- What is your name and what is the name of your business?
My name is Matthew Hunt and the business name is Digivolve Accountants.
- What does the business do and who are your customers?
We do accounts and tax returns for sole traders and limited companies. Our client base mainly consists of small businesses in and around Sussex and Surrey but can be anywhere in the UK.
- What’s the history of the business & what’s your role within the business?
I started the company in 2010 and worked from home alongside a day job until I left that job in January 2020. I took a FD role three days a week whilst continuing to grow my business two days a week, and a year later in 2021 I left that role to go full-time on my business.
- How long have you had an office here at Freshmill and why were you looking for a space like this?
I started at Freshmill with a virtual office when the doors opened in 2019 and then when I began working full time on my business I was on a 30-hours Flexi package, while also using the meeting rooms ad hoc. We moved into a 4-person office when I took on a PA and our first two apprentices in August 2022. Then we grew into a 5-person, then a 7-person and now we occupy two offices, a 10-person office and 5-person office in just under 3 years.
- Why does Freshmill work well for you and your business?
The space works really well for us. I live locally and it is 5 minutes to my home and 5 minutes to my son’s school. It is a central location, the parking is great and clients are always very complimentary when they visit the building. It is such a nice space which makes it easier to bring clients in. We do a lot of local business now and clients like the fact that they can pop in if needed. In the past I have looked at more rural locations, but that would mean I couldn’t take on an apprentice that couldn’t drive so being near the station and quite central in Haywards Heath is key for me.
So yes, the parking, the facilities are all great here, and the flexibility has always worked well for us – Zoe has been brilliant at facilitating us moving into the spaces we require, and if, for example, I have extra staff, I always have the option of putting them on a hotdesk for the day if needed
- What is the most important lesson you have gained from your career so far?
To communicate with people. Things go wrong and you have to get out in front of it. Nobody likes doing that, but ultimately, you’ve got to have the tough conversations. Sometimes things don’t go to plan, but it is how you deal with the problems that makes the difference. Clients will give you leeway if you are honest and you get things sorted.
Accountability is important too – if you mess up, you need to take responsibility and make it right. It is important within the business to find peoples skill sets and play to their strengths. Some people love being on the phone making calls to clients, keeping them happy, others enjoy more of a back-office role.
I have been criticised for talking too much and over-sharing in the past but ultimately that is why we have the clients we do – we are not an autonomous robotic accountancy firm that just wants to get you out of the door. The easier you can build a relationship with your client, the quicker they are going to trust you and you can’t do the job properly until you have the trust.
- Where do you hope to be in 5 years time?
Essentially it is just more of the same. I could potentially have grown enough to be in my own building by that point but if the opportunity doesn’t come, it doesn’t.
I would like more growth – and that should just happen really. I get my new business mostly from referrals. If just 10% of my clients refer then I would take 90 new clients on and grow the business by 10% just like that. Add to that inflationary increase and other bits and pieces it’s all possible, the business has done 40% growth in the last two years, and I’m pushing for another 40% this year. This then fits with the increased head count, because as more clients come in, the more staff we need to deal with them so we don’t drop the ball!
Over the next five years I would like to carry on the same trajectory and the company continuing to do what it’s doing, helping more people in Sussex. That would work nicely!
- What advice would you give your younger self just starting out?
Do it sooner! I held back for too long. I was basically in a comfortable job where I liked the people I worked with, and I liked working in a team.
And it’s a big step to go out on your own and a much more solitary way of working which I was not sure I would like. But I should have listened to the advice of others around me and made the jump sooner.
Effectively I should have done it earlier, because I would be further ahead by this point.
- If you could, who would you switch places with for the day, and why?
Well I would love to be Lando Norris for the day – that would be fun!