ABOUT US

ABOUT OUR BUSINESS

Harrison Spence as a company has been established for over 12 years.  However, the key staff involved have a lifetime of business experience. Our Managing Director is Alan Marks a former IFA with over 30 years’ experience.  As well as consultancy work, Alan personally oversees all Mergers and Acquisitions and having experienced first-hand the trials and tribulations of selling an IFA business, Alan is well placed to advise vendors and acquirers alike.

Trusted by the Financial Services community for his approach to finding businesses that are a “good cultural fit” buying or selling an IFA practice via Harrison Spence is made easier by dealing with a company that truly understands how the market works.

We are based in London and have an office in Glasgow and offer a service to IFAs throughout the whole of the United Kingdom.  We have worked with IFAs of all shapes and sizes and a full list of the organisations we work with is provided below.

 

OUR SERVICES

If you ask most IFAs “Who are Harrison Spence” they will tell you; we deal with Mergers & Acquisitions. Well that’s true we do and our recent awards for work in this field can be seen here.

 

Acquisition International - International Finance Awards

Best Retail M&A Practice UK 2016

%

Success rate when appointed

Acquisition International - International Finance Awards

Most Client-Focused M&A Advisory Firm – UK 2019

I liked Alan immediately. He has an authenticity and directness I find refreshing.

I very quickly came to respect not only his level of experience and knowledge, but the ease with which he applied these to our objectives, our specific business, and the particular people working with us.

Through the process of shaping our business of acquisition, taking us through the legalities of the sale, and out the other side, Alan has engendered such confidence that he remains my ‘go to’ source of advice for any commercial issue.

Dr Matthew Mills

Higgs Boson Consultants

We have grown our IFA business from £200m client assets to £500m assets and a significant part of this growth has been through the assistance of Alan Marks and Harrison Spence.

They have introduced us to a number of firms to acquire to build up our business.   In some cases we have also acquired valuable advisers and support staff who are now members of our team.

Alan and his colleagues follow through with service and advice after the transaction and always takes a long-term interest in ensuring that his clients grow and prosper for the benefit of clients and staff.

Alan and his firm provide long-term support for growing businesses, and not just a one-off transaction.

Stephen Evans

Evans Hart

Alan and his team offer an invaluable combination of knowledge, experience and understanding about the M&A landscape for financial advisory businesses but also the grass roots issues, and solutions to those issues, that businesses in our sector face. Businesses like ours are based on trusted, personal relationships, and in Alan I feel I have someone in our corner that I can always turn to for an honest, well-informed opinion, which I do not say lightly and value greatly.

James Connor

However, there is far more to Harrison Spence than just M&A.  At the heart of our business is Consultancy and through a collaborative and consultative approach of offering a different Industry perspective and candid advice, we have been supporting IFA’s and a range of businesses in the retail financial services sector to navigate their way through ever increasing regulatory and structural change.

Of course, it’s not all about compliance and regulation, we are ideally placed to analyse your business and make recommendations. One of the biggest complaints we hear about consultancy in general is that it achieves little. In our experience this is mainly caused by very pretty consultation documents with recommendations simply sitting in a drawer and never being actioned.  We take a different approach to this and having identified the changes required, we will actually help you implement change, as much or as little as you like. We can work at all levels within the business and can assist in all areas from junior team members through to Chief Executives and board members.

 

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?

We have experienced commercial minds- Our partners have built, led and sold their own businesses.  We’re friendly and skilled in getting the right message across.

 

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

From the big industry trends to the small operational details – we cut through the noise to give insight on new opportunities and provide you with the information you need to know

We provide insight and valued commentary about the changes taking place in the sector, while supporting business owners to flourish and maximise value from their businesses.

 

 

OUR AIM

Our aim is to support business owners and leadership teams to create sustainable high performing businesses that give them the option of realising their aspirations of a life transforming capital event on exit.

 

We actively deal with:

 

Financial advisory firms

Consolidators

Networks

IFA sole traders
(Buying and Selling IFA practices)

Platforms

Family offices

Fund Management Groups

Discretionary Investment Managers

Insurance Companies

Accountants

Solicitors

Banks and Building Societies

Within our consultancy services, we have helped companies of all shapes and sizes from small financial advisors to international banks and fund managers. Our services are client specific, and driven by their needs, however, they have included:

 

  • Strategic Business Reviews
  • Facilitating Off-Site days for teams at all levels of the business
  • Mediation and Dispute resolution
  • Valuations for numerous reasons
  • Preparing businesses for acquisitions
  • Preparing businesses for sale
  • Market research
  • Bespoke project

GET IN TOUCH

9 + 12 =

Harrison Spence Limited
Lincombe Keep
Lincome Drive
Torquay
TQ1 2HQ

 

Standard Office Hours
Monday to Friday 9.00am-5.00pm
(outside of these hours by arrangement)
We are happy to schedule calls at a time to suit you  from 8.00am to 8.00pm
Face to Face meetings can be arranged at a location convenient  to suit your needs.