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Clients
Chris Johnstone
When Stuart left the firm, Chris valued his
services so highly that he decided to seek him out in his new practice
and re-engage his services.
Ten years later, Chris is still employing the services of Dufton
Kellner to prepare the annual accounts for his firm Christlematic
Engineering. Christlematic manufactures precision machined parts, kits
and complex assemblies to the specification of his extremely varied
client base. From hydraulics to cameras, Chris supplies parts to a
plethora of various clients. He even once made 300 perspex model hand
grenades for an Italian artist.
On top of the annual accounts, Chris also meets with partners from
Dufton Kellner on a monthly basis for general business advice. Chris
implicitly trusts the firm with his business.
Despite being a small firm and so not required by law to have an
annual audit, Chris decided he wanted to get a thorough view of his
business financially, and so Dufton Kellner partner Andrew Biddle
commenced the audit process.
"The main outcome of the audit was an enormous clearout for the firm '“
literally," says Chris. "Andrew advised us to take steps to reduce our
inventory and to avaoid carrying so much stock. It has lightened the
load for the business in so many respects. We have lots more space now
that we aren't keeping stock for customers that we stopped trading with 3
years ago."
This purging of stock seems an unusual outcome of a financial audit,
until the tax implications are considered. "We were paying tax on stock
that we didn't need to have on the premises. I've been with
accountants that are just interested in the money. We would give them
our books, and they would focus on the tax compliance, and that would be
the end of it. Dufton Kellner takes the whole business into account,
and genuinely cares about getting the best from it."
According to Chris, Dufton Kellner are different to any accountancy
firm he has been with before. "They are personable and approachable,
and aren't cold like other accountants I've know. I wouldn't have
stayed with them if they weren't value for money. They go one step
further for their clients, with little touches like sending birthday
cards. They are genuinely keen to guide me and look after my business."