and a natural drive to solve problems to every engagement.
- Ownership and accountability. We set clear, realistic goals and hold ourselves accountable for meeting them.
- Open communication. We share constructive insights in real time. Honesty is harder in tough situations, and better over the long term.
- Quality and excellence. Our other values mean little without this one. We aim for quality in all we do.
What we do
- Accounting Buds: bookkeeping, invoicing and bill pay, financial analysis and fractional CFO
- Tax Buds: 280E and 471(c) tax strategy, filings and audit defense
- Compliance Buds: licensing, Metrc and seed-to-sale compliance
- Advisory Buds: operations, financing, and mergers and acquisitions
- Funding Buds: capital raises and deal structuring
- HR Buds: cannabis HR and workforce compliance
- Security Buds: risk assessment, security plans and facility security
- Technology Solutions: the Cannabiz Command Center, bespoke software, collections, payments and payroll
Leadership
- Rick LaNeve, CPA, Founder and CEO, and Past Chairman of the New York State Society of CPAs Cannabis Committee
- Bruce Andersen, MS (Tax), MBA, CPA, CFE, Executive Advisor, Tax and CFO Advisory
- David Rabinovitz, MBA, CLFP, Managing Director, Financial Expert
Meet the full team on our Our Team page.
Frequently asked questions
What does Buds Group do?
We provide accounting, tax, compliance and advisory services to cannabis businesses, along with funding, HR and security support. Our work centers on the issues that define the industry: Section 280E, inventory costing under Section 471, state licensing and seed-to-sale compliance. We built the practice around cannabis from the start rather than adding it as one vertical among many.
Do you work with businesses outside cannabis?
Cannabis is our specialty and our focus. When a cannabis owner also runs other businesses and wants one accountant for everything, we handle those businesses too.
Why does Buds Group focus on cannabis?
Cannabis sits between federal prohibition, state-by-state regulation and a tax code that disallows most ordinary deductions for adult-use operators. Handling that well takes full-time attention, not a side practice inside a general firm. We chose to specialize so our team works on 280E, inventory costing, licensing and cannabis operations every day.
Where is Buds Group located, and which states do you serve?
Our headquarters is in Fort Lee, New Jersey, and we serve licensed operators nationwide. Clients in the New York and New Jersey area can work with us on site or virtually; clients in other states work with us virtually. The same senior advisors and the same process apply either way.
How is Buds Group different from a traditional accounting firm?
We specialize in cannabis, so we know its tax and regulatory issues in depth. Senior advisors stay directly involved in each engagement rather than handing work to junior staff. We stay through implementation instead of stopping at a strategy document, and we tailor the work to each business rather than using templates.
What awards has Buds Group received?
Our accounting division, Accounting Buds, was named a 2024 Woodard Top 50 Accounting Services Practice. It was also a finalist for Financial Services of the Year at The EMJAYS International Cannabis Awards 2024 and a finalist for Best Cannabis Accounting Firm in New Jersey at NJ Cannabis Insider Live.
Who leads Buds Group?
Buds Group is led by founder and CEO Rick LaNeve, CPA, with Bruce Andersen, CPA, and David Rabinovitz, MBA, CLFP. Our senior advisors bring 20 to 30+ years of experience and stay client-facing throughout each engagement.
What services does Buds Group offer?
Accounting Buds covers bookkeeping, invoicing and bill pay, financial analysis and fractional CFO work. Tax Buds covers 280E and 471(c) tax strategy, filings and audit defense. Compliance Buds covers licensing and regulatory compliance, Advisory Buds covers strategy, operations, financing and M&A, and Funding Buds, HR Buds and Security Buds cover capital, people and physical security. We also offer technology solutions, including our Cannabiz Command Center.
What accounting and tax setup do you provide before a business is licensed?
We work with businesses at every stage, including license applicants. Before licensing, we help choose an entity structure, which has 280E and state tax consequences, set up a chart of accounts built for cannabis, design cash management, and prepare the financial documentation the application requires. Our Advisory Buds team covers the application strategy and operating plan.
What does an engagement with Buds Group look like?
It starts with a scoping conversation about where your business stands, what is working and where the risks are. For bookkeeping, that means reviewing the current books, deciding whether cleanup is needed and setting the monthly close. For tax, it means reviewing prior filings, your 280E position and audit exposure. You then receive a written proposal covering scope, deliverables, timeline and fees, priced on the scope of the work.
How do I get in touch with Buds Group?
Use our contact page, email info@budsgrp.com or call (917) 768-0300. You can start with a free 280E review: a short call to discuss scope, services and timing, followed by a written proposal.
Where can I read Buds Group's educational content?
Our blog covers 280E strategy, cannabis rescheduling, mergers and acquisitions, and state tax changes. We also maintain a cannabis rescheduling tracker, state cannabis tax guides and a tax deadline calendar.