From Local Accountant To Champion Of Employee Ownership: Meet Chris Maslin

Chris built an accountancy firm from scratch to ~£1m turnover, and a dozen employees. In 2021 he sold a controlling stake to an Employee Ownership Trust to help secure the future of the business and team, and it's now doing better than ever! Now focused on helping other small businesses transition to employee ownership easily and affordably. 

Let’s get into it…

➡️ What drives you - what’s your ‘why’?

Admittedly, in the early days it was “I need to pay my mortgage”. Thankfully those days are behind me! Now, I love the fact that every year what was “my” accounting firm gives multiple trainees their first step on the career ladder. It also makes chunky profit share payments to the team, over and above their salary, as it’s employee owned. I spend most of my time trying to help other companies make the switch to employee ownership too, helping reduce inequality, and keeping businesses independent and happy.

➡️ Do you prefer working alone or as part of a team?

Best of both worlds. At times, I need people around me to bounce ideas off. But other times I love nothing more than being on my own, beavering away without distraction. Overall I’m in favour of the “part of a team” side, as even when I’m working on my own, it’s nice knowing that colleagues are pushing ahead various other business things themselves too!

➡️ Where abouts in Kent do you live?

Tunbridge Wells. Born in Pembury hospital, I grew up in the St James area of TW. At 18 I went to Southampton university, and hung around there for a few years afterwards. In my mid 20s I came back to Tunbridge Wells, and have been here ever since!

➡️ Take us back to your childhood – were there early signs that you'd one day become an entrepreneur?

Possibly! In my mid teens, I dabbled with buying writeable CDs in bulk and selling in smaller quantities to other school students. The demand wasn’t huge though! After university I dabbled importing iPods and selling on eBay. My first attempt was a big success, but what followed was a painful lesson! I doubled down, borrowing from credit cards to buy in much larger quantities. They never arrived. I spent the next year, and some further money, chasing the American supplier. I got a shiny piece of paper signed by a Florida judge to confirm they definitely owed me that money back…but I never saw a penny!

➡️ What was your first-ever job, and what did it teach you?

I have very fond memories of working at a Co-op department store. It started as a Saturday job around school, then full time during university holidays. I learnt a huge amount there. Working alongside people of all different ages/backgrounds. How to deal with customers, including unreasonable ones.

About the Business

➡️ What does your company do? What products or services do you sell?

I’ve had a few businesses over the years. Ignoring the early “dabbling” ventures mentioned above, they’ve all revolved around finances. Initially the accounting firm Maslins Ltd, built from scratch, which now runs without me as an employee owned business of ~20 employees. Sideline MVL Online that helps cash rich companies liquidate (a tax motivated product). More recently, Go EO, helping businesses transition to employee ownership more easily and affordably.

➡️ Did you have to secure initial funding to start your business or was it bootstrapped?

All my businesses have been bootstrapped. In turn they’ve all been slow to get off the ground, but I’ve always felt less guilty trying to grow a business spending (wasting?!) time than money.

➡️ What’s the story behind your business name?

Perhaps unsurprising for someone with an accounting background, I’ve never been imaginative with names! The accounting firm name was just my surname with an “s” on the end, seems fairly common for professional service firms! MVL Online has a Ronseal “does what it says on the tin” vibe to it, as the business provides MVLs (Members Voluntary Liquidations), and does it online. Go EO is similar, in that it’s helping businesses become employee owned, but I think it has a nice ring to it!

➡️ Who inspired you to take the leap and start your own business?

Nobody. Neither of my parents were business owners, so I didn’t get it from them. I think I was always just a bit awkward as an employee. Always wanting to know why we did things a certain way, never being happy to hear “cos that’s the way we’ve always done it”. So I think that’s what lead to me starting my own business. A constant desire to do things a little differently.

➡️ What were the biggest challenges you faced when starting out?

I had negligible sales experience. Probably like most people with a skill who start a business, I didn’t consider how hard it would be to convince people I could help them. When employed as an accountant, someone else wins the work, you just do it…suddenly that was no longer the case!

Growth & Strategy

➡️ What strategies have been most effective in growing your business to the size it is today?

Not all strategies are equal, but I’m not great at figuring out which will work well in advance! The accountancy business struggled until we stumbled across FreeAgent. Realistically we then rode on their coattails as they grew rapidly over the 2010s. Occasionally in business you have to back a horse. Sometimes (as with FreeAgent) I’ve picked a winner, other times I’ve picked what later turned out to be a dud. My general view is to under promise, over deliver. It won’t help you scale a business fast (if you want to do that, to some extent you need to promise the earth). But is should help you slowly but steadily build a good reputation, which reaps rewards in the longer term.

Challenges & Lessons

➡️ What’s been your hardest day in business so far – and how did you push through it?

For me, the really painful moments have always related to people. A customer being unreasonably demanding, perhaps refusing to pay a fee and complaining despite us having done exactly what was agreed. Or an employee who’s unhappy regardless of what we try to do to improve things. Those kinds of things are rarely limited to just one day, and can be the kinds of things that give sleepless nights for prolonged periods.

➡️ Have you ever had to pivot your business model? What prompted the change?

The accounting firm did this fairly early on. Initially I tried to be everything to everyone within a local area. Problem being I didn’t stand out in any positive way. More by luck than clever planning, we stumbled across FreeAgent, and tailored our marketing towards that. Suddenly we had a niche, a real expertise that set us apart from other accountants.

➡️ Who are the key figures that contributed to your success, and how did they influence the journey?

The main ones will be on the personal side, rather than business. My wife’s been super supportive throughout, always having faith in me even when things were going badly. I’m sad to say if things were the other way round, I imagine I’d have been telling her to give it up and get a proper job. My mother was also central in those early years. She had accounting skills which were useful, but primarily she was someone I could offload on!

Leadership & Team

➡️ How would you describe your leadership style?

Supportive, tolerant of mistakes, happy to delegate. I’m the opposite of a micro manager. So the employees I work well with are those who are fairly independent, happy to use their initiative and get on with things, rather than the ones who need to run every tiny decision by someone else.

➡️ How do you foster a positive company culture?

It’s never something I’ve consciously worried about or focused on, but reality is it’s never been something we’ve had an issue with. I think due to the leadership style answers above, employees have generally felt trusted to get on with things, and know that if they muck up I’ll have their back.

➡️ How do you encourage professional growth among your employees?

This is also an area I’ve always felt was important. When I was an employee, I had to feel like I was going somewhere. Working towards a qualification, or a promotion, just something suggesting I was developing. When taking on trainees, this is easy for a while, as they have the formal qualifications to work towards. The harder bit is once they’ve completed those, how do we convince them to stick around and grow further within the business, rather than seek opportunities elsewhere.

Advice & Inspiration

➡️ What’s one book you recommend every entrepreneur should read and why?

I gather it’s a bit marmite, but “The 4 Hour Work Week” is a book I read several times. I guess it expanded on what I already felt, taking it a stage further. I never got to working just a 4 hour week, doubt I’d want to. But it still helps improve efficiency. Thinking about what part of your role can be automated, or delegated, or doesn’t even need doing at all.

➡️ Do you have any favourite quotes or philosophies that guide you?

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away”, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. Life has a habit of getting super complicated without you really trying. This applies especially if you want to achieve more things. So I focus on keeping things simple, both for myself, and also for customers.

➡️ What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve ever been given?

Find a niche. I was told this before starting my accountancy practice…but of course I knew better, why on earth would I alienate most of my potential clients by only working in a narrow area? Of course the reality is if you try to appeal to everyone, you end up appealing to nobody.

Vision & Industry

➡️ What’s your vision or plan for the future of your business?

I’m keen that Go EO becomes the best known name in employee ownership transitions. Providing a simple but great service, suitable for most companies considering the transition. To become a bit like IKEA are in the furniture world. You know there are more expensive options out there, that might be slightly better for your specific needs…but you also know they’ll provide a decent product at a great price.

➡️ How do you see AI shaping the future of your industry, and how will you adapt?

That’s the big question. My attitude is very much that it’s going to happen whether I like it or not, so my only sensible choice is to adapt, and embrace AI. A positive for me is that professional service firms like accountancy/law are generally very behind the trend with things like this. So it’s fairly easy to be ahead of the competition!

Business in Kent

➡️ Does your business support any local charities or causes?

My wife and I funded the setup of a homeless day centre in 2020-21. Theory being many homeless people were able to get a bed for the night, but struggled to get support beyond that. A good meal, washing facilities, as well as things like help filling in forms, counselling. This is still operating as the “Mosaic Resource Centre”, Quarry Road. More recently we worked with Charlie Moore to set up Charlie’s Angels Kitchens on Camden Road, helping to reduce food waste. I’m also a trustee of the Pickering Cancer charity.

To find out more about Chris and his businesses:

• LinkedIn

• Maslins website

• Go EO website

Before you go… 
➡️ Do you have exciting news to share about your business?
➡️ Would you like to advertise to an audience of decision makers in Kent?
➡️ Would you like to feature in the Entrepreneurs Deep Dive section?
➡️ Do you have a job vacancy you’d like us to post?

Contact us today - [email protected]