H&T Pawnbrokers reports strong growth

by Gill Montia

Story link: H&T Pawnbrokers reports strong growth

H&T Group, the UK’s leading pawnbroker by pledge book size, has reported strong growth during the second half of 2008, adding that it expects profit for the period to exceed market expectations.

The group currently has around £30 million on loan and says it has benefited from an economic climate in which people are looking for simple short-term loans and those with poor credit histories cannot raise cash from banks.

In December, like-for-like sales rose 3% despite difficult trading conditions on the High Street.

Established in 1897 and trading as H&T Pawnbrokers, the company provides its loan facilities through its 105 outlets, typically charging 8% interest per month for cash advances.

Items such as gold jewellery that are not reclaimed after six months can be sold as scrap and the lender reported that profit has been boosted by this activity, as gold prices remained high prices and volumes increased.

During the six months to the end of December, H&T opened ten new stores and acquired a further two outlets in what has been a period of record growth for the company.