When Tax Compliance Stops Being Optional

Pulley is known for moving fast. As the platform powering equity management for thousands of startups, growth is constant. But as the company expanded into more states, Accounting Manager Samantha Palmer began to see a growing gap: Pulley didn't have a scalable sales tax process.

Sales thresholds were being crossed. Some states required historical filings or VDAs. Customer-facing teams weren't yet aligned on how to explain tax changes. Engineering resources were stretched.

Nothing was failing, but the system wasn't built for where Pulley was heading.

"We were growing quickly, and we needed a tax process that could keep up with us, not add friction."

Tax compliance was no longer something Pulley could defer. It needed to become part of the foundation.

Finding a Solution Built for Scale, Not Just Filing

When Pulley began evaluating Avalara, Anrok, and Taxwire, the team quickly realized they weren't just buying software—they were choosing an approach.

Many vendors Pulley spoke with led with features, integrations, and automation. Those mattered, but not before Pulley had answers to basic questions:

Which states are we already exposed in? What's urgent? What can wait? What happens if we do nothing? How do we explain these changes to customers?

Taxwire was the only partner that started there.

Instead of showing software, Taxwire began by mapping Pulley's actual risk profile. They ran a full U.S. nexus review and translated it into plain English:

• New York needed a VDA before Pulley could collect.

• Washington required amended returns.

• Massachusetts and Texas had historical liabilities but clear paths for abatements.

• Other states were safe to register cleanly on the February go-live date.

It wasn't just a list. It was a strategy and a plan Pulley could act on immediately.

With Taxwire, Pulley didn't just learn what they needed to do. They finally understood why and how—and they had a partner ready to own the details with them.

When Compliance Became Infrastructure

As Taxwire embedded into Pulley's workflows, another issue surfaced: billing.

AEs and AMs were creating invoices directly in Stripe. It was fast but inconsistent, and those inconsistencies made tax logic harder to apply.

Sam put it plainly:

"We had a lot of billing inconsistencies… there were no guardrails or review steps before an invoice went out."

Instead of patching around the issue, Taxwire helped Pulley evaluate modern billing platforms and align finance, sales, and product on a more reliable long-term setup. What started as a tax initiative became a broader upgrade to Pulley's revenue operations.

By the time Pulley approached its February launch, everything felt smoother. Registrations were done. Historical filings were in motion. Messaging was ready. Billing workflows were stronger. And compliance no longer required daily attention.

It just worked.

Building Operational Edge for the Next Stage of Growth

Today, Pulley has full visibility and control over its tax footprint. Filing runs automatically. Customer communication is straightforward. Internal teams operate with shared context. Billing is more consistent and scalable.

Pulley now has a tax engine that matches the ambition of the business.

"Taxwire has been an extension of our finance team. We now have clarity, confidence, and a tax engine we can trust as we scale."

Pulley didn't just get compliant. They built a long-term operational advantage.