GMcG Practice Expansion

GMcG Chartered Accountants is delighted to announce the expansion of the Firm through the acquisition of Jackson Andrews Chartered Accountants, with effect from 16 October 2023.

GMcG Practice Expansion

Having offices in Belfast and Portadown, the employees of Jackson Andrews joined the offices of GMcG in both locations, bringing the Firm’s employee count to over 100. This is a hugely positive development for GMcG, helping consolidate its position as one of the leading independent accountancy firms in Northern Ireland.

With the acquisition of the Jackson Andrews practice, there can be very little doubt regarding the quality of what has been gained by GMcG. Jackson Andrews Chartered Accountants was created in 1970 by the merger of two local firms. The Firm and its client base continued to grow, seeing further expansion through the 1994 purchase of Magee Todd & Vaughan, an established Portadown practice. With this growth came a reputation for delivering quality compliance and business advisory services to clients across a range of industry sectors in Belfast and Portadown.  

Commenting on the acquisition, GMcG Managing Director Susan Dunlop said:

“For quite some time, we had been considering a range of options to accelerate the growth and profile of the GMcG practice and this acquisition marks another significant milestone in the evolution of our Firm.

Jackson Andrews is a long-established practice with the reputation, service offerings and client base that we felt really suited our own business model and growth aspirations. As well as having suitable geographic locations, the Jackson Andrews management team share many core values with the GMcG firm in relation to their ethos, people and commitment to delivering the highest standards of client service.”

Bryan Friar and Michael McCarter, who headed up the Jackson Andrews practice, have taken up Associate Director positions at GMcG's Belfast and Portadown offices respectively.

Explaining more about the background to the development, Bryan Friar commented:

“In recent years, Michael and I have explored a number of possible scenarios related to the future of the Jackson Andrews practice. Having met the Directors at GMcG we could immediately see the synergies between both firms, the shared ethos in relation to values and client service, and the opportunity to secure long terms plans regarding the interests of our clients and employees across both locations. 

Being part of GMcG Chartered Accountants represents an exciting new opportunity for all of us. I have no doubt our employees will quickly adapt to their new working environments and will look forward to developing their careers with GMcG.”

Susan Dunlop adds:

“This acquisition will bring new personnel, experience and expertise across many of our client service teams. Our people are our biggest asset and we are in no doubt that we have the right talent across all our departments to help our Firm continue to grow.

It is an exciting new era for GMcG and I look forward to working with Bryan, Michael and the team in developing new opportunities for our business, our clients and our employees”.

PHOTO: GMcG Managing Director Susan Dunlop with Michael McCarter and Bryan Friar who have taken up Associate Director positions at GMcG.