Business and financial adviser Grant Thornton UK has recorded its fourth successive year of strong performance, with turnover up 13 per cent to GBP471m for the financial year ended 30 June 2013.
The predominantly organic growth comes on the back of double digit performance in the previous year and puts Grant Thornton well in reach of achieving its Ambition 2015 revenue target of GBP500m one year early.
This growth was driven in large part by continued strengthening of the advisory practice, which grew by 21.2 per cent. The firm also saw its audit practice improve by 9.2 per cent whilst turnover from its tax offering remained broadly flat year on year.
Distributable profits rose six per cent over the period, albeit the average profit per partner rose by 4.2 per cent due to the continued investment in new partners in growing parts of the business. The firm’s total contribution to the Exchequer in respect of all taxes was GBP161.8m, with an average rate of tax paid per partner on this year’s profits estimated at 42.5 per cent.
Grant Thornton promoted 25 partners and directors in the year and hired 280 new trainees.
Scott Barnes, chief executive, Grant Thornton UK, says: "These strong results reflect the hard work and collaboration of all our people who are focused on delivering our strategy and achieving our Ambition 2015 plans.
"During the past five years, we’ve pursued a very deliberate strategy of investing in those parts of our business where we could take market leading positions – such as in the public sector audit and financial services space – along with reinforcing our strengths in our core mid-market segment.
"The investment we’ve made in our brand, and ensuring our people understand what it means and how they deliver its values, is now truly paying dividends. We’ve seen a step change in the way the market responds to us and importantly, how we react to opportunities – taking a more cohesive, joined-up approach utilising our in-depth sector and service line expertise to unlock growth opportunities for our clients.
"There are of course continued challenges in the marketplace, and our business model is clearly delivering. As economic confidence grows, our position as a stand out brand within the marketplace means we look positively towards to the long-term future."
