Perth-based boutique Equiti Partners joins William Buck

Professional services firm William Buck has added Perth-based accounting boutique Equiti Partners to its Western Australian fold, with Grant Kidner and Sharyn Arundell joining as partners.

Equiti Partners has been in business for more than 35 years, providing tax & accounting, financial services, and corporate advisory from its offices in Subiaco – which will continue to operate for now in tandem with William Buck’s base in South Perth.

Kidner, who established Equiti and served as managing partner, and long-time director Arundell, who joined back in 1992, bring over eight decades of combined experience and together push William Buck’s local partnership number to around one dozen.

“We’re delighted to welcome Sharyn and Grant along with their talented team,” William Buck said. “For clients, this means access to broader specialist expertise, deeper resources, and the same partner-led approach that has always defined how we work. We’re excited for the opportunities ahead and to continue to support businesses and individuals across Western Australia.”

A more than four-decade industry veteran described as having “an innate ability to think outside the box”, Kidner specialises in identifying tax-effective structures for businesses and private clients, including high net wealth individuals, SME’s, and public and ASX-listed companies, with an industry focus on those operating in the property, mining, hospitality, technology, and retail sectors.

Arundell, herself described as a “tax-time-management planning guru”, proactively flagging what’s to be done as well as when and why, meanwhile brings specialist tax expertise as to the medical and legal industries, particularly in respect to supporting professionals transition from employment to practice structures with strategies and advice so as to avoid any nasty future surprises.

The pair join another recent addition in mid-year promotee Stuart Mansfield to William Buck’s Western Australian partnership, which, led by managing partner Conley Manifis since mid-2023, oversees a team of more than 80 professionals across audit & assurance, business advisory, corporate finance, risk advisory, tax services, and forensic accounting.

Mark Collins

On a side note, while the firm may have gained 80-plus years worth of experience through the addition of Kidner and Arundell, it has also recently lost half of that due to the retirement of Manifis’s predecessor and chairman Mark Collins, who led the business for some 40 years dating back to its inception in 1986 and was a founding director of the William Buck group.

“Mark’s impact on William Buck extends far beyond his professional accomplishments,” Manifis said in a post to LinkedIn. “His leadership, integrity, and commitment to building lasting relationships have helped shape the firm we are today, and we are incredibly grateful for his contribution and the legacy he leaves for the future generations of our people.”