Business Without BS

Is AI about to replace accountants, or are we overlooking what makes human expertise so valuable?
This week on Business Without BS, Andy Oury and Jemma Hotta are joined by Lucy Cohen, co-founder of Mazuma, the youngest-ever President of the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), and a doctoral researcher investigating artificial intelligence in accounting and finance.
Lucy started Mazuma at just 23 with £100, a laptop and an idea that challenged the traditional accounting industry. Nearly two decades later, she's questioning another major transformation: the rise of AI.
But while businesses rush to automate everything, are we creating a bigger problem?
Lucy explores the dangers of AI-generated financial information, what she calls “deep fake accounting”, and why replacing experienced accountants could leave businesses exposed to mistakes they don't even know they're making.
The conversation also covers Making Tax Digital, the realities of running a small business, the challenges of changing established systems and why accountants need to demonstrate their value beyond spreadsheets and tax returns.
In this episode:
Is AI really killing accounting?
Why AI-generated numbers could create serious problems for businesses
What is “deep fake accounting”?
How Lucy built Mazuma with just £100
Making Tax Digital: progress or unnecessary complexity?
Why human judgement and experience still matter
The future of accountants, entrepreneurs and professional services
Business Without BS brings you real-world business intelligence through honest conversations with people who challenge conventional thinking.
No gurus. No fluff. No BS.
Hosted by Andy Oury and Jemma Hotta.
Powered by Oury Clark.
Connect with the hosts:
Andy Oury: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewoury/
Jemma Hotta: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jemma-hotta/
🔗 Connect with the guest:
Lucy Cohen – LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucycohen/
Lucy Cohen – Website
https://www.lucycohen.uk
Watch and follow Business Without BS:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@bwblondon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bwblondon/
Website: https://withoutbs.com

#UKBudget #BudgetPredictions #Tax #BusinessWithoutBS #TheRebelAccountant
What’s actually going to happen in the next Budget, and what’s just noise?
In this special episode of Business Without BS, Andy Oury and Jemma Hotta put the rumours, headlines and tax speculation under the microscope and make their predictions for the upcoming Budget.
From pensions and capital gains tax to wealth taxes, property, inheritance tax and frozen thresholds, they break down what they think could change, what probably won’t, and the consequences those decisions could have for entrepreneurs, business owners and taxpayers.
Think of this as a conversation with your lawyer and your accountant, you just don't have to pay for it.Honest opinions, practical insights and no unnecessary jargon.
🎯 In this special episode, you'll hear:
• Why Andy and Jemma think pensions could be targeted
• Could Capital Gains Tax increase again?
• Will the UK actually introduce a wealth tax?
• Why a land value tax keeps entering the conversation
• Could stamp duty and council tax ever be replaced?
• Why frozen tax thresholds matter more than they might seem
• What could happen to dividend taxes and the self-employed
• Could inheritance tax be changed again?
• Why Andy believes the tax system needs long-term reform rather than constant tinkering
🔮 Their predictions?
Andy expects tax thresholds to remain frozen or become less generous, and doesn't expect a wealth tax.
Jemma expects further changes around pensions, but doesn't expect stamp duty land tax to disappear.
Now the question is: how much will they get right?
📌 About the hosts
Andy Oury is a Chartered Tax Adviser, Chartered Accountant and CEO of Oury Clark. Through The Rebel Accountant**, he challenges conventional thinking around tax, entrepreneurship and the economy.
Jemma Hotta brings the legal perspective to Business Without BS, cutting through the complexity behind the rules and what they mean in practice.
🎧 Listen to Business Without BS wherever you get your podcasts:
▶ Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/business-without-bs/id1528844106
▶ Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/6J1YMncmYCLODOKi8A0CFU
▶ Website
https://withoutbs.com
👉 Subscribe for more conversations with the experts you'd normally have to hire.
https://www.youtube.com/@bwblondon

The UK Budget is coming — but what’s actually likely to change, and what’s just speculation?
In this special episode of Business Without BS, Andy Oury and Jemma Hossa break down their predictions for the upcoming UK Budget, looking beyond the headlines at the tax changes that could affect individuals, entrepreneurs and business owners.
From pensions and Capital Gains Tax to wealth taxes, property taxes, inheritance tax and frozen thresholds, Andy and Jemma look at the options available to the government, what they think could realistically happen and the potential consequences.
Could pensions be targeted? Will Capital Gains Tax rise? Is a UK wealth tax realistic? Could stamp duty eventually disappear? And are frozen tax thresholds already functioning like a tax rise?
Think of this as a conversation with your lawyer and your accountant — you just don’t have to pay for it.
In this episode:
• What could happen to pensions in the next Budget
• Capital Gains Tax — could rates rise again?
• Why wealth tax remains such a controversial proposal
• Stamp duty, council tax and the case for a land value tax
• Why frozen tax thresholds matter
• Inheritance tax and changing allowances
• The impact tax changes could have on entrepreneurs and SMEs
• Andy and Jemma make their Budget predictions
No political theatre. No unnecessary jargon. Just Business Without BS.

What does it really take to turn an idea into a consumer brand, and convince investors to back you before you've even finished the product?
Maya Bedeau is the founder of 'Onest Energy, a natural energy drink created to bring more transparency to a crowded category. Just eight months after launching, 'Onest won Best Sports & Energy Drink at the UK Soft Drinks Awards, competing against established brands with significantly more history and money behind them.
Maya joins Andy Oury and Jemma Hotta to talk about what building a physical consumer brand actually looks like behind the scenes - from raising £225,000 in early investment and establishing a valuation before launch, to manufacturing, distribution, marketing and finding the right audience.
They also get into the importance of authenticity in founder-led marketing, why your audience needs to see themselves represented in your brand, choosing investors for more than their money, and why listening to too many opinions can sometimes pull a founder away from the original vision.
And, of course, Maya faces Business or BS, with takes on first-mover advantage, revenue vs profit, VC investment, Bitcoin and more.
Think of this as a conversation with your lawyer and your accountant, you just don't have to pay for it. Honest opinions, practical insights and no unnecessary jargon.
In this episode:
• Building a consumer brand from scratch
• Raising investment before having a finished product
• SEIS and early-stage startup funding
• How founders value a business before meaningful revenue
• Breaking into a crowded drinks market
• Finding and understanding your target audience
• Authenticity and founder-led marketing
• Building in public and putting your team on camera
• Choosing the right investors
• Why founders shouldn't listen to every opinion
• First-mover advantage and competing with established brands
• Revenue vs profit
• Business or BS
About Maya Bedeau
Maya Bedeau is the founder of 'Onest Energy, a natural energy drink brand focused on transparency and providing an alternative within the traditional energy-drink category. Before launching 'Onest, Maya spent years working inside another drinks startup, where she gained hands-on experience across marketing and the realities of running a small business.
Connect with Maya
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-bedeau-08951a109/
'Onest Energy Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drinkonest/?hl=en
Connect with Business Without BS
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@bwblondon
Website: https://withoutbs.com
Connect with Andy Oury
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewoury/

What does it really mean to work for yourself?
There are around four million sole traders in the UK, yet they rarely get the same attention as employees, startups or big businesses. No paid holiday. No guaranteed salary. No corporate safety net. You find the work, do the work, chase the invoice — and then do it all again. That's exactly the world this episode explores.
This week, Andy Oury and Jemma Hotta are joined by Giulio Miglietta, a multidisciplinary artist, craftsman and long-time sole trader.
Giulio's route into business was anything but conventional. He arrived in London with around £200, couch-surfed and occasionally slept at Victoria Coach Station while trying to create a life and career for himself. His goal was deliberately to get uncomfortable, find opportunities and learn how to make things work.
That journey eventually took him through graphic design, illustration and lecturing before developing his own multidisciplinary embroidery studio and distinctive creative practice.
The conversation gets into the reality behind self-employment: independence, uncertainty, finding clients, building skills, standing out in a crowded creative market and choosing a career where there isn't always a safety net.
And because this is Business Without BS, there's also plenty that has absolutely nothing to do with sensible business advice — including why an Italian prefers tea to espresso and whether Giulio needs to find himself a vice.
In this episode:
• Giulio's journey from Italy to London with just £200
• Couch-surfing, squatting and deliberately choosing discomfort
• How struggle helped him develop determination and spot opportunities
• Building a career through transferable skills rather than following a traditional path
• Going from graphic design and illustration to becoming a sole trader
• Why independence is such a big part of self-employment
• The reality of having no paid holiday or traditional employee safety net
• Whether social media has made it easier or harder for young creatives to build careers
• Why standing out matters more than ever
• The forgotten role of craftspeople and sole traders in the economy
• Tea vs espresso — and Giulio's questionable status as an Italian
This episode also ties into The Rebel Accountant's Sole Trader Anthem — a rallying cry for the millions of people working for themselves across the UK.
Think of Business Without BS as a conversation with your lawyer and your accountant — you just don't have to pay for it.
No unnecessary jargon. No corporate b****t. Just conversations about what running a business is actually like.