Norse Atlantic takes off with Kreston Reeves

Ben Boiling’s high-flying career as the UK managing director for the Norwegian low-cost, long-haul airline Norse Atlantic started much closer to home, training and qualifying as an accountant with Spofforths in Sussex, now part of the Kreston Reeves family. 

Here, he shares his journey and the role Kreston Reeves played then and today in a career that has, quite literally, taken him around the world. 

Starting a new airline in the depths of the Covid lockdowns might not at first glance sound like a sensible idea. But with aircraft and passengers grounded there was, says Ben, a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to build something new. 

“There was an abundance of aircraft that weren’t being used, experienced pilots and air and ground crew unable to work,” he explains, and that is where Norse Atlantic founder and now CEO Bjørn Tore Larsen saw opportunity. 

Ben has been part of the Norse Airlines journey from day one, first as its Senior VP for Finance and Corporate, its Chief Financial Officer and now Managing Director Norse UK. 

Today, listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, Norse is a long-haul affordable airline with a 15-strong fleet of fuel-efficient and more environmentally friendly Boeing 787 Dreamliners, serving destinations that include New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, Orlando, Bangkok, Cape Town, Oslo, Athens, London, Berlin, Rome and Paris. 

It holds two Air Operator’s Certificates, one in Norway and the other in the UK, allowing it to fly from Europe to almost anywhere in the world. 

The airline industry is notoriously challenging, with fierce competition, often cyclical and littered with failed challenger airlines and operators. The financial security of the airline is the first and foremost priority for Ben and his team at Norse. 

Yet the long-term aspiration is to build Norse as the “preferred long-haul affordable airline,” says Ben. “We’re not a flag carrier, so we are not tied from flying from the UK or indeed Norway, nor do we suffer from old legacy agreements and systems. We have flexibility that others perhaps don’t, and that gives us an edge.”

For passengers, that flexibility offers affordable long-haul travel with award-winning exceptional service in two cabins catering for business and leisure travellers. The airline has quickly won plaudits and fans across the world. 

“We’re catering for all types of travellers, from enabling the average person on the street who cannot otherwise afford to travel long-haul to smart business travellers,” explains Ben. “Our front cabin, Premium, has won awards for its category and offer such a comfortable space with seats that recline to the extent that the UK tax authorities class it business class travel.” 

Norse’s flight prices are lower than the competition, something the company can offer as they have a lower cost base than competitors. The low-cost base started with securing Norse’s fleet of 15 Dreamliners at rock bottom prices.  

“We are not a price setter, but we look at peers and sell our flights at a discount to what is normally otherwise available,” Ben says.  

A close relationship

Ben’s career started in 2004 as a trainee accountant with Spofforths in West Sussex, which later merged to become Kreston Reeves.

He looks back fondly to his time at Spofforths, with the hands-on experience a regional firm can offer setting him up for the next stage of his career. 

“My career is down to a huge dose of good luck,” says Ben. “On qualifying, I moved with my Norwegian girlfriend, now wife, to Oslo and joined Ernst & Young. “At the time, there was just one or two English and US nationals in that office so I got to work on very large clients in the shipping world straightaway.” 

Ben’s career accelerated with in-house roles at several entrepreneurial shipping and transportation companies, first in the Nordics and then in senior finance roles in Dubai. “In all of these roles, and because they were young companies, I had the opportunity to do much more than the job description,” says Ben. 

It is Ben’s experience of private practice at Spofforths, a Big Four firm and in the corporate world that has, he believes, helped his career. 

“The training provided in private practice as an accountant and auditor is critical,” he said. “The exposure to audit clients is terrific, but the variety of the work on offer, for example, bookkeeping advice to small charities and small business, gives you the fundamentals and understanding that the corporate world needs.” 

When Norse was established in 2021 and looking to create a UK entity, Ben automatically turned to Kreston Reeves. 

“It was a call out of the blue,” explains Ben. “I contacted Richard Spofforth, and explained that we needed to establish a UK entity, that we don’t exactly know the scope, or how it will grow – but can you help?” 

Richard and Kirsty Peay now lead the team at Kreston Reeves who initially provided a range of services from payroll, accounting and bookkeeping and presently with Allan Pinner acting as its auditor. It is a relationship that continues to build, thanks in part to the firm’s alumni programme. 

“Like many kids, I first wanted to be a footballer then an airline pilot,” says Ben. “Accountancy was a third choice. But, today, I feel enormously privileged to be an accountant and managing director of an airline. It is a terrific job, and that started 20-plus years ago in Sussex.” 

Visit flynorse.com to learn more and to explore the world.