RNS’ Barton office manager Carol Clayton and senior partner John Heeney with butcher Rob Newton, also on the town’s High Street, in support of Small Business Saturday on 2nd December.A campaign to boost small businesses in the run up to Christmas is being supported by leading northern Lincolnshire accountants.
RNS Chartered Accountants has joined a number of Barton businesses to back Small Business Saturday, which takes place on 2nd December.
The firm will open its High Street, Barton, office, on the morning with a warm welcome including tea, coffee and cakes.
Small Business Saturday aims to keep the pound spent and earnt local.
RNS’ Barton office manager Carol Clayton said: “Local is best and this campaign provides an opportunity for businesses to come together and encourage them to use each other.
“We see Saturday, 2nd December, as a great chance to highlight the importance of being local but also shout out to a wider audience and make others aware of Barton.”
The town has seen its popularity rise in terms of housing, particularly since the Humber Bridge tolls were reduced to £1.50, making it more accessible to the North Bank.
Businesses have benefited and, Carol revealed, RNS has seen a 14% growth since it took over Stephenson Smart & Co in October, 2011.
Carol, who attended the town’s Baysgarth School and began working at Stephenson Smart & Co in 1981, said: “It’s a lovely, friendly place to live, offering great value-for-money.
“It’s often overlooked as a destination but it has a terrific visitor and resident offer in terms of retail outlets, places to eat and drink and things to do.”
Carol works alongside Sarah Johnson, who also lives in Barton and joined Stephenson Smart & Co in 1983. As well as dealing with RNS clients, they also look after the Yorkshire Building Society branch.
Senior Partner John Heeney said: “We are very fortunate to have two trusted, local faces looking after our office on the High Street.”
Carol said the office would be open between 9am and 12 noon on 2nd December.
“They’ll be a friendly welcome for anybody who wishes to pop in with tea, coffee and cakes.”
John and Carol visited a number of clients in Barton to highlight the campaign and were met with a positive response.
John said: “Small, retail businesses’ unique selling point is that personal service and, in a close knit community like Barton, word of mouth helps too.
“People will go where they know they are going to get first class customer service. Many Barton businesses are a case in point.”
Butcher Rob Newton, also on the High Street, is also supporting Small Business Saturday.
“It’s a great idea,” he said. “Like RNS, we want to do all we can to highlight what Barton has to offer.”
For more details about the campaign, go to www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com
RNS’s Barton team can be contacted on (01652) 655111.