“They have been absolutely fantastic”

TaxAssist Accountants’ support centre has guided franchisee Lloyd Evans through an unprecedented crisis

In the most turbulent of times, independent business specialist TaxAssist Accountants has proved to be an essential hub for local business communities as a result of its unsurpassed levels of support and communication.

With over 230 franchises across the UK looking after more than 76,000 clients, the company has seen its services in demand like never before.

The Norwich-based support centre team has worked tirelessly to ensure its franchisees have correct and up-to-date information to meet its network’s clients’ requests for help. The timely advice and online and centralised email campaigns offered by TaxAssist Accountants during the pandemic have been well received by franchisees and clients alike.

Surreal situation

Lloyd Evans is a TaxAssist Accountants franchisee operating from Kingswinford, Halesowen and Wolverhampton. As with all non-essential, shop-based businesses, Lloyd and his team of eight staff found themselves having to temporarily close their shops in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic and begin the process of working from home.

He explains how they coped: “The whole situation has been so surreal, but the transition from office to remote working thankfully wasn’t too onerous, as we have been using a hosted environment for a long time now. That made the process much easier.”

Help during the pandemic

Lloyd is full of praise for the TaxAssist Accountants support centre team for all they have done to help him during the pandemic.

“I have sent regular thanks to the Norwich-based team,” he says. “They have been absolutely fantastic during this very testing time and it’s at just these times you realise and appreciate the strength of the bond within the TaxAssist family.

“The constant messages we receive from clients has been one of thanks for the regular updates they receive. This has brought us even closer to our clients and supports the huge volume of telephone calls we’ve made.

“Equally, we receive many acknowledgements of our posts on social media, which is all due to the Norwich specialists. The never ceasing support and guidance has been superb.

“A third of our new clients come from referrals and during lockdown we continued to receive recommendations, as well as leads provided from the support centre, which I was able to sign up by using our comprehensive software suite. In fact, the whole software package has proved invaluable to me in my ability to support my practice and my clients.”

Optimistic outlook

Having opened his shops to the public in June, Lloyd is confident his services will continue to be in demand and optimistic about the outlook for the independent business sector.

“Whether a client now chooses to pop into one of our TaxAssist Accountants shops or prefers to meet online, we can be flexible,” he says. “Our friendly, approachable way of working offers something different to traditional accountants and we’re genuinely interested in helping clients and making a tangible difference to their businesses.

“As a small business ourselves, we’ve witnessed numerous examples of innovation in the sector and a desire to shop local and support local businesses, which I think will hold the sector in good stead going forward.”

If you share a passion to support local small businesses and have a business or financial background, a TaxAssist Accountants franchise can provide the systems and support you need to be successful.

At a glance TaxAssist Accountants

Established:

1995

Number of franchised outlets:

224 franchise areas; 382 shops and offices

Location of units:

UK

Investment range:

£100,000-£150,000

Minimum required capital:

£40,000

Contact:

franchiseenquiries@taxassist.co.uk taxassistfranchise.co.uk