August 29, 2008
Gorfine CPA firm merges with former Grabush, Newman & Co.
Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn PA, an Owings Mills certified public accounting firm, merged yesterday with the accounting division of Smart and Associates in Towson, the firm formerly known as Grabush, Newman & Co. PA.
Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn gained about 20 people in the transaction, expanding it to more than 75 employees. It will retain its name and location at the corporate campus in Owings Mills. No employees will be laid off, said W. James Schiller, a founding partner.
"We just hired about four new accountants, and we're still hiring," Schiller said. "The merger really creates more growth opportunities for our staff. And it's going to improve our client services."
Many of Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn's clients are privately held businesses, foundations and other nonprofits, said Simpson H. Gardyn, the firm's managing director. Less than a quarter of its accounting work is for individuals and families, he said.
The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, the philanthropic giant in the Baltimore area, is the firm's biggest client, Gardyn said.
The merger comes five years after the Philadelphia-area management consulting firm, Smart and Associates, acquired Grabush, Newman and changed its name.
Merging with Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn will allow the former Grabush, Newman accountants to refocus on Baltimore-area clients, said Barry B. Bondroff, managing director. About six to eight Smart and Associates consultants will remain in the Towson office, he said.
"We left because we wanted to just do accounting, auditing and tax work," Bondroff said. "We're moving back to a local firm."
Both merging firms have their client base in the metropolitan region, with some business in Washington, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New York, Schiller and Gardyn said.
Gorfine, Schiller and Gardyn now expects to have annual revenue exceeding $10 million, Bondroff said.
laura.mccandlish@baltsun.com
The group with which Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn PA merged was misidentified in the headline in an earlier version of this article. The Sun regrets the error.
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