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CBW: The expertise of a major firm, the personal services of a small firm

The success of CBW has been driven by its ambitious and creative partners. Together, they have transformed the business from a standard suburban practice into a full service city practice with clients ranging from sole traders to AIM-listed PLCs.
The international component of CBW’s current client base is mostly comprised of UK subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies. However, the team is looking forward to expanding this portfolio and sees that their membership with MGI will be critical to delivering this growth.
Together, the CBW partners have built a practice that offers a breadth of expertise that is rarely found outside of the top 20 practices. The key difference, however, is that CBW offers these services on a smaller, more passionate and focussed scale.
This ensures clients of greater control over their jobs as well as the expected cost advantages, faster response times and greater flexibility when compared to the “big boys”.
As the original vision for CBW evolved into reality, the partners’ vision also evolved. Now the team is working on further developments that will ensure that the individuals they work with (whether in their private or commercial roles) will be at the centre of the practice’s focus.
It is the clients’ needs that will be shaping the CBW of the future and towards this end, the practice is now moving towards a substantially greater focus on value adding services such as:

• profit optimisation
• business development
• tax management
• risk management
• succession implementation.

In addition to the traditional audit and accounting services, CBW offers clients the full range of services from close knit teams of experts (most of whom are ex-top tier firms) including:

• Corporate recovery and insolvency: headed by John Alexander and comprising four IPs, including three partners
• Forensics and investigations: headed by Paul Smethurst and Peter Luscombe
• Property tax specialist: headed by Andy White and including two dual-qualified surveyors/tax advisors
• Wealth management and financial services: headed by Tony Lesser with an additional Chartered Financial Planner and a team of 8
• Integrated personal/commercial tax planning: which blends the tax team and the financial planning team.
  

CBW’s vital statistics

• 13 partners
• 80+ staff
• London-based
• 50+ years of trading