Sowena Group Secures Six-Figure Funding to Accelerate Growth and Innovation

Sowena Group is proud to announce that it has secured a significant six-figure investment from the North West Business Growth Loan fund, managed by River Capital. This marks an important milestone in our growth journey, with River Capital’s streamlined approach enabling funding to be completed within just one month of our initial enquiry.

Founded in June 2024 by award-winning recruiter Perran Cooke, Sowena specialises in placing finance and accounting professionals; from newly qualified accountants through to CFO and board-level executives, into high-growth organisations, including private equity–backed, venture capital–backed, and scaling businesses.

Although still in our early stages, Sowena has rapidly built a reputation for excellence, maintaining a 100% success rate across every role filled to date. In an industry where 25–30% attrition is the norm, this achievement reflects our commitment to high-quality process, deep sector expertise, and a data-driven approach to recruitment.

The new funding will play a key role in accelerating our expansion. We will be recruiting three additional fee-earning consultants to strengthen our capabilities across the three core pillars of the business:

• Senior executive search for CFO and Finance Director appointments

• Mid-tier finance management recruitment

• Interim, fractional and portfolio Finance Director and CFO placements

The investment will also support the final development and rollout of Kelmi Intelligence, our data-led candidate-matching platform. Kelmi Intelligence integrates behavioural and emotional insights with traditional skills and experience data, enabling a more precise candidate-to-role match.

Initially, the platform will be introduced to Sowena’s existing private equity and corporate clients as part of our search offering, delivering a competitive advantage through superior matching accuracy, reduced time-to-hire, and an enhanced focus on cultural alignment, transparency, and long-term fit.

This funding marks the beginning of an exciting next chapter for Sowena, and we look forward to accelerating our impact across the finance recruitment landscape while continuing to deliver exceptional outcomes for our clients and candidates alike.