David Dixon

I am a qualified Chartered Management Accountant and prior to joining TaxAssist Accountants worked as a Group Financial Controller for a large motor dealership group based in Colchester. Prior to that I had many years experience within the small company sector including several years as a director of the family motor dealership business. I also spent a year working in the Stock Exchange following qualification.

I joined TaxAssist Accountants in November 2002 opening my first shop in October 2005. I opened my second in 2007, based purely on the success of my first shop. I am now planning to open my third shop in the autumn. The growth of my business over the last six months has been faster than ever before. It's far exceeded our projections...I've found that the shop front produces pretty much all the volume of new business that we can handle, putting the business in its best position yet.

In response to the increase of business I now employ four full-time accountants and an administrator between the two shop fronts. I was initially wary of taking on people unless absolutely necessary but I found that it's clearly the way to go if you want to grow your business. The last thing I want is to have to turn business away so to cope with demand and to maintain good client service the team is absolutely essential.

With two shop fronts, it's important to put some thought into how to manage both at the same time. I have now appointed a manager to run the Bishop's Stortford shop front and I am based in Colchester. The third shop front will run on a leaner basis as a satellite of the Colchester business, with one person dealing with clients' accounts day to day, letting me come in two days a week. I expect the new shop front to grow steadily and when the time's right I expect I'll take on a couple more employees in relation to the amount of business. The rate of development with TaxAssist Accountants is very fast – there's a great deal of potential there for franchisees.

As my business has grown, I've continued to make use of the training and support on offer from the Norwich based Support Centre. TaxAssist Accountants have provided me with an incredibly comprehensive training package that included a five-week course that focused on all aspects of running a business. The training taught me new approaches to accounting while reinforcing what I already knew. It gave me the confidence that I would be able to bring success to the business - refocusing my existing skills to ensure I had a full understanding of the TaxAssist Accountants model.

I was initially attracted to TaxAssist Accountants because of the significant support – the whole package is incredibly solid and I found it very reassuring. In fact, since I launched the business in 2002, in many ways the support has kept on getting better. TaxAssist Accountants are dedicated to their franchisees and their advice and guidance is very clear, to the point and incredibly helpful.

Jackie Bligh

I had spent 15 years working as an accountant in multi nationals and was becoming increasingly disillusioned with the ever increasing workloads and the headcount slashing mentality.

I had seen TaxAssist on the internet but hadn't considered starting my own business due to being a single mum with no real assets.

My cousin Jo (Exeter Franchise) joined in March 2005 and this was the catalyst which made me quit my well paid and cushy corporate life to jump blindly into the unknown!

I joined the TaxAssist training course in Oct 2005. I opted to go straight into a shop front and I opened for business in Torquay on the 2nd Jan 2006.

My first month was absolutely phenomenal and wouldn't have been possible without the support I received from the accountants and tax specialists that run the helpline. They are dedicated solely to helping out the franchise network.

At the end of my fourth month I had 92 clients of which 65% were walk-ins!

What initially was my biggest fear, sales & marketing has become what I enjoy the most ….you can never be too pushy; If you don't ask you don't get and don't forget your business cards if you're going down the pub …..

Year one saw phenomenal growth, year two was the year of managing the existing clients, and year three was making the work more profitable, thank you kindly Mr Mack (Franchise Development Manager)! Marketing was put to one side at the end of Year 1, sadly, as I needed to cope with what we had and getting clients is the easy bit! I am now at the end of Year 3 and have just kick started the marketing again, this week I have 12 potential clients to see!!!!

Year 3 saw the start of the credit crunch, and during the year we lost a fair number of clients as a result. Fortunately my sign up rates of new clients remained constant, and the net effect was that we grew by 40 clients. Even during a recession I was pleased to see growth albeit much slower than previous years. Even though we entered an economic downturn January 2009 was the best yet. .

Clients now stand at 315, (that doesn't include partners or directors). Although client numbers have not increased we have implemented CCH costing and as a result use this to ensure our pricing is correct. Additionally our client mix is starting to change and we are seeing larger fees than in previous years.

Generally things are much more relaxed, running around like a headless chicken trying to fix everything is now a thing of the past. You learn so much in the first few years and without the support I would probably have thrown the towel in during my first 12 months!!!

Life may be more relaxed but I am now considering the next mountain to climb …. I find myself looking at empty shop fronts and maybe this time next year will see the opening of my second shop front. In the meantime I want to get my client numbers up to 450 – 500 by the end of 2009!!!

I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever…I can honestly say leaving corporate life was the best thing I ever did….and my only wish is that I'd done it sooner!"

Mark Fordham

My background is in banking, internal audit and lecturing at degree level. Realising that my whole career had been with big corporations, I decided that I wanted to work for myself and build up my own business close to where I live in St Albans. In October 2003 I took the plunge and joined TaxAssist Accountants.

The reasons why I chose to consider franchising are the lower risks, and support in areas I had little or no experience of, such as sales and marketing. As part of my due diligence I visited the franchise exhibition at Wembley, looked at websites and magazines, spoke to franchisees and attended discovery days. I also attended a BFA workshop. The reasons I chose TaxAssist Accountants were the positive feedback I received from the franchisees and the success to date of the franchise, the set up of the Support Centre and the trust I had in them running the franchise. Added to this, I felt that accountancy and tax was an area I could succeed in.

The training and support I received have been fantastic. I attended a five week initial training course which covered accounts, taxation, software, sales and marketing. The training is provided by BPP Professional Education and the Support Centre in Norwich. Both have continued whilst I've been out in the field in the form of technical and marketing help lines, on site visits from technical personnel and Directors, update training days, and of course the support and advice of other franchisees.

Have I faced challenges along the way? Of course. I work harder now than I ever have and I was slow to take on staff and have perhaps been guilty at times of working in the business, not on the business as I should have done.

If someone asked me what advice I would give to someone buying a franchise, I would say to do your research thoroughly. Think about what you will need from the franchisor and consider if they will provide this. Talk to existing franchisees and get a feel for how they are doing.

Since joining TaxAssist Accountants my business has gone from strength to strength. It has been hard work and great fun to take the business from a blank sheet of paper to over 600 clients in a short space of time. The support from TaxAssist Accountants has been first class. Everything they said they would do has been done and more. I estimate that my business is at least 2 years ahead of where it would have been had I started on my own as a result of joining the franchise. I am looking forward to continuing to grow a successful business.

Phil Marriott

I joined TaxAssist Accountants in December 2002 having purchased an existing fee bank from a franchisee who was returning to a former employer. My experiences gained in banking, insurance and finance, coupled with the knowledge gained in setting up and running a group of limited companies with some fellow directors, gave me some preparation for running an accountancy / business advisory practice…but I wanted the comfort of a "hand held" approach and some solid back-up support.

The obvious integrity, willingness and openness of all the team at TaxAssist Accountants struck me right from the outset, such that the decision was much easier to make – a clear sign that things were right then, and which has continued to prove to be right time and again since. Looking back, the first year was an exceptionally demanding one and much of the cash flow was reinvested to develop the potential of my practice. I had originally planned to move into shop front style premises some time after three years. After just two years the ideal shop front became available and I needed to make the commercial decision and investment much sooner, eventually moving in March 2005. Despite my reservations over the cost and disruption the overriding outcome has been excellent. My net fee income, client growth, profitability and cash flow have all benefited dramatically since then, improving month on month. New business enquiries are plentiful with word of mouth being the best source and referrals from local professional sources (banks and solicitors) second. There is little other marketing I need to undertake, and the brand building activity of the Support Centre is sending welcome leads my way. I now have seven members of staff.

In December 2007 I acquired the freehold of a former bank in my neighbouring home town. It opened as my main office in March 2008. It is at least three times the size of the previous shop front, and provides substantial scope for further growth. The quality and average fee size of new business enquiries has improved. The fact I have been confident enough to buy, and that my bank have been so keen to support me, is continuing testament to the strength of the business model. I have entered 2009 with more enthusiasm than ever!

The brand support is excellent and allows me to portray a "big" practice feel but with a "small" practice price structure – a real winner with the clients! Ongoing training is excellent through BPP and I have to say that TaxAssist Accountants seem to have their support structure with franchisees just right – there when you need them but leaving you to run and develop your business when you don't!

I have no doubts I made the right decision and can confidently recommend TaxAssist Accountants.

On all member companies you can gain information about the business easily and quickly by using the Information Request button on the listing.

TaxAssist Accountants - Full Member TaxAssist Accountants is a white collar franchise which specialises in the supply of accounting, taxation and associated services to small businesses. A fully comprehensive training and support package is provided for ambitious business builders who aspire to develop a substantial accountancy practice. Formal accountancy qualifications are not required as full training is provided. Relevant previous experience, a good commercial brain and a desire to succeed are essential. Sector: Commercial, Business Services Information Request 271 TaxAssist Accountants TaxAssist House, 112-114 Thorpe Road, Norwich, NR1 1RT England www.taxassist.net The Recruitment Department Tel: 0800 0188297 Fax: 01603 619992 recruitment@taxassist.co.uk