DTC brands
Books and taxes for streetwear brands.
A drop that sells out in ten minutes, a collab royalty, a small batch print run, and the chargebacks that land after the hype fades. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
November came in at $11,000. The artist collab drop cleared fast, so I booked his royalty cut the day the payout hit, not at year end.
- Shopify drop day payoutDrop sales
- Instagram Shop payoutMarketplace sales
- Artist collab royaltyLicensing and royalties
- Silkscreen Print Co invoiceContract manufacturing
- Instagram adsAdvertising
Why your books are different
A streetwear brand's books go wrong around the drop, not the day to day.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business is a release that sells out in minutes, a collaborator's cut, and a print run whose cost depends on how many you dared to make. When the books do not know that, one hype day can wreck the whole month's picture.
-
1
A drop flattens the rest of the month
A limited release can move a season's worth of units in one afternoon, and if the books lump that single day into an average month, neither the spike nor the slow weeks around it look real.
What we doKeeps drop-day sales visible as their own event, so a single release does not flatten the rest of the month's picture. -
2
Collab royalties are a cost, not a wash
Paying an artist or another brand a percentage of a collab drop's sales is a real cost of that release, and if it is not booked separately, the collab looks more profitable than it actually was.
What we doBooks collab royalty payments as their own cost, tied to the release that earned them. -
3
Bot orders and chargebacks show up after the hype fades
A hyped drop draws bot purchases that get disputed or refunded weeks later once resellers get denied or a card is reversed, and without tracking, the drop looks like it made more than it did.
What we doBooks late chargebacks and disputes against the release they came from, so the real number catches up. -
4
Small batch printing costs swing with every run
A short run of 200 hoodies at a print shop costs more per unit than a run of 2,000, and pricing that assumes one number leaves margin unclear from drop to drop.
What we doLands the actual print cost onto each specific run, so you know what that drop truly cost to make. -
5
Unsold stock from a flopped drop is not a write-off yet
A design that does not sell through sits as inventory, and expensing it the day the print bill was paid hides that the product is still an asset until it is marked down or sold off.
What we doKeeps unsold drop inventory on the books until it is actually discounted or written off.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a streetwear brand.
Set up once for how you release and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Drop day salesLimited releases sold in a fixed window, kept visible as their own event.
- Restock salesSlower, steady sales between drops.
- Instagram and TikTok ShopSales through social storefronts.
- Collab release salesDrops made with another artist or brand, before the royalty split.
Money out
- Screen printing and productionThe print shop or cut and sew run for each drop.
- Collab royaltiesThe collaborator's cut, tied to the drop that earned it.
- Packaging and mailersBoxes, tissue, and drop-day inserts.
- AdvertisingMeta and Instagram ad spend building hype before a release.
- Fulfillment3PL pick, pack, and ship fees.
- Card and marketplace feesWhat processors and shops keep before you get paid.
- Sample garmentsLookbook and release photo samples.
What we watch for you
- Sell-through per drop
What percent of a release sold before it needed a markdown, so the next run size is not a guess.
- Collab royalty cost
What a collaborator's cut adds up to, so a hype release's real margin is clear.
- Chargeback rate
Disputes against sales, since bot activity around a drop can hide behind the hype.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked from what each drop actually cleared, not the hype around it.
Ask Gus
Things streetwear brand owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
That day was huge. I keep drop sales visible on their own so you can see what one release did against the slower weeks around it.
I book that as a royalty cost tied to the release, so you see what the collab actually made you after his cut, not before it.
I booked them against that release when they landed, so the real number for that drop catches up instead of overstating what it made.
The tax side
The tax side of a streetwear brand.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing around a release. A print run expensed too early, a collab royalty missing its own line, and a set-aside nobody started until the drops slowed down.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Inventory and cost of goodsYou deduct the cost of what sold, not what got printed. A run of hoodies that did not sell through is an asset until it is marked down or moved, not a write-off the day the print bill was paid.
- 1099-K from marketplaces and processorsShopify Payments and any social shop you sell through report your volume to the IRS once you cross $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. Every dollar is taxable whether or not the form arrives.
- 1099-NEC for contractorsA freelance graphic designer, photographer, or collaborating artist paid $2,000 or more in a year who is not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- The pass-through deductionUp to 20 percent of qualified business income is deductible for most owners, phasing down above $201,750 for single filers and $403,500 for joint filers. Getting the full benefit means every drop's numbers were kept straight all year.
Deductions streetwear brands miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Screen printing production runs
- Collab royalties and licensing fees
- Packaging and drop-day mailers
- Meta and Instagram ad spend
- Photography for drop announcements
- 3PL fulfillment fees
- Sample garments for lookbooks
- Card and marketplace fees
- Trademark and brand registration
- Drop page hosting and queue software
- Graphic design for release art
- Storage for unsold stock
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A streetwear brand's year, kept every month.
Drops come in bursts, not on a steady schedule. Your team is on the books every month between releases, not only after the big one lands. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Post-drop cooldown
Sales cool off after the holiday release, right when last year's return needs to get moving. Gus keeps the set-aside going so spring holds no surprise.
- April
Filed between drops
The business return is filed and signed. Since the set-aside has been running all year, the bill is already covered.
- July
Next drop planning
Print runs and collab terms for the next release get locked in. Gus keeps those deposits as inventory on order, not a hit to a quiet summer month.
- October
Holiday drop lands
The year's biggest release usually lands here. Gus keeps that single day visible on its own so the month's real shape stays clear.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for streetwear brands. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions streetwear brand owners ask first.
Do I owe tax on resale value if my drop gets scalped?
No. You only owe tax on what you were actually paid. What a reseller charges after the fact is not your income, and Gus only books what landed in your account.
I sell out drops in minutes but then have slow weeks. Is that a problem for the books?
No, that is normal for this business. Gus keeps each drop visible as its own event, so a slow week around it does not get misread as a decline.
How does Gus handle unsold stock from a design that flopped?
It stays on the books as inventory until you mark it down or write it off, so it is not treated as a loss before you have actually taken one.
I paid a graphic designer for release art. Does that count as a write-off?
Yes. If you paid a freelance designer $2,000 or more this year and they are not on payroll, the cost is deductible and they get a 1099-NEC by January 31.
My books are behind because I never tracked collab royalties separately.
Send the collab agreement and your bank statements. Gus sorts out what was paid to the collaborator and what was really yours to keep.
Does the bot protection app I use on drop day count as a deduction?
Yes. Software that manages a queue or blocks bots during a release is an ordinary cost of doing business, and Gus keeps it with your other software subscriptions.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever