Tampa, FL – (March 27, 2007) – Amscot Financial, a leading provider of convenient, consumer-oriented financial services, has surpassed a major milestone with the opening of its 149th and 150th branch locations.
Founded in 1989, the Tampa-based company has been on a major growth surge for the past three years, opening a new retail location on average every 12 days. The company’s newest locations are at U.S. Highway 17-92 and State Road 434 in Longwood and at Dakota Avenue and 13th Street in St. Cloud. Like all Amscot locations, the two new stores are open seven days a week, 365 days a year. Hours are from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on most days. On Fridays, the stores are open until 10 p.m. and on Sunday, store hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Select Amscot locations are open 24 hours a day.
After successfully developing the Tampa market, Amscot in 2005 launched an expansion into the greater Orlando market and has since opened more than 45 stores. Today, Amscot operates in 13 Florida counties, including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Manatee, Sarasota, Polk, Highland, Hardee, Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake and Volusia. Later this year, Amscot will add locations in Brevard County as well.
Ian MacKechnie, president and CEO of Amscot Financial, attributed the company’s success to a combination of placing new locations in high-traffic locations plus offering convenient financial services sought by consumers.
“When people need access to money, they want it on their terms,” MacKechnie said. “They want the services we offer to be close to their home and they want us to be open at times convenient to their busy lives.”
Amscot offers a broad spectrum of convenient financial services, including:
- Free money orders.
- The cashing of all types of checks, including personal, business, government and overseas checks.
- Tax preparation and filing services.
- Small, short-term cash advances.
- The acceptance of bill payments for major utilities and service providers, such as TECO, Bright House Networks, Orlando Utilities Commission, Orange County Utilities and others
- The Amscot Card, a pre-paid debit card that allows holders to make purchases online, rent cars or hotel rooms, services that require the use of a credit card.
Amscot has created more than 1,500 permanent jobs since its founding and seasonally hires another 1,000 temporary tax preparers every tax season. First-year, full-time Amscot associates typically earn around $30,000.
The company is a major contributor to community causes in every location it serves. Each September, for example, Amscot partners with law enforcement to distribute free bike helmets. In 2006, Amscot distributed more than 9,000 bike helmets in 13 Florida counties. The company has given away more than 20,000 bike helmets over the past four years.
MacKechnie said he projects a continued period of fast-paced growth for Amscot.
“We have put the infrastructure in place from a technical standpoint and from a talent standpoint,” MacKechnie said. “We’ve hired some of the best people we can find and they have joined us to help seek out future growth opportunities.”