West Sussex and Gatwick-based chartered accountants and chartered tax advisers, Carpenter Box, has appointed Alan Edwards as its new managing partner.
He succeeds John Billings who has led the firm from strength to strength over the last ten years and who now takes up the post of senior partner at the firm.
Alan has risen through the ranks from the day he joined Carpenter Box straight from college in 1993 at the tender age of 17. He qualified as an accountant in 1998 and was appointed to the board on becoming a partner in April 2006.
Back in 1993, Carpenter Box had 42 employees and six partners. Since then, the firm has enjoyed continual growth and now boasts a team of 120 staff, with 11 partners, looking after more than 4,500 clients. In 2010 the firm became a founding member of MHA, a national association of leading independent accountants, giving Carpenter Box the ability to provide larger clients with accounting solutions across the UK. The firm is also a member of Baker Tilly International, which provides client access to a global network of trusted advisors.
Alan commented: “I am delighted to have been appointed managing partner of the firm that I joined straight from college 22 years ago. I look forward to building on the work of my predecessors and working alongside such a strong group of partners as we pursue a policy of measured expansion, notably in the immediate term via our new Gatwick office. As always, central to our success in the future will be the specialist support that we are able to provide to our growing client list.”
Alan possesses strong experience in owner managed businesses within the SME sector and his portfolio includes a number of clients in both the manufacturing and property sectors. He also specialises in the medical profession, providing accountancy and tax support to a number of GP practices.
As a ‘home grown’ partner, Alan has performed the role of Student Partner over the last eight years, overseeing the Carpenter Box trainee accountant programme and helping to maintain its Platinum Accreditation under the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) scheme.
Outside of work, Alan is a very keen golfer and holds the voluntary position of Treasurer with the Sussex County Junior Golf Association. He also enjoys relaxing with his wife and two young children at their home in Worthing.