Third year of business spells success for boutique VAT consultancy

Centurion VAT Consultants, a specialised VAT consultancy made up of VAT experts Liz Maher, Alan Maher, Louise Gray and Andrea Brindley, has reported an annual revenue increase of 62% on March 2009.

Centurion VAT Consultants, located in Langstone Business Park, Newport, credits its third year of success to an increasing number of contract wins from larger corporates, including Kimball and Rockwool who were looking for specialised VAT expertise and support.

Opportunities created by VAT legislation to allow businesses to make back dated claims on missed VAT has also been a contributing factor in Centurion VAT’s successful financial year end.

Centurion VAT Consultants, which reviews the VAT practices within corporate, public sector, and charitable bodies, was originally set up by the University of Wales, Newport, in 1998, in order to help the higher education sector handle the complexities of VAT.

In 2007 it became an owner managed consultancy and has since expanded its VAT service offering across the public and corporate sector in Wales, identifying ways in which VAT can be used to improve cash flow and create savings for businesses on a contingency fee basis.

Now a commercial concern, Centurion VAT’s consultants offer  its clients over 90 years collective experience in the field of VAT, including expertise drawn from many years with consultancies such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young, as well as in industry and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

Liz Maher, director at Centurion VAT Consultants, commented: “We are delighted to be celebrating our third year as an owner managed consultancy with such a positive annual increase in revenue. These results are a reflection of our efforts over the past year, despite the economic climate.

 “The majority of our new business wins since our set up in 2007 have come from recommendations, but we now recognise that more and more businesses in Wales would welcome access to such a high level of VAT expertise. Being locally based, close to the M4 and offering a real value for money option, enables us to meet a variety of business needs. Our success is also attributable to the fact that we can offer the knowledge and expertise expected from ‘the big four’, at boutique consultancy rates.”

Andrea Brindley, director added: “We aim to deliver business value to our clients. It’s a great help that our team doesn't work under the pressure of billing or utilisation targets, it's all about agreeing budgets with clients and working for a long term relationship. I think this factor has had a lot to do with our expansion and success over the past three years.

“We see Centurion as providing businesses with access to real independent VAT advice and a resource to help manage their day to day VAT accounting, at a time when reporting requirements and penalties from HMRC are increasing and finance resources may be hit from the impact of the recession on headcount.”