Directorbank is pleased to announce a significant appointment within the business. Matt Venning joins the team as a Director with a particular focus on the Business Services and Financial Services sectors.

Matt has 14 years’ executive search experience in private equity and has developed an extensive UK and international network of entrepreneurial directors within both PE and corporate markets. He began his career as a corporate lawyer, advising entrepreneurial SMEs, before joining a leading private equity recruitment firm in 2001. Since then, he has built teams throughout EMEA and Asia for investors, advisors and global banks, and has spent several years working in Hong Kong.

George Heppenstall, Director, comments: “This is a strong hire for the Directorbank team. Matt brings a wealth of search experience to the business and a high calibre network of entrepreneurial candidates. He adds weight to our services offering and will deliver value to our PE clients through his knowledge, expertise and reach.”

Directorbank adds value to the private equity sector with executive search solutions, pre-deal recruitment support and networking events. The business also specialises in board and senior level search assignments for privately-owned and AIM listed businesses.

Directorbank has placed Justin Stead as Chairman of Sofa.com following the recent sale of the business to CBPE Capital.

Sofa.com, the market leading omni-channel furniture retailer, was founded in 2005 by Rohan Blacker and the late Pat Reeves after they sold their successful food delivery business, Deliverance, to Active Private Equity for around £5.5m.

Over recent years, the business has been through significant growth and transition. Aside from strengthening its operational management team, it opened its first showroom outside London, in Bath, as well as a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Poland. In the year ending Feb 2014, sales rose 20% to £21.8m and EBITDA increased 48% to £5.3m.

Aware that Sofa.com was in the market for a new owner to help fund its expansion plans, Directorbank introduced Justin Stead – the former CEO of luxury jewellery group Aurum Holdings – to Anne Hoffmann, an experienced investor in the consumer space at CBPE Capital. With an impressive track record in retail and a wealth of knowledge in building successful consumer brands, Justin possessed the necessary skill set to add valuable expertise to the investment process.

Following CBPE’s investment in Sofa.com, Justin is now Chairman of the business and will lead the existing management team in growing the brand across the UK. During his time at Aurum Holdings, which owns Mappin & Webb, Watches of Switzerland and Goldsmiths, he transformed the business into one of the most dynamic, influential and powerful players in the industry, delivering consistent double digit top line sales growth and quadrupling profits.

Anne Hoffmann states: “We are highly impressed by Directorbank’s sector understanding and reach. Their network is first class. Simon’s contribution to the process – the introduction of Justin – has been instrumental in achieving a successful outcome. Sofa.com is a fantastic business and we are looking forward to supporting its management team through the next phase of growth”.

For more information on Directorbank’s executive search and pre-deal recruitment services, please contact us on 020 7255 7940.