What do our corporate clients think of working with Gateley?

Phil Burns: I love the Midlands. It's a big enough region so that it has the scale and the breadth of expertise to put most deals together, but at the same time it's small enough so that you can make real connections, a real sense of family across the people in the Midlands.

James Grenfell: It's about relationships, it's about skillset, it's about ambition. It's got a buzz about it, it's got a confidence.

Richard Whitwell: There's the practicality issue that you can just walk round the corner, or just go and have a beer with an advisor if the going gets tough.

Andy Currie: When I moved into Birmingham in ... I don't know, whenever it was, '98, '99, there was a core group of people who enjoyed each other's company. It wasn't just that they worked well together. They enjoyed having a drink together and I think that that community meant that on transactions you were forced to find an answer and Gateley were right at the heart of that.

James Grenfell: My first deal with Gateleys was actually when my daughter, part way through the deal, she was born and she's now 23.

Phil Burns: There are two deals really that stand out for me. One that got a Clearwater started, a retailer called The Works. We helped them do their first buyout and then the last deal is always one that comes to mind. We worked with Gateleys to sell Wesley to a business called Countryside.

Andy Currie: The first transaction I did at Catalyst was with Paul. We did a buyout of a business over in Halesowen. The business is still going strong today and then recently we worked with Chris and Simon on DSM and St. Francis Group, two fantastic businesses.

Richard Whitwell: I couldn't possibly mention important deals in the Midlands without mentioning the NEC. We invested in the business in 2015. It's been a fantastic success during our ownership, growing in revenues each and every year and it was funded and advised entirely in the Midlands community.

Andy Currie: A deal that I'm really proud of on behalf of the community is something that we had no involvement in, is is the float of Gateleys. It was a testament to their innovation, to their entrepreneurial flair.

James Grenfell: We rescue businesses when they're about to fail. So does that give me a good feeling? Yes, it does. So rescuing Abacus Lighting, East Midlands based business that got into difficulty, we were the only buyer for it. Gave the business hope in saving 200 jobs.

Phil Burns: I've not quite been to all 20 of the deal dinners, but I've always been to them and I've always had fun.

James Grenfell: It's a good way of celebrating both with Gateley and a number of our clients.

Andy Currie: It's something that you want to be invited to. It's a mark of success.

Richard Whitwell: They've grown tremendously in recent years, have a first class client list and have a long history of doing successful deals. I think success breeds success and the wider community recognise that. So when Gateleys put on a deal celebration dinner, it's an invite you won't turn down.

Andy Currie: To Paul, especially, to Mike, to Brendan, to Pete, Simon, Chris, we've had a ball over the last 20 years. I'm really proud of what you've done as a business, how you've transformed and led the legal services market, and I hope we work together a lot in the future.