I would like to thank the staff at JLA for making the past year for me so pleasant
Our meeting with JLA was both productive and informative, we received quality care
The members of staff at JLA are a credit to the firm
My firm may only be a 'small fish', yet I always receive excellent service, JLA are a credit to the profession
Thank you for all your help with my taxation matters, it definitely takes away the pain of trying to do it myself!
The service my company has received has been second to none, I look forward to working with JLA on a long-term basis
I fully intended to study for a one year course at polytechnic and then a four year training contract. I even had a couple of job offers from local firms but my mother persuaded me to go to University and I spent 3 years in Southampton reading Business Economics and Accountancy, between 1982 and 1985.
Stoys was a brilliant place to be, it was one of their best times, business was exciting, winning loads of new work, and working on some great clients and very interesting projects.
As soon as I was out of training contract I joined Hays Allan (now called Hays MacIntyre) who were a medium sized firm, fantastic client service which I liked, but recession times, so no chance of getting partnership.
Left to join a 10 partner firm, Bellman Messik and got partnership at 29, in 1993.
In 1995 the firm split, and the Pinner and Barnet Partners formed Sobell Rhodes, and I joined as a salaried partner, and bought equity in 1996 . Very exciting times where I learned an enormous amount from Andrew and Melvyn, for which I am very grateful.
At 38, sitting on the fence, I was happy and comfortable in partnership, earning a good income, but felt could do much better for clients, and felt restricted in partnership format, so I left and set up on my own. I was also encouraged to set up on my own by a number of clients, but Geoff Thomas in particular acted as a great mentor, always supportive and with a large gift from my uncle, that was enough to make me make the move. I spent months planning, and I still have my original business plan which I pored over for hours, leaving no part uncertain.
Originally there was my semi senior Andy Evangelou (who I regard as a good friend), and my secretary Viki (who became my brother in law's wife) doing 2 days a week.
We strive to be a Great Small firm
In November 2013 we won Accountancy Age "Small Firm of the Year" - this is something I was very proud of achieving, not for me, but for our team, we really strive to give brilliant service, we are good at what we do.
We are a small tax, accounting and audit practice based in North London.
We have a team of 22 and we look after about 450 businesses, and prepare around 850 tax returns, and the average fee in the practice is about £4,000 pa.
We love helping open minded people achieve their best financial destiny because we have the tools and skills to make a real difference.
Over the last 11 years we have helped over 120 clients become millionaires, and over 20 in the tens of millions.
As a practice we have a specialism is construction, property and the entertainment industry, although as a client type, I would say successful family businesses. I'm a published author on tax too, regular speaker at the ACCA on tax, and even consult with the Government when legislation is changing.
It's not just about growing companies, the majority of our clients are established businesses who like to keep their tax down, but want the peace of mind their tax and accounting affairs are both efficient and safe.
We are a full service provider which means we can help with your bookkeeping, management accounts, payroll and vat via our sister company Modina, to statutory accounts, audit , bespoke tax planning and general business advice.
Before we meet, I like potential clients to answer certain questions, to help me consider if we may be right for each other:
If you had to visualise your perfect business (or where do you see yourself) in three years time, what would it look like?
Unlike some other Accountants we firmly believe that Accountancy is a noble profession, with the power to have a positive impact on people's lives.
We have a wide range of skills, experience and tools throughout our Practice to make a real difference: we can change your take home pay; help your family and provide a sound foundation for your future. Essentially, by using our skills we can change your life and we pride ourselves on the numerous examples we have demonstrating this.
If we are to help to the best of our abilities then we need to invest the correct amount of time and resources to ensure we deliver exactly what you want.
