we have answers.
2023 marks a milestone here at Rapsey Griffiths. We’re celebrating 10 years in business – and what a fantastic journey it’s been.
We’re extremely grateful to be where we are today, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our clients, referrers, partners, team and families.
From the very beginning, our mission as a business has been to offer clients in financial difficulty the best support and solutions for their situation. This overarching sentiment hasn’t changed over the years, but the way we do it has.
Where the business began
When the business was born back in 2013, Chad and Mitch had just left their jobs. They had become specialists in their area but were feeling constrained and wanted to explore their entrepreneurial side and start their own business.
They began working on their laptops from Chad’s kitchen table, with Mitch running across the road to Officeworks to do the photocopying and family brought in as admin support.
At this time, they were often out and about cold knocking on doors, introducing themselves and speaking to accountants, letting them know how they could help.
After securing their first big job, things snowballed. More staff were brought in as demand grew and we moved to a small office.
Eventually, we needed to upsize again and then again to our current base. We’re now a team of 16, working with clients in Newcastle, the Hunter, NSW and Australia-wide.
From insolvency to turnaround
From the outset, Chad and Mitch’s vision was to be a modern, progressive, insolvency and advisory firm.
They wanted to take a softer, more collaborative approach, not be one of the typical ‘lock your door’ aggressors. But like other firms at that time, the focus initially was on liquidations, bankruptcies and voluntary administrations.
Over the past few years, however, things changed. The business has evolved into a different kind of beast, one specialising in turnaround and business rescue.
Our focus is now on helping clients get their businesses back on track and solving complex problems rather than just reacting when they’ve hit rock bottom. The scope of our work includes turnaround, special engagements, crisis management, consulting, and turnaround for solvent businesses.
Formal insolvency solutions (liquidation, voluntary administration and bankruptcy) remain a core part of our offering for those businesses and individuals who aren’t able to turn things around.
We always first ask: how can we save a business? What options do we have? In fact, sometimes accountants just ring us to troubleshoot. If we get in early and take this approach, we can often prevent the worst from happening.
It’s a shift the industry is now seeing across the board, but we’re proud to have led the way.
Memorable = great outcomes
When hitting business birthdays, they often talk about memorable moments. For us, while there are things we can mention, it’s hard to narrow it down.
In our line of work, helping SME clients and accountants solve complex financial problems, memorable moments arise often.
Every time we help turn a business around. Every time we provide advice that enables a better outcome. Every time we get a phone call from a client thanking us for our support and how we’ve helped them in many ways, not just financially but from a mental health and relationship perspective.
These are all memorable moments. And they’re the reason we do what we do.
We often deal with people at their worst, and we help them through it.
10 years helping 1000’s of businesses
While we’re proud of how far we’ve come, grateful is the best word to describe it.
We continue to support and find the best solutions for our clients, sharing skills and often challenging each other to find them. We’ve also built a great team and a culture that values family and work/life balance, as well as hard work.
The industry will no doubt continue to shift and evolve along with legislative changes – the recent small business restructuring process being one example – and we plan to be at the forefront as it does.
Ten years isn’t 100, but for us and the 1000’s of businesses we’ve helped, it’s definitely worth celebrating!
As part of our 10-year celebrations, we’re excited to be a platinum sponsor at this year’s 2023 Bean Counters Ball to give back to the profession that has supported us along the way. We hope to see you there! Also, look out for our client success stories we’ll be sharing over the year.
Watch a heartfelt thank you from our Co-founders and Directors, Chad Rapsey and Mitch Griffiths.