Accountancy Firm: History

The accountancy firm of Watson Associates has had a presence in Hailsham in various forms for over 50 years and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2007. David Watson, its founder, retired in 1992 and was a much loved and respected professional who over the years developed specialist knowledge in handling farmers accounts and tax affairs and who, above all, prided himself in not only giving the very best personal service to his Clients but also caring and looking after his staff.

Those traditions continue with today’s accountancy firm. After David’s retirement, the remaining Partners embarked upon an ambitious plan to lift the profile of the firm from its roots in the farming community to deal with many other aspects of professional work and broaden not only the firms client and skill base but also its support and staffing structure and improve the size and quality of its premises. It was considered essential for the firm to grow in a structured and concise manner in order to be able to withstand and cope with the changes in the profession and the environment at large. It was clear that a firm that invested in its people and developed new skills would adapt to change better than its competitors and be able to harness the changes in Information Technology for their advantage.

This to a large extent has been achieved with the firm as it now stands having 6 highly respected Partners and 35 staff all operating in defined areas of expertise and providing a broad range of business accountancy and audit services to over 2,800 Clients.