Liza Brookes

Operations Director

Sector: IT

Established: 2009

About Venturi

  • Offices: Wilmslow, New York
  • Geographies: UK, US, Germany
  • Subsidiaries funded: Venturi Ltd, TVGL (The Venturi Group Limited) Inc, Venturi Germany GMBH
  • Team: 70 staff. Consultants = 75%, Operations and Support = 25%
  • Contract/Perm turnover split: 90/10
  • Recognised in Recruiter HOT 100, Top 500 and Fast 50
  • Group turnover 2018/19: £30m (projected turnover for 2019/20 £40m)

Core reasons for joining Sonovate:

  • Funding Venturi’s US operation “we found from a buying perspective that Sonovate’s ambition to go into the US matched ours.”
  • 100% advance rate – “No other financiers could match Sonovate’s US funding – they were offering 60-70% upfront max.”
  • Shared perspective on growth and business outlook “both fun, youthful companies.”

Venturi has grown at breakneck speed since inception. From their offices in Wilmslow and New York, their 70 strong business partners clients throughout Europe and the US.

As IT sector specialists, Venturi operate in high-growth hubs and position themselves at the very forefront of the sector. Everything they do from recruiting in the latest technologies to how they market their brand is geared towards creating and fuelling growth.

We caught up with Liza Brookes, Operations Director to discuss Venturi’s transition to Sonovate and their growth plans.

Funding US growth…

As great as they were, Venturi’s previous financier didn’t have the appetite to fund their US operation. This led Venturi’s leadership team to evaluate a number of providers and contact Nick Russell (Commercial Sales Manager) at Sonovate.

“We evaluated a number of different providers, from traditional high-street banks to more specialised lenders. We needed a funder who could cover multiple geographies. Importantly, we wanted to work with someone who mirrored our energy and vision. Sonovate’s ambition to fund into the US matched ours. We have a shared commonality, we both want to be the best and do it in the right way.”

A key element to fueling Venturi’s US venture is unlocking the working capital needed to stimulate growth. Since launching their office in Manhattan, the team has grown from two contract consultants to six, and continues to add new heads each month.

Sonovate provides 100% upfront on contract invoices in America. No other financiers could offer that – they were offering 60-70% upfront max

The speed of growth achieved in the US is mirrored with Venturi’s UK and German teams who have grown consistently year-on-year. With the business eyeing up new territories in Australia and Asia-Pac, Venturi are firmly in a phase of ‘very aggressive expansion’, with the team recruiting heavily.

In September 2018, Venturi transferred all of the finance to Sonovate, independently funding their UK, US and German subsidiaries from our platform.

“We use Sonovate in its most straightforward way. From a tech perspective, it’s all about usability and how efficient the process is end-to-end. Sonovate’s credit control team managing all locations is great. With other lending providers, we wouldn’t have such a dedicated personal service.”

As a key client, Venturi works closely with our product and customer service team, providing feedback to continually develop the product.

When you speak to the key people in Sonovate – they listen to you and understand what you need. By helping you achieve your goals there’s mutual benefit – we’re on an adventure together

The mood at Venturi is buoyant. The management team has all grown together and collectively they are in their strongest position. As the UK is approaching a period of change, Venturi are forecasting an uptick on contract growth, but cite IR35 as an area that will create challenges for recruiters. As a business that’s focused on growth, the message for the industry is in keeping with their core vision.

Keep growing – as people who love the industry, we have a responsibility to hire people, give great training, build great sales teams and give the recruitment industry a great name

Find out more about Venturi, a Specialist IT Recruitment Agency