FINANCE
Marlin Corporate Finance managing director Paul Griffiths ( right ) with non-executive director Gary Lumby .
DOUBLE ACT
WORDS : DAVE ROBSON PICTURE : TOM BANKS
How Marlin ’ s clients get two advisors for the price of one
Getting two for the price of one is as attractive in business as it is when doing the weekly shop .
And that “ two for one ” bonus is what firms get if they use Marlin Business Consultancy Services ( MBCS ) to help them grow .
For not only will they receive the financial nous of Marlin Corporate Finance MD Paul Griffiths and his team , they ’ ll also get the business acumen of Gary Lumby MBE , whose Focus on Success firm provides non-executive directors to SMEs .
Vastly experienced Gary has been a non-executive director of Stocktonbased Marlin Corporate Finance for nearly three years . But the more he and Paul worked together , they realised their complementary skillsets and approaches would be the perfect combination to help SMEs with growth ambitions .
And with 40 “ live ” UK clients already in MBCS ’ s first few months , it seems many firms agree .
Gary explained : “ It just made sense – we thought , ‘ Why don ’ t we join forces in terms of pooling our expertise and experience to deliver a holistic service ?’
“ We can help clients overcome the challenges or opportunities they face , resulting in growth in revenue , profitability and , ultimately , the valuation of their company .”
Paul , who began Marlin Corporate Finance in 2013 , said : “ When we started working together , we just clicked , even though we have different manners , ideas and contacts . But I believe it ’ s the ideal combination to offer a full service .” Clients are offered a first free “ diagnostic ” meeting to establish if MBCS is right for them . If it is , a report will be compiled , suggesting elements the business needs to focus on – and that can be one or many elements , including marketing , recruitment , finance , mergers and acquisitions ( M & As ), coaching , corporate governance and planning .
However , Gary admits MBCS won ’ t be for everyone .
“ Some business owners are quite happy being the size they are , or some are lifestyle businesses , but we want to help businesses that haven ’ t been growing in the way they ’ d hoped , so they ’ re willing to look at other avenues to accelerate that growth .
“ There are 5.7m SMEs in this country , of which about 10 per cent probably have a £ 500,000 to £ 30m turnover and maybe employ from five to 200 people , but want to grow . They ’ re the firms we can really help because there are lots of levers you can pull and push .
“ If the focus is on finance , Paul and his team might do the heavy lifting . If it ’ s sales and marketing , HR or coaching , I might look after that . Or if it ’ s mergers and acquisitions , we may do that together .”
Both men have an extensive list of contacts . Paul said : “ Our little black books , if you like , contain hundreds of businesses in different industries and our clients can tap into those networks .”
Gary added : “ Introducing firms to each other will usually lead to value creation or cost savings . But they wouldn ’ t have been
able to do that without working with us because they don ’ t have those contacts .”
And MBCS is determined to offer a “ self-financing ” service . Gary explained : “ Basically , the savings or revenue generated by working with us should be more than the cost , so it ’ s a ‘ win win ’.”
Employee recruitment and retention is another area MBCS can help with . And Gary believes striking up an open rapport with clients is crucial .
He said : “ Ultimately , you are going to be asking them some challenging questions and offering constructive criticism , so there ’ s no point employing us if you want ‘ yes men ’.”
But why do he and Paul work so well together ? Gary said : “ Paul is probably more imaginative than me . He sees opportunities I might not , whereas I ’ m probably a little more risk-averse , but we reach a compromise that ’ s always in the best interests of the client .”
And they have another crucial thing in common . Paul says : “ We both get a real buzz from seeing our clients doing well .”
Visit marlincorporatefinance . co . uk .
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