When you walk into the office of Bryan Lichau, most people are surprised by his 6’8 height.
When people learn that both of his sons are taller than he is…they are even more surprised.
Stature aside, you’ll be surprised by how easy it is to work with Bryan. When it comes to taxes, no one wants to take up the task. This is where Bryan makes everyone’s life easier.
The journey towards becoming a CPA started with, of all things, a Communications degree from UC Davis. “My goal was to be the PR director of Nike,” Bryan adds with an eye-roll.
“When I found out that Nike wasn’t clamoring to hire me, I started working with my Father-in-law at his CPA firm.” Over time, Bryan realized he loved working with clients and seeing the ins-and-outs of different fields. Eventually, Bryan earned his MBA while simultaneously working two different jobs in Sacramento. He passed his California CPA exam in 2003.
Eventually, the CPA took Bryan to be the Controller/ CFO at a Jamba Juice chain. While he enjoyed the restaurant world and was a part of several restaurant launches, something led him back to being a personal CPA.
Pacific Northwest is Home In 2007, Bryan and his family moved to Gig Harbor to work for CBRE, the world’s largest commercial real estate company. There, he started as an Assistant Controller on the Group Health account. After working on multiple accounts within multiple industries over the course of nearly 10 years, the company decided to move his group to Dallas, and Bryan took an exit package and started his own CPA firm in 2017.
“While I loved working at CBRE and learning all the intricacies of the commercial real estate world, I really missed the day-to-day interaction with clients that I had working in my father-in-law’s firm. So that is when I decided to hang my own shingle and start Osprey Advisory.”
With his Real Estate world experience, Bryan has found a natural niche working with property owners. He also has clients in the construction industry, restaurants, personal services, and the retail world.
“Currently, our sweet spot is clients under 25 employees and income in the five to ten million dollars a year range. Many of our clients are smaller than that, but that is the size we work best with.”
Giving Back to the Community
Giving Back on the Basketball Court The name ‘Osprey’ is a tip of the hat to his 7 years coaching basketball at Peninsula High School. He enjoys basketball and even more the opportunity to mentor and coach young talent. Basketball is a tool to teach character and Bryan enjoys giving back to his community in this way.
“The thing my clients always hear me say is ‘an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.’
One or two extra steps in ensuring everything is ‘audit-proof’ today will ensure less stress if we have to answer for our declarations. This is where our slogan ‘bridging your tax concerns with solutions’ comes to life. Implementing the right solution, on a regular basis, reduces concerns in the future.”
When he is not working, Bryan can be found at Trophy Lake or Dupont Home Course golfing. He lives with his wife and his two taller sons in Gig Harbor.
