Local CPA firms will merge

By Brian Reynolds (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Thursday, August 28, 2008

NATCHEZ — Customers of Switzer, Hopkins and Mange are going to have to do business at a new location soon, as the company is merging with Silas Simmons LLP accounting firm.

And while the location for Switzer, Hopkins and Mange will change, their function will be the same, Silas Simmons partner Sim Mosby said.

“Their role will be the same as their current role, our role will be the same as our current role, but it will all be under the auspices of Silas Simmons,” Mosby said. “You had to lose one name and ours has been around a lot longer.”

The merger will give Silas Simmons a total of 40 employees, which will give the company more resources to serve their clients, Silas Simmons Partner Chuck Caldwell said.

“This has become a pretty capital-intensive industry, with the technology,” Caldwell said. “It’s something that the larger you are, the more you can invest in technology and better serve your clients.”

In addition to the extra monetary capital generated by the merger, both firms will also benefit from the additional human capital, which is very important with the constant changes in accounting law, he said.

“It takes multiple people with a lot of talent to keep up with all that in a broad service of industries,” Caldwell said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to provide expertise to them and them to us.”

And while the firm keeps its focus within a 60-mile radius of its Natchez office, it represents a wide variety of clients.

“We pretty much represent somebody in every industry in town,” Mosby said.

Switzer, Hopkins and Mange should be fully operational in the Silas Simmons office by Tuesday, and Caldwell expects everything to go smoothly.

“Our firm and their firm have always been friends of sorts,” Caldwell said. “We just saw this as an opportunity and so did they.”

Dennis Switzer of Switzer, Hopkins and Mange also said the merger will be a major benefit.

“There will be some cost savings from the merger and it seems like a win-win,” Switzer said. “There will be more people, more support, so there’s no question we’ll have more resources to work with. It’s an easy transition for us.”