Newcastle-headquartered Tait Walker has been acquired by a national accountancy and business advisory firm in its third UK acquisition in four months.
The firm has been snapped up by Azets in a move which will take its UK regional network to 84 offices.
Established in 1937, Tait Walker has a turnover of £13m and advises about 4,000 clients across its offices in Newcastle, Stockton, Morpeth, Durham and Carlisle.
Tait Walker also provides a wealth management service which is authorised to provide regulated activities by the FCA, and expands Azets’ wealth management service into the North for the first time.
Acquiring Tait Walker adds more than 170 people in business support and client-facing roles to the Azets team, including 12 partners.
Azets already has a strong presence across the North with eight offices in the North East, six offices in the North West and two in Yorkshire.
Chris Horne, group chief executive of Azets, said: “We’re excited to welcome Tait Walker to the Azets family; this firm has a reputation for high-quality people providing first class client service. The acquisition is another significant step on our growth journey to increase revenue by 50 per cent in the next five years, following quickly on from our recent acquisitions of Garbutt + Elliott in Yorkshire and Inspire Accountants in Poole.
“Tait Walker is established among the leading accounting and business advisory firms in the North East, with a long heritage of excellence and a broad capability across accountancy and business advisory services.”
Peter Gallanagh, regional chief executive for the North at Azets UK, added: “We believe strongly in the local delivery of personalised client services, whilst giving businesses in the North East the opportunity to benefit from our breadth, depth, and experience as an SME focused international accounting, tax, audit, advisory and business services group.
“Tait Walker has a strong regional reputation for its personable approach and specialist expertise which, combined with Azets’ local and international reach, opens up a wealth of opportunities for our clients.”
Andrew Moorby, managing partner at Tait Walker, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for Tait Walker and our clients, and the acquisition demonstrates our commitment to the continued growth of our business, as we enter the next phase of our long and successful journey as part of the UK’s newest top ten accounting firm.
