Law firm network QualitySolicitors has clinched a deal to provide legal services to ubiquitous High Street brand Nisa, it announced today. 

The network will provide bespoke legal services for the 1,300 small business owners who run food and drink stores across the country. The arrangement will be tested for an initial three months and if successful will be turned into a long-term contract.

The announcement is a piece of good news for QualitySolicitors after a spate of defections from the brand, which has 100 member firms across England and Wales.

Nisa is a member-owned organisation with an annual turnover of £1.3bn. Stores trade under their company names or one of the company brands including Nisa Local, Nisa Extra and Loco.

During the trial Nisa members will have the opportunity to contact a QualitySolicitors partner firm local to their area, who will be able to provide advice on areas of law such as employment law and commercial transactions relevant to their business. In addition, Nisa members will also be offered ongoing business advice after one-to-one introductory meetings with their local QualitySolicitors firm.

Nisa says the trial was arranged because of similarities in the organizational structure of both companies and the overlap in their respective regional footprints.

Rachel Bamforth, head of legal and company secretary for Nisa, said: ‘We look forward to working with QualitySolicitors during the trial and are excited to see what benefits the service can bring to our members.’

Ighodaro Edokpolor, a partner at Hounslow-based QS Orion, added: ‘This is really exciting news for both my own legal practice and my QualitySolicitors colleagues across the country. We are proud to be at the forefront of making legal services more accessible to greater numbers of people.’

The QualitySolicitors network was founded in 2010 and the outlook was initially optimistic, with a surge of new firms joining and a tie-up with retailer WH Smith.

But that link was dropped soon after, and firms have regularly announced their departure from the network over the past two years.

The Nisa venture is indicative of the company’s new outlook to ensure there is less emphasis on advertising and brand awareness and more effort to win contracts with clients who want to work with local firms.