Revenue up but profits down at Gillespie Macandrew

Legal firm Gillespie Macandrew LLP has reported an 8.4% increase in turnover for its year to 28 February 2017, but profits down 2.9% as the practice continued to invest.

Audited annual accounts show turnover of £11.36m, up from £10.48m, giving a fifth successive year of growth and what the firm says is the largest single year increase in its history.

Profits dipped from £2.86m to £2.77m, after record growth of over 18% the previous year. The firm has no external debt.

Over the year the firm has expanded its Glasgow and Perth offices and made a number of new appointments, including additions to its partner group, with two lateral hires, two internal promotions in September 2016 and a further two in March 2017. The firm currently has 22 partners and 118 staff.

Chief executive Chris West commented: “We are very pleased with the top line growth of over 8% in a very competitive market. Following the record profit growth in 2015-16 we budgeted for a lower profit in the past year as we had planned a number of investments.

“We have increased our staff numbers, taken additional space for growth in our Perth and Glasgow teams, continued our associate development programme and launched an all-staff bonus linked to the performance of the business as key elements of that investment, along with commencing the streamlining of our processes and updating our use of technology.”

Chair Fiona Morton added: “The partners strongly believe in the need to develop the business for the medium rather than the short term to make sure we continue to provide our clients with the quality and responsiveness of service that they want. The changes in the legal services market have never been at a faster pace. This is an exciting and dynamic place to be and we feel we are strongly placed to continue to compete and to enhance and grow our business in the year ahead and beyond.”