Franchise Article

TaxAssist Accountants is proud to announce that 8 of its established franchises have recently signed 10 year franchise agreement renewal contracts. This level of commitment from the franchisees demonstrates their continuing belief in the TaxAssist Accountants support structure, business model and brand name and the considerable benefits of joining and staying with the TaxAssist Accountants network.

Central London based accountants Debbie Corbett & Vince Dalaimo had both already been with TaxAssist Accountants for several years when they joined together as a partnership in 2005. Opening a shop front in the centre of the capital city, their business has gone from strength to strength over the last two years and they have now signed a ten-year franchise renewal agreement.  TaxAssist Accountants Franchisees of the Year 2006 and finalists for the Fastest Growth award at the 2007 Annual Conference, they plan to open two more shop fronts in central London soon, increasing their workforce from five to 25.

Growing with the aid of TaxAssist Accountants technical expertise and marketing support, Debbie and Vince have been able to raise the profile of the business dramatically and their client base has expanded significantly as a result.

Counting supermodel Claudia Schiffer's chauffeur and stylist among their clients, the partners have increased the visibility of their business by taking to the streets of London in a branded car, building up a fee bank of £503,000 in the process.

Their decision to take out a ten-year renewal rather than the standard five-year option demonstrates their confidence in TaxAssist Accountants and its ability to help their business grow.

Debbie says: "As you become more experienced the support you need changes and TaxAssist delivers this.  There are certain aspects that are particularly beneficial.  We don’t need to research anything.  If a client comes to us with something unusual we can contact the Support Centre and they’ll do the research for us.  Also, the franchisor keeps us up to date on changes in legislation.  For instance, when new money laundering regulations were introduced, the Support Centre produced all the new contracts, policies and documents for us, which would have taken a huge amount of resources.   We also attend BPP Professional Education update days which run regularly throughout the year.

TaxAssist Accountants have invested a lot of money and effort into their package and they offer real value for money compared with other franchises.”

For Debbie and Vince, the main advantage of being TaxAssist Accountants franchisees is the opportunity to relax and focus on the truly important business decisions, knowing that they and their staff have back up and support when they need it and a growing brand which will continue to attract customers.

EDITOR'S NOTES

TaxAssist Accountants was founded in 1995, specifically to serve the tax and accountancy needs of small business in the UK.  Its Support Centre is in Norwich, and currently TaxAssist Accountants has a network of offices with over 160 accountants and tax specialists around the country.

Chief Executive - Karl Sandall FCIB

Karl joined TaxAssist Accountants in January 2000 after 26 years with HSBC.  As well as being a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, Karl is also a Business Advisor to the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee.

Finance and Technical Director – Simon Clarke FCCA

Simon worked with a number of small local firms of accountants in accounts preparation and tax planning before moving to PriceWaterhouseCoopers in 2000.  Simon qualified as a Chartered Certified Accountant in December 1998 and became a Fellow in May 2004.  He joined TaxAssist Accountants in July 2004 as Head of Technical Services.  Simon heads up the technical and finance teams and takes responsibility for the help line, technical releases, the technical support site and franchisee visits. 

Business Development Director – Sarah Robertson MSc, Dip M, Chartered Marketer, MCIM FIDM

Sarah founded a successful Brand Agency ‘The Point’ in 1994 with three other Directors. ‘The Point’ became one of the foremost marketing communications agencies in the Eastern region with billings in excess of £4.5m.  Sarah has a total of 20 years experience in the marketing and advertising industry, working with a broad range of national and regional brands such as the British Red Cross, Norwich Union, Oracle, Del Monte, the Imperial Cancer Research Fund and Swinton Insurance. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a Fellow of the Institute of Direct Marketing.  Sarah joined the TaxAssist Accountants Board on 1st September 2004.  Sarah is responsible for marketing strategy, brand development, shop fronts, practice management and business development strategies for franchisees.