Scottish finance firms celebrates 10 years of growth and looks to a bright future

The firm was the vision of Craig Hutcheon who had worked at KPMG for six years before moving onto Reservoir Group, a private equity based buy-and-build business. Hutcheon Mearns was born out of finance resource problems Craig identified in the accountancy sector.

It initially focussed on recruitment and consulting offerings and has evolved over the last decade to provide accountancy solutions across the three pillars of Deals, People and Digital.

Craig, who started the business on 1 April 2015, says that as a result of its steady growth, Hutcheon Mearns is on track to reach revenue of 10 million this year.

On how the business was created, he says: “By experiencing short term and permanent finance resource problems in industry I recognised there was a need for a business that could present different solutions.”

As Hutcheon Mearns expanded its remit, Adam Maitland joined in 2017 to lead its Deals division. He had met Craig at SCF Partners-backed Reservoir Group where they worked together on 30 acquisitions before its eventual sale in 2013.

Craig lists a number of achievements he is proud of over the last decade. “Moving into the Deals space and Adam coming on board to lead it were landmark moments. Another is growing from having one office in Aberdeen to opening in Dundee in 2021 – slightly later than originally planned because of the pandemic - and then expanding into the central belt with a base in Edinburgh in 2023 and Glasgow in 2024,” he says. “Our business has evolved to solve the changing issues that chief executives face. For example, with the technical revolution we've aligned our firm to meet problems that can arise from that with the creation of our Digital division.”

Hutcheon Mearns is clearly getting things right - Craig cites the statistic that the firm has worked on 3,600 projects for 500 companies over the last 10 years.

“We dare to be different and challenge conventional accounting firms with a unique approach. We also focus solely on non-audit services. As such, we're positioned to problem-solve big ticket items. We over-deliver and establish ourselves as a trusted partner for clients which encourages them to come back to use the bank of services we offer,” he explains.

On the Deals side, Hutcheon Mearns has just had its best year to date, advising on 16 transactions with a total deal value in excess of £300 million, including the sale of five business and two significant investment raises.

Discussing his firm's approach as an employer, Craig says: “I'm blown away by the fact we've attracted 70 really high-quality people and supported them to grow their careers with us by aligning with their ambitions and motivations. We've recruited and retained the right people by being a vibrant and flexible company.”

In terms of how Craig has risen to the challenges that come with launching and expanding a business, he explains his approach. “There are always going to be growing pains, but as we're solving problems for clients, we're well placed to deal with any issues that arise for us,” he says. “Don't be scared to do things differently. With the pace of change in the world you have to adapt and challenge the norms. Constant evolution and cumulative returns are key. We try to make everything better than it was last time with the view that the eventual output will be phenomenal. We never sit still.”

Looking to the future, the focus is firmly on continued growth with more more offices to come - with expansion into England - the recruitment of 10 more people this year and a new website and branding being rolled out in the coming months. He says: “We will keep working out what problems lie ahead for senior executives and help them solve them, including through the use of artificial intelligence. We're keen to develop in the AI space.”

Craig concludes: “I'm looking forward to celebrating our 10th birthday throughout the year with our team - who will be delivering 10 challenges for charity - and with our clients.”