Investment milestones marked by key North West players

White Oak UK, one of the UK’s largest alternative providers of business finance, has broken through £1.5bn in lending on its own book.

The business is based in Ewloe, near Chester, with offices in Manchester, Glasgow, London, Southampton and Dublin.

Chief executive Carl D’Ammassa said: “This milestone comes at a time when SMEs are finding it increasingly challenging to secure business funding through more traditional methods, a sign of a changing tide in SME finance and, importantly, a more favourable move towards alternative providers.

“This achievement is a testament to White Oak UK’s commitment to supporting businesses with access to simple and accessible finance solutions.”

Breaking down the £1.5bn number, since White Oak UK’s book started in 2014, the business has helped fund more than 30,000 businesses In the past 12 months it has written almost 8,000 deals at an average loan size of £36,000, and deals have originated from a mix of direct, introduced, brokered, marketing and aggregated channels.

One business which took White Oak UK past the £1.5bn mark is Willow Tree Interiors, a design firm which creates unique, handmade English kitchens for homes across the UK.

Luke Stanger, managing director of the firm which is based near Hastings, said: “White Oak UK has aided the much-needed growth within the business, allowing us to expand in what are challenging times.

“We now have our high street showroom in Heathfield, East Sussex, with a growing list of projects planned, something we would not have been able to achieve without their support.”

White Oak UK, which rebranded from LDF in July 2018, has been providing flexible business finance solutions in the UK for more than 30 years.

In 2018, the firm provided £520m in funding to businesses, having also broken the £1bn mark on its own book in 2018 since its launch four years prior.

Another firm celebrating a milestone is commercial property consultant Ryden.

Marking the second anniversary of its Manchester office, it said since its opening in July 2017, the company has been involved in more than £100m of investment deals in the North West, including Royal London’s purchase of a 15-storey building on the corner of Mosley Street in Manchester, and it has more than £50m in negotiation.

Beginning as a one-person operation by investment partner Andrew Richardson, the office has subsequently grown to four staff, including building surveying partner Ian Spencer.

It currently offers three key service lines: Investment, building surveying and strategic agency advice.

The building consultancy team in Manchester has also been kept busy carrying out acquisition surveys and providing related technical due diligence advice for more than 30 properties across the North West in the past six months.

Dilapidations matters remain prominent as both landlords and tenants are becoming ever more focused on ensuring obligations and potential liabilities are realised and managed effectively.

This new base in England followed the firm’s opening of a London office in December 2016, through a merger with asset management and property investment specialist Mason Philips.

In 2015, Ryden also boosted its long-established presence in Leeds by merging with asset management firm Hill Woolhouse.

Andrew Richardson, head of the Manchester office and investment partner at Ryden, said: “In two years we have built a strong and experienced team which is coming into its element, overcoming the current politic and economic uncertainty and creating opportunities for our long established client base.”

Matthew Edwards, Ryden’s regional managing partner in England, added: “Our team in Manchester is a key part of Ryden’s ongoing strategy to expand the business in England.

“It is remarkable to see how the turnover from the English part of the business has been increased by 152% over the last four years.”