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Edward Jones aims to recruit 680 financial advisers by 2012 in an ambitious UK recruitment drive, James Weddle, managing director for Edward Jones, has confirmed.

Mr Weddle said it was looking to grow the number of financial advisers from 277 to 330 by the end of the year and confirmed the drive was open to existing advisers.

He said: "We have ambitious plans and we are committed to the UK market. There have been an awful lot of expressions of interest in our recruitment scheme, receiving 2000 to 2500 enquiries alone. We took on 40 of which eight were already professional financial advisers. Edward Jones is interested in recruiting talent whether they are already operating in the sector or not."

Mr Weddle acknowledged it was bucking the general trend of downsizing, however he said people still needed financial advice and help to organise their investments.

He said: "We have never chased quick gains. We concentrate on long-term, good quality investments that will never go out of fashion and this is reflected in the level of interest we receive."

Looking to the future, Mr Weddle said service would remain at the heart of its proposition with clients calling increasingly for the personal touch.

He said: "Service is very important to us and no account is too large or too small. We have a fantastic network of advisers who are available, working in the community to provide the personal touch to the whole experience.

"This is going to be the key differentiator for any business going forward. It is not enough to have good products as clients need to feel they are listened to and treated properly at all stages."

Mr Weddle said Edward Jones would continue to operate in the UK on a long-term basis and denied it would withdraw, following the current trend of many US-based companies.

Marc Denny, commercial sales manager for London-based Mortgage Centre IFA, said it was not impossible to expand a business in the current market so long as it was prepared.

He said: "Service is always important to a firm as clients are very important to any business so it is case of ignore this at your peril. Growing a firm in the current climate is not impossible so long as you have a good model and firm fundamentals with which to work."