Boomtime for boutiques

Lessons learned after twenty years - but can sector agnostics hold on in an expert world?

Hello Rainmakers,

If the recent awards season told us anything it was that the regional M&A market is stuffed full of smart, successful and booming boutique firms providing quality advice to sellers and buyers alike.

Time was when a career outside of the Big Four was considered a step down.

But we’re also going to take time to understand the strategic ambitions and motivations of different spin off practices - Clearwater now punch in the heavyweight division alongside investment banks.

Regional accountancy firms are in the grip of a consolidation whirlwind, new giants are muscling in with their eyes on private company sales - Interpath and Alvarez & Marsal are building regional networks without the burden of an audit base.

Michael Ribbeck has been spending time with one spin-out success story Momentum Corporate Finance that’s been at it for twenty years.

What lessons might Rob Crews have for the younger hungry bucks making their way?

It’s a great read and full of sharp insights and lessons learned.

It’s for our Rainmakers subscribers, it’s the kind of fresh, detailed and genuinely insightful content we are committed to bringing you.

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A WALK INTO THE UNKNOWN

When Rob Crews cleared his desk and left his office at PwC for the last time in 2005, he had a spring in his step.

He admits it was a walk into the unknown, a leaving of his comfort zone, but not only did he have the experience, track record and know how to make a decent living doing deals, he had something else as a start-up - empathy. 

The leaving of the Big Four was amicable but as he hatched the plan to set up Momentum Corporate Finance with his long-time friend and colleague the late Tony Kenny, he knew he was walking the same entrepreneurial path as his clients.