Shoosmiths believes it is still on target to hit £200m in revenue after a steady financial year which saw modest growth and steady profit per equity partner (PEP) results after an 18% surge last year to £434,000.
The results today (24 July) showed a 7% increase in turnover to £137.6m, while net profit was up 6% to £37.9m, a significant slowdown on last year’s 22% growth. PEP was almost flat, edging up 2% to £441,000, but the result comes after an impressive hike in the metric last year.
‘It’s a good year, the numbers have stood up well and it builds on the showing from last year,’ Shoosmiths chief executive Simon Boss (pictured) told Legal Business. ‘Last year wasn’t a one-off or a blip.’
One of the primary drivers for this year’s growth was the firm’s corporate practice, where revenue grew 12% as the firm brought in five corporate partner hires over the year. Shoosmiths counts 13 locations across the UK and 195 partners.
However, this year’s revenue growth is a slight slowdown on last year’s 10% increase. But Boss argues the firm’s financial modelling shows it remains on target to reach its £200m-revenue ambition, and given increasingly difficult market conditions, he says the performance was impressive.
‘It comes against the back drop of political and economic uncertainty in the UK and globally,’ he said. ‘But our strong UK focus is playing out well in the current environment.’
Boss is relatively new to the CEO role, having assumed the position on the 1 January after succeeding former CEO Claire Rowe who had spearheaded the firm for over a decade.