Major city centre move for accounting and advisory firm
International accounting and advisory firm Mazars is to move into the newly built 3 Wellington Place in Leeds.
The firm has exclusively confirmed that all of its 130 employees will move into the city centre development in November, following an extensive £1.2m fit-out.
Mazars, which has been based on Geldard Road in Gildersome for around 20 years, has leased the building on a 15-year term, with a 10 year break clause, from MEPC. Mazars said that the move will allow all employees to work in one purpose-designed, modern space; across 14,000 sq ft of office space on the fifth floor.
Mazars’ Leeds practice has also recently welcomed a number of highly qualified and experienced new additions to its teams.
Lucy Rothwell has joined from Deloitte to lead the Forensic and Investigations Services team and Pauline Davison, formerly FD of Neom Organics, is spearheading the fast-growing outsourcing team.
Other recent experienced recruits include Ian Goodwin from KPMG to head Leeds’ Employment Tax and Ross Preston from EY to support the growing audit client base in Yorkshire.
Leeds office managing partner, Oliver Hoffman, said: “We consider ourselves very fortunate to be a part of the vibrant business community in Leeds, and this move gives our team the right environment to communicate and collaborate: and ultimately deliver even greater service to our clients.
“This move sets us up for the future: our Leeds team has developed from 30 to 130 people during our time in our current premises – supporting growth in fee income to over £11m. The time is right to make this move: we have a pipeline of exceptional talent at all levels in the business, including a number that we hope to be welcoming to the partnership in the near term.”
Phil Verity, Mazars UK senior partner, added: “The move to our new Leeds office is a clear sign of our commitment to serving clients both locally and nationally. The move is the latest in a national programme of office improvements and moves for Mazars as part of its commitment to being a modern firm. Wellington Place gives us a fantastic base from which we can build further growth in our Yorkshire practice, and support our clients for years to come.”
Hoffman added that it was an incredibly exciting time for the firm and that the firm had been looking to move for several years. He added that the re-location was mainly about having the correct “look and feel” and access for clients and for employees to be working in one space which was a fantastic working environment. At present, the Mazars team is spread across different floors and buildings.
He added that another factor behind the move was to the interaction with others in the professional community by being in the city centre.
“We are incredibly busy and we are growing our UK and international work, which is why the business continues to grow in terms of people, clients and income. Our client base includes many entrepreneurial clients across Yorkshire and we are privileged to support those clients,” said Hoffman.
“We have been to have a good look around and feel really proud and pleased to be moving in.”
Mazars’ announcement follows Investec Wealth & Investment’s confirmation in July that it is relocating to 3 Wellington Place, taking 20,500 sq ft of space.
