MEET THE PRACTICE
The architects
Newly launched McMillan Grubb specialises in helping software start-ups to scale. For ‘people-focused’ co-founder Nick McMillan CA, it means the realisation of his ambition to be more field agent than back-office boy, he tells Fraser Allen
MEET THE PRACTICE
The architects
Newly launched McMillan Grubb specialises in helping software start-ups to scale. For ‘people-focused’ co-founder Nick McMillan CA, it means the realisation of his ambition to be more field agent than back-office boy, he tells Fraser Allen
Nick McMillan CA’s father warned his son against running his own business. He knew from experience how stressful it could be – yet he might as well have been warning a moth to keep away from the light.
“I was very focused on business from a young age,” says McMillan (above, left, with co-founder Rob Grubb), who grew up on the west coast of Scotland and now lives in Glasgow as one half of the accounting and business advisory start-up McMillan Grubb. “I had my paper rounds, I was selling sweets in the playground and even renting out Tamagotchis. Rather than going to the football or heading into town with my pals, I would go and work with Dad a lot of the time, just helping out and making teas and coffees. I learned a lot from being around him.”
McMillan’s mum had been a teacher, while his dad abandoned accountancy studies for a job in Saudi Arabia with the energy and chemicals corporation Aramco, before returning to the UK and working in the family business, which included Renault and Nissan franchises in Scotland.
In his fifth year at school, McMillan had the opportunity to study accounting. “It completely changed my direction,” he says. “I always loved maths, but accounting gave me a way to apply that in business and understand commercial environments. Although I could see myself moving into business, I realised that being a CA helps you to develop the attributes you need to be a leader.”
“I just love deals. I love connecting people. And I love the rush I get when a client says they’re going with us. That really drives me on”
McMillan then studied for his CA qualification at EY in Glasgow, but struggled with the process and scheduling of four exams in four days. “Some people are book-smart, whereas I wanted to be out in the field making sales,” he says. “I can do the numbers but I’m very people-focused and like to think out of the box. It just wasn’t the right structure for me. I felt like I was trying to push a square into a circle.”
McMillan initially struggled with the exam structure but stayed with ICAS, which supported him in finding a path that worked better. “They were very supportive, and came up with a different structure where I could focus on two exams at a time.” This time around, he continued his training at Glasgow-based Consilium Chartered Accountants, who were “amazing”. After qualifying, he joined Grant Thornton to take up a post in the Cayman Islands, but returned to the family business to help out with a new MG franchise.
A few months later, an opportunity popped up to work in the Glasgow office of the software company Idox. The tech element appealed to McMillan but he was wary of getting stuck on the “numbers side”. However, his dad urged him to give it a try and put his CA training into practice. “It was the best move of my career,” he says. “It was also where I met my business partner, Rob.”
First impressions
Rob Grubb CA was CFO at Idox and made an instant impact on his future partner. “There are very few people in life that you meet and are immediately so impressed by,” says McMillan. “His emotional intelligence is through the roof and his technical ability is one in a million.”
There was a lot to work on at Idox, and the pair bonded over an intense six years of restructuring, acquisitions and scaling. Grubb left the company at the end of 2023, but a year later he made an offer to McMillan to go into business together. For a kid who had sold sweets in the playground, it was a no-brainer.
“Despite my dad’s warnings, it always appealed to me,” says McMillan. “I just love deals. I love connecting people. And I love the rush I get when a client says they’re going with us. That really drives me on.”
The outcome was McMillan Grubb, founded in January 2025, and far from a traditional accountancy practice. For a start, the duo focus on founder-led software businesses with a serious appetite for growth. “We’re selective as to who we work with,” says McMillan. “And we only work in software. It’s our niche, and it keeps us focused and sharp. But we are very busy, which is a good problem to have.”
McMillan Grubb’s mission is to “help businesses think strategically, prepare for growth and achieve lasting value”. That means joining their clients in the business, and rolling their sleeves up – mirroring the rise of the “fractional CFO” role, but in a more hands-on capacity.
“We saw an opportunity to help businesses get their engines going and scale,” says McMillan. “It’s easy to stall and then drift along as a lifestyle business but we help them to push forward. Our offering is different. We don’t just advise, we execute. We go shoulder to shoulder with our clients and deliver what needs to be done in practice.”
“We see ourselves as architects – we shape businesses, and we shape our own world too”
McMillan continues to be based in Glasgow, along with an analyst the duo have recruited. Grubb lives near London, where there is obviously a much richer seam of software companies. “Rob is 10 years older and more experienced,” says McMillan. “I regard him as the senior partner but our structure is collaborative – we each lead projects and support one another.”
As a new – and still small – business helping clients to scale, McMillan is conscious that his firm has to walk the talk. “It’s tough when we’re knee-deep in client work but we need to step back and think about our strategy and how we’re executing it. And we do exactly that on a regular basis, meeting monthly in Glasgow,” he says. “When Rob told me his vision for the growth of the business, it was the first time I had felt nervous. But he just said ‘back yourself’ – and I do. We see ourselves as architects – we shape businesses, and we shape our own world too.”
Indeed, the world that McMillan shares with his partner, Sophie, recently got a little bigger with the arrival of a baby boy. Combined with renovations they have been carrying out on their home, it seems like a tough time to be launching a business. “I did have people ask if I was making the right decision. but it was actually effortless to make the move,” he says.
“Even with everything going on in the background, working with someone I trust and respect was an easy decision for me. I’m having to put in some very long hours but, personally, I think it’s the right time for me to go and build some legacy for McMillan junior. The business is all about building something that makes a difference – not just for our clients, but for our families too.”
For more, visit the ICAS practice hub
Nick McMillan CA’s father warned his son against running his own business. He knew from experience how stressful it could be – yet he might as well have been warning a moth to keep away from the light.
“I was very focused on business from a young age,” says McMillan (above, left, with co-founder Rob Grubb), who grew up on the west coast of Scotland and now lives in Glasgow as one half of the accounting and business advisory start-up McMillan Grubb. “I had my paper rounds, I was selling sweets in the playground and even renting out Tamagotchis. Rather than going to the football or heading into town with my pals, I would go and work with Dad a lot of the time, just helping out and making teas and coffees. I learned a lot from being around him.”
McMillan’s mum had been a teacher, while his dad abandoned accountancy studies for a job in Saudi Arabia with the energy and chemicals corporation Aramco, before returning to the UK and working in the family business, which included Renault and Nissan franchises in Scotland.
In his fifth year at school, McMillan had the opportunity to study accounting. “It completely changed my direction,” he says. “I always loved maths, but accounting gave me a way to apply that in business and understand commercial environments. Although I could see myself moving into business, I realised that being a CA helps you to develop the attributes you need to be a leader.”
“I just love deals. I love connecting people. And I love the rush I get when a client says they’re going with us. That really drives me on”
McMillan then studied for his CA qualification at EY in Glasgow, but struggled with the process and scheduling of four exams in four days. “Some people are book-smart, whereas I wanted to be out in the field making sales,” he says. “I can do the numbers but I’m very people-focused and like to think out of the box. It just wasn’t the right structure for me. I felt like I was trying to push a square into a circle.”
McMillan initially struggled with the exam structure but stayed with ICAS, which supported him in finding a path that worked better. “They were very supportive, and came up with a different structure where I could focus on two exams at a time.” This time around, he continued his training at Glasgow-based Consilium Chartered Accountants, who were “amazing”. After qualifying, he joined Grant Thornton to take up a post in the Cayman Islands, but returned to the family business to help out with a new MG franchise.
A few months later, an opportunity popped up to work in the Glasgow office of the software company Idox. The tech element appealed to McMillan but he was wary of getting stuck on the “numbers side”. However, his dad urged him to give it a try and put his CA training into practice. “It was the best move of my career,” he says. “It was also where I met my business partner, Rob.”
First impressions
Rob Grubb CA was CFO at Idox and made an instant impact on his future partner. “There are very few people in life that you meet and are immediately so impressed by,” says McMillan. “His emotional intelligence is through the roof and his technical ability is one in a million.”
There was a lot to work on at Idox, and the pair bonded over an intense six years of restructuring, acquisitions and scaling. Grubb left the company at the end of 2023, but a year later he made an offer to McMillan to go into business together. For a kid who had sold sweets in the playground, it was a no-brainer.
“Despite my dad’s warnings, it always appealed to me,” says McMillan. “I just love deals. I love connecting people. And I love the rush I get when a client says they’re going with us. That really drives me on.”
The outcome was McMillan Grubb, founded in January 2025, and far from a traditional accountancy practice. For a start, the duo focus on founder-led software businesses with a serious appetite for growth. “We’re selective as to who we work with,” says McMillan. “And we only work in software. It’s our niche, and it keeps us focused and sharp. But we are very busy, which is a good problem to have.”
McMillan Grubb’s mission is to “help businesses think strategically, prepare for growth and achieve lasting value”. That means joining their clients in the business, and rolling their sleeves up – mirroring the rise of the “fractional CFO” role, but in a more hands-on capacity.
“We saw an opportunity to help businesses get their engines going and scale,” says McMillan. “It’s easy to stall and then drift along as a lifestyle business but we help them to push forward. Our offering is different. We don’t just advise, we execute. We go shoulder to shoulder with our clients and deliver what needs to be done in practice.”
“We see ourselves as architects – we shape businesses, and we shape our own world too”
McMillan continues to be based in Glasgow, along with an analyst the duo have recruited. Grubb lives near London, where there is obviously a much richer seam of software companies. “Rob is 10 years older and more experienced,” says McMillan. “I regard him as the senior partner but our structure is collaborative – we each lead projects and support one another.”
As a new – and still small – business helping clients to scale, McMillan is conscious that his firm has to walk the talk. “It’s tough when we’re knee-deep in client work but we need to step back and think about our strategy and how we’re executing it. And we do exactly that on a regular basis, meeting monthly in Glasgow,” he says. “When Rob told me his vision for the growth of the business, it was the first time I had felt nervous. But he just said ‘back yourself’ – and I do. We see ourselves as architects – we shape businesses, and we shape our own world too.”
Indeed, the world that McMillan shares with his partner, Sophie, recently got a little bigger with the arrival of a baby boy. Combined with renovations they have been carrying out on their home, it seems like a tough time to be launching a business. “I did have people ask if I was making the right decision. but it was actually effortless to make the move,” he says.
“Even with everything going on in the background, working with someone I trust and respect was an easy decision for me. I’m having to put in some very long hours but, personally, I think it’s the right time for me to go and build some legacy for McMillan junior. The business is all about building something that makes a difference – not just for our clients, but for our families too.”
For more, visit the ICAS practice hub
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