Back book buys grow sales at Harrington Brooks
HARRINGTON Brooks has seen turnover increase 83% to £21.4m, as it continues to consolidate its position in the debt management sector through acquisition and new product offerings.
The Sale-based group made a pre-tax profit of £934,000, for the year ending March 10, 2011 latest accounts for holding company One Advice Group show. The figure is down on the previous year’s pre-tax profit of £1.32m; however 2010 profits also included a loan note write-off of £1.96m.
Underlying performance after exceptional items shows the group moved from a loss of £876,000 in 2010 to a profit of £415,000 in 2011.
The business, which is currently backed by Inflexion Private Equity but is understood to be entering the latter stages of a sale process, employs around 400 staff in Sale and Stockport.
Chief executive Matthew Cheetham said part of the group’s increase in turnover is attributable to the acquisition of Stockport-based Fresh Start Financial Management in September 2010, as well as the acquisition of three debt management back books towards the end of the 2011 financial year.
He added: “We have seen a substantial increase in the number of overly indebted consumers who we have been able to help.
“The accounts for the year ended March 10, 2012 will show continued growth – we are currently helping 30,000 customers repay around £750m of debt.
“The business has expanded from a simple debt solutions provider, to one which works actively to further improve the day-to-day financial position of its customers. This takes the form of benefit advice and support, assistance with utility switching, and the provision of a claims management service. We are also actively developing further low-cost product offerings for our customers, who have been hard hit by the squeeze on incomes over the past few years.”
Harrington Brooks is expanding its claims management subsidiary Financial Claim Services and is looking to increase the work force in this division alone by 50 staff in the next six months.
Mr Cheetham said: “Some of these positions will be taken by apprentices, which allows us to harness fresh talent within the business. To demonstrate commitment to this valuable resource, Harrington Brooks will support the apprentices to gain a sales qualification, which they can use in any industry, and they will be placed on the same bonus scheme as existing members of staff.”
Across the group, a total of around 100 extra staff are expected to be recruited over the next 12 months and Harrington Brooks is taking on more space at its Sale Point head office to accommodate its growth.
The company also plans to add a new care home and nursing fee refunds product to its claims portfolio.
