A Sudden Shutdown: The Story of Bench and Its Unexpected Twist
As December 27th dawned, small business owners anticipated a peaceful holiday weekend. Instead, they faced chaos when Bench, a Canadian accounting startup backed by giants like Bain Capital Ventures and Shopify, abruptly went offline. With the onset of tax season, users found themselves locked out of their accounts. To their shock, Bench announced it was closing after 13 years, leaving hundreds of employees jobless without notice or severance. Even emails to the company bounced back, illustrating the suddenness of the situation.
One customer, Justin Metros of Radiator, only learned of the shutdown through TechCrunch’s inquiry. “I was not aware of that,” he responded, reflecting the disbelief that echoed across Bench’s 12,000-strong customer base. The startup had marketed itself as a cutting-edge bookkeeping platform for small to mid-size businesses but struggled in recent years due to overreliance on AI automation.
- Delayed Bookkeeping: AI integration issues led to books being shuffled between teams rather than managed by dedicated staff, causing significant delays.
- Customer Frustration: Some were still waiting for their 2023 records as late as September 2024.
- Internal Struggles: The company faced multiple layoffs and executive changes, including the departure of co-founder Ian Crosby in 2021.
“I hope the story of Bench goes on to become a warning for VCs that think they can ‘upgrade’ a company by replacing the founder. It never works,” Crosby shared in a reflective LinkedIn post following the shutdown.
Ian Crosby
Efforts to make Bench profitable under new leadership faltered amid customer loss and waning investor interest. By late 2024, Adam Schlesinger took over as CEO with plans to sell the company. However, an unexpected bank call demanding repayment of venture debt forced an abrupt closure on December 27th.
The shutdown captured media attention across North America, ironically sparking interest in acquiring Bench. Jesse Tinsley from Employer.com quickly stepped in with an acquisition offer. Despite being new to accounting, Employer.com promised to revive Bench by reoffering jobs and honoring client contracts.
While doubts linger about Bench’s future stability and service quality given the expedited acquisition process and temporary staff contracts, Employer.com remains optimistic. Matt Charney, their Chief Marketing Officer, emphasized confidence in Bench’s reputation and potential for growth.
This saga underscores how rapidly tech ventures can rise and fall and highlights the critical importance of strategic execution. As Employer.com embarks on this new chapter with Bench, all eyes will be on how they navigate these uncharted waters.
