AN ACCOUNTANCY firm in Thornbury is celebrating a landmark anniversary this month, having traded in the town for the past 25 years.

Melrose Group, which started out with four members of staff in founder Pete Rosser’s home in Thornbury in March 1993, now runs a business that covers from Cornwall to the Midlands and the South East, running from two offices in St Mary Street.

Starting off in accountancy for the pub business, the firm now offers a wide range of services including VAT returns, year-end tax, payroll and pensions, stock taking and liquor licensing, as well as a range of consultancy services.

Melrose founder Pete Rosser said it has been “a very exciting journey” over the past 25 years “from small beginnings to today”.

“In the beginning, we didn’t think it would expand quite as much as it did,” he said. “Everyone is very proud of our growth and the quality of services we now provide.

“Where we gained was being able to fill in gaps in the market, in those days if pubs wanted stocktaking, they would have to go to a stock taker, if they wanted bookkeeping, they would have to go to an accountant, if they wanted licensing, they would have to go to a solicitor, and so on.

“There was no one company offering consolidated services, a one-stop shop as it were, and that was really the gap that gave us a chance to expand.”

Mr Rosser, who is retiring from the company this year, said he was happy to leave the company in such good shape, and that he looked forward to seeing it develop as he runs the firm’s personal licence course once a month.

Director Esther Cox, who has been with the company since starting part-time in 1998, said that it has been “a wonderful experience” working with the company, and that she was proud that they had been able to overcome a number of hurdles over the years, such as the pub smoking ban and the changes in licencing laws.

For more information, visit www.melrosegroup.co.uk.