HH Cashflow Finance appoints new head of sales

Robin Goddard has been appointed as the new head of sales for HH Cashflow Finance to drive the continued expansion of the company, which was the fastest growing lender in Wales last year.

Goddard boasts an extensive knowledge of all aspects of commercial funding, including factoring, invoice discounting, asset-based lending after 16 years’ working in business development and sales roles for a range of independent lenders.

He will now lead the team at HH Cashflow, the invoice finance division of Henry Howard Finance (HHF), whose lending book grew by 38% in the first half of 2016 alone.

The company, which was launched as a new branch of HHF in October 2014, has increased its client portfolio by 31% in the last six months while staff numbers have risen from 14 to 19. It is forecast to grow by a further 23% by the end of 2016.

This came after a strong first 18 months during which HH Cashflow exceeded its growth forecasts to lend more than £9,000,000

Earlier this year HH Cashflow opened a new office in Solihull to better serve its clients across the Midlands. It also has staff based in offices in London and Bristol.

Goddard said: “This is a really exciting time to join the fast-growing team at HH Cashflow as we continue to extend our lending and expand our client base across the UK.

“I look forward to developing the company, getting to know its many clients and further extending lending to help plug the SME funding gap and support the growth and development of successful businesses.”

HH Cashflow’s expansion reflects record growth at HHF as a whole.

The Newport-based finance house saw its lending soar by 75% to more than £70m last year. Staff numbers rose from 54 to 90 over the same period making HHF the largest independent finance house in Wales.

This period of dramatic growth followed a £25 million investment from Cabot Square Capital in 2014 which allowed HHF it to increase lending and restructure into four divisions with HH Vendor, HH Asset and HH Retail Finance focused on leasing, while HH Cashflow Finance provides invoice finance.

The Vendor, Asset and Retail teams lent more than £57 million in 2015 with HH Cashflow making up another £15m.

The number of leases being written soared by nearly 50% to more than 3000 in 2015.

HHF recently agreed a £51m asset funding facility with the British Business Bank which will allow it to further extend its lending to UK SMEs.

Mark Crook, co-founder and chief operating officer at HHF, said: “Robin is a great addition to our senior team. He brings extensive experience of the invoice finance industry and is perfectly placed to lead HH Cashflow through its next stage of growth and development.”