The Marston Group

What The Marston Group does

The Marston Group, PLC is a Memphis-headquartered professional services firm founded in 1985 by J. Kenneth "Chip" Marston, Jr., CPA, providing accounting, tax, financial advisory, and specialized consulting services to closely held businesses and high-net-worth individuals and families. The firm operates from three offices — Memphis, Tennessee (headquarters); Brentwood/Nashville, Tennessee; and Oxford, Mississippi — and serves clients in more than 40 U.S. states. Service lines comprise Accounting & Assurance (financial reporting, compilations, reviews, audits, due diligence, quality-of-earnings analysis), Tax Planning & Compliance (federal and state tax consulting, compliance, controversy, and representation before the IRS and state revenue departments), Tax Controversy (audit defense and litigation support), Financial Advisory & Consulting (transaction services for M&A, financing, strategic planning, and exit planning), Business Services (outsourced accounting and controller/CFO-style advisory for SMBs), Family Office Services (integrated wealth, estate, succession, philanthropic, and governance planning for HNW families), and a niche Aviation Tax practice for aircraft owners. The firm is a privately held PLC with equity ownership concentrated in senior partners; in 2025, ownership was broadened through the admission of three new equity members.

The firm is partner-led and staffed by more than 40 professionals with credentials including CPA, JD, CFP, CVA, CFF, CFE, CGMA, and Enrolled Agent, and a senior leadership team drawn primarily from Ernst & Young, Deloitte, KPMG, and Arthur Andersen, supplemented by former public-company finance executives. The go-to-market model is relationship-based, delivered through direct partner-managed engagements with custom engagement pricing — there is no published rate card, productized offering, or subscription model. Revenue is generated entirely on a professional-services-fee basis across tax, assurance, advisory, and family-office engagements. The firm holds no proprietary technology platform, no AI/ML capabilities, no API, no mobile application, and no patents; its only disclosed integration is implementation support for QuickBooks Online as a client-facing back-office tool.

The client base is diversified across closely held businesses, HNW families, and specialized industry verticals including agriculture/agribusiness, aviation, real estate, not-for-profit organizations, manufacturing, distribution, and healthcare-adjacent segments. The firm has been recognized as a Memphis Business Journal Best Places to Work for more than 10 consecutive years and in 2025 its founder was inducted into the Society of Entrepreneurs. The firm is privately held with no outside institutional investors, no funding rounds, and no M&A activity disclosed.

Name

The Marston Group

Legal name

The Marston Group, PLC

Website

https://themarstongroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Marston Group is a Memphis-headquartered CPA and financial advisory firm founded in 1985, serving closely held businesses and high-net-worth families across more than 40 states from offices in Memphis, Nashville, and Oxford through integrated accounting, tax, transaction advisory, and family office services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Memphis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Accounting and Assurance Services: Comprehensive financial reporting services including compilations, reviews, and audits; due diligence and quality of earnings assessments; specialized reporting engagements such as agreed-upon procedures; financial forecasts and projections; outsourced accounting and CFO-style advisory services.
2. Tax Planning and Compliance: Tax consulting and analysis, tax planning and compliance, federal and state tax controversies, e-commerce tax matters, and representation before IRS and state revenue departments.
3. Financial Advisory and Consulting: Transaction services including acquisitions, mergers and sales; due diligence and quality of earnings analysis; debt and equity financing assistance; budgeting and financial projections; business expansion and exit strategies; cash flow management; business entity selection guidance.
4. Family Office Services: Strategic financial planning, tax planning and compliance coordination, estate and succession planning, risk management, philanthropic and legacy planning, comprehensive financial coordination, family governance, bill payment and budgeting services for high-net-worth families.
5. Aviation Tax Services: Specialized tax services for aircraft owners including tax planning, compliance, and transaction support for aviation-related tax matters.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Marston Group, PLC is a Memphis-based CPA and financial consulting firm that delivers integrated accounting, tax, and advisory services to closely held businesses and high-net-worth individuals. Its core offerings span financial reporting and assurance (compilations, reviews, audits, due diligence, quality of earnings), tax planning and compliance (federal, state, controversy defense), transaction advisory (mergers, acquisitions, financing, exit planning), outsourced business services (bookkeeping through CFO-style advisory), and family office services for affluent households (estate, succession, philanthropy, and bill-pay coordination).

Product overview

The Marston Group is a professional services firm offering a comprehensive suite of accounting, tax, and advisory services. The firm's core offerings include Accounting & Assurance (financial reporting, audits, due diligence), Financial Advisory & Consulting (transaction services, strategic planning), Tax Planning & Compliance (federal and state tax services), Tax Controversy (audit defense and litigation support), Aviation Tax (specialized aircraft owner services), Business Services (outsourced accounting for SMBs), and Family Office Services (wealth management for high-net-worth families). These services work together as an integrated advisory approach, serving clients across diverse industries including agriculture, aviation, real estate, professional services, and closely held businesses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Accounting & Assurance Financial reporting services including compilations, reviews, and audits, plus due diligence, quality of earnings assessments, and acquisition/sale analysis for closely held and publicly traded businesses.
• Financial Advisory & Consulting Transaction services (acquisitions, mergers, sales), strategic planning, budgeting, cash flow management, debt and equity financing assistance, and business entity selection guidance for business owners.
• Tax Planning & Compliance Tax consulting, analysis, compliance, federal and state tax controversy representation, e-commerce tax matters, and representation before the IRS and state revenue departments for individuals, families, trusts, partnerships, LLCs, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations.
• Tax Controversy Expert guidance and defense against tax audits, litigation, and negotiations with government entities for both individuals and businesses.
• Aviation Tax Specialized tax services tailored for aircraft owners and aviation operators, addressing FAA regulations, IRS requirements, tax planning, compliance, and aircraft transactions.
• Business Services Outsourced accounting services ranging from bookkeeping and reconciliations to controller-level reporting and CFO-style insights, with QuickBooks Online implementation and optimization for small and mid-sized businesses.
• Family Office Services Comprehensive financial solutions for high-net-worth families including strategic financial planning, tax planning and compliance coordination, estate and succession planning, risk management, philanthropic and legacy planning, family governance, and bill payment/budgeting services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Named to Memphis Business Journal's Best Places to Work list for more than 10 consecutive years

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered community and strategic.

• Make-A-Wish Mid-SouthcommunityOthersCommunity sponsorship and support through Marston Gives Back program. The firm directs firm-matched donations to support this organization as part of its community engagement initiatives.
• Cystic Fibrosis FoundationcommunityOthersCommunity sponsorship partner receiving support through firm's charitable giving programs.
• Boys & Girls Club of Greater MemphiscommunityOthersLong-term community partner supported through sponsorships, volunteering, and Marston Gives Back program donations.
• ArtsMemphiscommunityOthersArts organization supported through sponsorships including events like Dixon Gallery & Gardens' Garden to Table.
• Thistle & BeecommunityOthersSocial enterprise supported through advisory board involvement and charitable contributions.
• Mid-South Food BankcommunityOthersOn Giving Tuesday, staff sorted more than 3,700 pounds of food at Mid-South Food Bank as team volunteer activity.
• Dixon Gallery & GardenscommunityOthersCultural institution with multiple board involvements including Chairman Emeritus, Chairman of Board of Trustees, and Endowment Board Vice Chairman positions held by Chip Marston.
• Carnival Memphis Krewes for KidscommunityOthersAnnual sponsorship supporting this Memphis tradition and its charitable beneficiaries.
• Agricenter InternationalcommunityOthersAgricultural education center; Garner Williams serves on Board of Directors as Treasurer.
• NEXUSstrategicOthersMemphis-based leadership development organization. Chip Marston joined the Board of Directors in 2023. Founded in 2003, NEXUS fosters relationships between experienced leaders and emerging professionals through mentorship and leadership training, having developed more than 1,250 principle-centered leaders.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• HORNE LLP: Mississippi-headquartered regional accounting and advisory firm with established Memphis office and similar mid-market client focus. Comparable size, service mix (tax, audit, advisory, wealth), and Southeast U.S. geographic orientation make it a close direct peer.
• LBMC (Lattimore Black Morgan & Cain): Tennessee-headquartered CPA and business advisory firm headquartered near Nashville (Brentwood) with very similar service lines including family office, transaction advisory, and tax controversy. Direct overlap with Marston's geographic and market positioning.
• Keiter: Virginia-based mid-sized CPA and advisory firm of comparable scale, providing tax, audit, advisory, and wealth services to closely held businesses and HNW individuals — closely analogous to Marston's positioning.
• Elliott Davis: Southeast U.S.-based regional accounting and advisory firm serving closely held businesses and HNW clients with comparable tax, audit, advisory, and wealth service offerings.
• Anders CPAs + Advisors: Mid-sized regional CPA and advisory firm with similar closely held business and HNW client focus, offering tax, assurance, advisory, and family office-adjacent services at a comparable size tier.
• CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA): One of the largest U.S. mid-market accounting and advisory firms with comparable full-service offerings (tax, audit, advisory, wealth advisory) and a closely held business / private client orientation.
• Plante Moran: Top U.S. mid-market accounting and business advisory firm with a closely comparable service mix (tax, audit, advisory, wealth) and a strong focus on middle-market and closely held companies.
• Wipfli: Regional accounting and advisory firm of comparable size serving mid-market and closely held clients with similar tax, audit, advisory, and outsourced accounting capabilities.

Broad incumbents

• RSM US: National mid-market accounting firm serving many of the same middle-market and closely held business clients; competes with Marston for talent and clients at the larger end of the regional firm's addressable market.
• Forvis: Top-10 U.S. accounting and advisory firm (formed by the merger of BKD and Dixon Hughes Goodman) with national reach in tax, audit, and advisory; competes with Marston for mid-market clients and senior talent.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TheMarstonGroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-marston-group-plc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Marston Group