Yorkshire: battle of the brands

Name a brand. Any brand. The chances are that it will be a big fashion name. Maybe something to do with handbags or sunglasses, but unlikely to be a law firm. Lawyers are notoriously slow at embracing new concepts, but they are catching up fast. The idea that a law firm could be a brand doesn't come as a surprise nowadays, at least in the top 100. Now even smaller firms think of themselves as a brand. Richard Marshall, managing partner at 36-partner firm Lupton Fawcett, in Leeds, talks about clients 'communicating with the brand', while Ro Deadman, his counterpart at four-partner firm Oxley & Coward, in Rotherham, discusses how the partners plan to 'extend the reach of the brand'.

So, what's happened to the concepts of reputation, name, or just being well-known? There is really not much difference, except that these old-fashioned notions sound a bit too much like the TV programme Kingdom. The real difference is psychological: the growing prevalence of the term 'brand' in the legal market demonstrates the attempt to place a clear monetary value on the services provided by a firm beyond the personalities of its lawyers.

Brand solicitor

The rise of the concept comes at the confluence of two major events: the economic downturn and the advent of alternative business structures. Both have forced lawyers to start thinking differently about how they deliver their services and how they see their firms. Like Tesco, and because of Tesco law, firms are moved to approach their values for what they are, in isolation from the people behind the brand.

The challenge for lawyers then, is to identify what their firm stands for and why clients come to them rather than go to their competitors. 'It's about how we do what we do,' says Richard Marshall, who is working towards making his firm 'the region's mid-market firm of choice'.

Lupton Fawcett's strategy suggests a clear purpose which helps provide some structure to the concept. It starts with an acquisition plan which saw the firm expand geographically and in sectors complementing its core business. Just over a year ago, the firm acquired the traditional arm of Fox Hayes after it went into administration following financial difficulties with its volume business. It helped bulk up its personal injury, private client and property offering. And last year it completed the acquisition of Hackett Windle, in Sheffield, which gave the firm a foothold in the town and capabilities in the hotel industry sector.

The expansion plans don't stop here. The firm is looking for further acquisitions in Sheffield, and, three years from now, Marshall expects the firm to have doubled in size. This is not growth for the sake of it, he says, nor is it driven by economies of scale. The primary purpose is to make sure the firm can service all client needs. With a client market consisting of larger owner-managed businesses and smaller quoted companies, this involves understanding the aspirations of business proprietors beyond their companies' own objectives, catering for both commercial and private needs. Marshall calls this 'the law of advantage', and the aim is to turn his firm into 'a platform capable of delivering a logically unassailable offering'.

For now though, earlier plans for expansion in the Doncaster area have been put on ice as the firm is prioritising consolidation. 'We've got to have a really strong and resilient business, so we're focusing on positioning,' Marshall says.

Growth is also on the agenda at other firms, whether it's at 25-partner firm Wake Smith & Tofields, in Sheffield, or four-partner Oxley & Coward, in Rotherham. Wake Smith merged with Tofields in September 2007 and the partnership is still open to merger opportunities, but finance partner John Baddeley says that merger is a risky move in the current climate. The question of the cultural fit is a tricky one at the best of times but it becomes a key decider in a less stable environment. 'You have to make sure the partners you bring in can fit around the partnership table,' says Baddeley.

Smaller firms could be ideal targets if they help the acquiring practice plug a gap in its service range or expand geographically, but the challenge is to find the right partner. 'Small firms have to do it; it's much safer to be a ten-partner firm,' Baddeley continues.

'But the problem is that a lot of them don't have clear ambitions and are going nowhere. We would only be interested in firms that have a good client base which they are finding difficult to service and are looking at leveraging.'

Ro Deadman also warns about the dangers of growing too quickly. She says she has seen too many firms over-expanding in the boom years that are now suffering. Halliwells is the one that has made the headlines, but Deadman says the fate of numerous smaller local firms could be very similar. Still, she says her firm would be interested in acquiring or merging with another practice if it helped expand its geographical reach. Not Sheffield, which she says is too crowded, but another south Yorkshire town would be of interest.

But her main push at the moment is on 'developing the brand'. After a painful couple of years that forced the firm into making some redundancies, Oxley & Coward are hiring again in crime and family '“ the firm is among the lucky few to have retained its contracts for family and children work with the Legal Services Commission '“ and are looking at expanding their private client share of the market.

Like most solicitors, Deadman was shocked by the recent programme on will writers but says that solicitors cannot sit still. Her firm is focusing its marketing effort on care homes and on meeting with local age charities. It is also helped by the amount of Court of Protection work it undertakes and Deadman says that they are beginning to see results already.

Every little concern

Of course will writers '“ regulated or otherwise '“ are only one of the many threats getting closer with the looming D-day for ABSs in October next year.

In addition to ramping up its marketing effort through target poster campaigns and local sponsorships, Oxley & Coward is part of LawNet, a consortium of law firms across Britain which acts both as a referral network and as a cooperative for law firms. Through LawNet, firms have access to a number of services, including professional indemnity insurance, which Deadman says has been incredibly helpful at a time where PII premiums are going through the roof.

Wake Smith & Tofields is also a member, as well as co-founders, of another network, The Legal Alliance, whose purpose is more firmly on referrals between like-minded firms in other regions '“ 'affinity partners'.

Both firms have considered the concept offered by the likes of QualitySolicitors but have felt that, much as they agree there is mileage in the idea for some firms, they didn't want to be subsumed under another brand and preferred to retain their identity. 'They're trying to be Tesco law but I'm not sure it would work for us,' Deadman says.

So much for Tesco law then, but what about external investment? Few lawyers now dismiss the idea outright but the feeling remains one of reasoned curiosity. 'I'm not sure people will rush into it,' says Deadman. 'It's not as attractive now with the economy in the state it is, when conveyancing is not as active as it was a few years ago there is little incentive for external investor to invest in high street firms.'

Baddeley seconds the argument: 'Steam has gone out of the market; profit margins have fallen, so it's less attractive to become a multi-disciplinary partnership.' But he doesn't rule out the idea altogether. 'It could work in the mid-market but the risk/reward ratio will need to be a lot higher for both the lawyers and the external investors. The problem is that most medium-size firms sit below investors' radars even though they make very good profits. The best test will be to see if two or three work and it could take off.'

A few rungs up the local food chain, Lupton Fawcett's positioning as an upmarket mid-market firm means it should not end up competing head on with ABSs. Nonetheless, Richard Marshall says the new entrants could affect firms like his because 'Tesco law will be bringing in well-resourced players with good channels to market'. But, with his 'logically unassailable offering' strategy in place, Marshall is reasonably confident his firm can offer 'the strongest offering in that market place', and that the challenge after that will be to 'manage the relationship with clients and their communication with the brand'.

For now then, the focus is on careful management. 'A lot of firms don't manage capital effectively and are crippled by historic debt,' warns Marshall, whose advice is to tackle this issue as a matter of priority.

Baddeley also says his priority is to 'run a tight ship'. 'A lot of firms are not correctly capitalised,' he says. And, whether it is because of Tesco law or the general change in attitudes, 'there is no more easy conveyancing or will writing, and they will not be in business if they continue like that'.

'Firms must have foresight to have a plan,' Baddeley concludes; and, in Marshall's words: 'Firms must make sure they offer a real difference.' These have always been basic, sound business principles; now is the time to follow them closely.