Senior appointments target growth at Pierce

Two key appointments at Lancashire business advisory and accountancy group, Pierce, signal an emphasis on business and brand development at the Blackburn-based company.

Promoted to the board of Pierce Group is Ben Smith, 36. Ben joined Pierce in 2005 following several years in the engineering industry. Training with the company, he qualified as a chartered accountant in 2008 and brings to the board considerable R&D knowledge, together with experience in the field of company acquisitions and disposal.

Pierce Group’s newly appointed business development manager, John Toon, joins the company after 12 years with accountants Montpelier. He will be responsible for brand strategy and the formulation of a new business programme for Pierce, which is currently celebrating its 85th year on the business landscape of Lancashire and the wider North West region.

Pierce’s new director Ben Smith said: “The market is changing rapidly and companies such as ours have an opportunity to demonstrate that they can punch above their weight by providing the breadth of specialist services that have been perceived previously to be the domain of only the national or multi-national brands.

“The North West region is a hot-bed of dynamic businesses, many in the SME category, and it is here that we see our growing range of services continuing to make such an impact for companies and entrepreneurs seeking high quality business advice and financial management expertise, to enable them to grow with greater confidence and structure.

"Our own recent client gains prove that we are becoming the service provider of choice for successful brands across many market sectors and we’re delighted to play our part in helping those businesses make such a significant contribution to the regional economy. Our roles will now be to project our service message to the widest audience possible and to extend our client base across the North West.” Amongst Ben Smith and John Toon’s primary tasks will be the further development of markets in Greater Manchester, Central and East Lancashire and the Fylde.