My Account
It’s a new era for Withers & Co – the accountancy firm that has served the Mahurangi area’s business and farming community for more than 35 years.
On the one hand, the practice has moved into brand new premises at 21 Neville Street, next door to its old office at number 23.
At the same time, it bids farewell to founding partner Simon Withers, 79, who retired in April and who now plans to devote his energies to golf and managing his sheep and cattle farm in Kaipara Flats.
Replacing Simon is new partner Todd Wilkin, who brings to the firm 20 years of experience in business strategy.
Partner Grant Dixon says changes in technology meant Withers’ old office was bigger than needed.
The new office is more compact but brighter, more modern and more open plan.
“It’s a building that we believe will make the workplace a more enjoyable experience for staff and clients,” he says.
Being able to serve clients more effectively will be critical in the world of Covid-19.
“We will be helping make sure clients are aware and take advantage of all the government subsidies, loans and law changes, and of the bank assistance that is available,” he says.
Meanwhile, Grant is sad to see the departure of his long-time colleague Simon Withers. Simon took Grant on as a junior when he left Mahurangi College in 1982. Sixteen years later, Grant became a partner in the practice.
Grant has a high regard for his former boss’s expertise – particularly in farm accounting.
“Simon has been a mentor and friend. He will be missed in the office by both staff and clients,” he says.
But Grant recalls Simon could be tough when he needed to be. On one infamous occasion, a landlord of a client was badgering Simon about the client’s unpaid rent. Voices were raised. Eventually, Simon’s office door was flung open and the landlord scampered out.
“Suddenly, Simon’s foot was seen connecting with the visitor’s rear end – assisting him out even quicker,” Grant says.
“He was fair, but firm.”
Grant Dixon
Simon Withers
Farewell Simon Withers
Simon Withers says he had two goals when he established Withers & Co in 1982. One was to never get behind with the client’s work and thereby never incur penalties from the IRD, and the other goal was to own the building the practice worked from.
He achieved the second goal following the purchase of an office at 23 Neville Street and now with the new office at number 21. He says he achieved the first goal about 99.99 per cent of the time and adds that being a good accountant requires constant diligence.
“You can’t take weeks off. If your clients ring up and something is really worrying them, they need an answer straight away,” he says.
“And by being up-to-date, we got a good reputation with Inland Revenue. That meant they didn’t audit or pester our clients at all.”
After more than 60 years as an accountant, Simon has witnessed many changes, particularly with the advent of software packages, which allow clients to produce balance sheets of their own at home.
Accountants now focus more on analysis and strategy, taking advantage of tidy book work to inform decisions.
“When I first started off in Warkworth there were a number of clients – particularly old bachelors – who would turn up with sugar sack full of papers, tip it out on your desk and say ‘go for it’,” he says.
Nevertheless, Simon has a high regard for the high level of business acumen in the Mahurangi area and says he has enjoyed watching local businesses grow and become more efficient.
Simon has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural science and many of his earliest clients were farmers. As they prospered and moved on to better farms around the country, they continued to seek out his professional help.
“It was very encouraging to receive a huge number of emails from clients on my retirement. I’ve acted for some of them for more than 50 years,” he says.
Todd Wilkin
Welcome Todd Wilkin
Accountant Todd Wilkin previously worked for Spark as head of group business performance and has worked for large banks in New Zealand and overseas on business improvement projects.
His family recently returned from Qatar and bought a lifestyle block in Kaipara Flats, which Todd says will give his children the chance to “ride horses, ride dirt bikes and live a Kiwi life”.
He says when the opportunity came up to join Withers, it was too good to pass up.
“It’s a well-established professional firm, with a solid reputation and a great team of people. It ticked all the boxes,” he says.
Todd says he has spent most of his career working on business transformation – developing strategy, advising management and devising business plans.
“I’d like to bring my skills in these areas to our clients, particularly during these challenging times,” he says.
Todd says the accounting world is becoming more complicated and business owners, farmers and individuals are being bombarded from all directions with increased compliance requirements, complex information requests and a bewildering array of information from their accounting packages.
“A good accountant is someone who can handle significant amounts of information, see the patterns and insights from this information and then explain that in clear terms to the client,” he says.
“I will work with clients to take all the noise away, to allow them to focus on driving their business forward.”
