A Bath-based recruitment company is set to expand thanks to a cash injection from the British Business Bank’s South West Investment Fund, delivered by SWIG Finance.
Giles Ellison and Jonny Hathrill of Right Pear used the funding to invest in software that automates and speeds up aspects of their business, freeing them up to focus on growth.
The South West Investment Fund provides loans from £25k to £2m and equity investment up to £5m to help small and medium-sized businesses across the South West to start up, scale up or stay ahead. SWIG Finance is the appointed fund manager for the smaller loans part of the fund.
Giles and Jonny met in previous employment and found they worked well together. They launched Right Pear 18 months ago, assisting businesses across all sectors in the recruitment of accounting personnel.
Giles Ellison (left) and Jonny Hathrill (right) of Right Pear
“We tend to work best with organisations that value close collaboration and partnership,” said Giles. “Being able to work directly with leadership teams means we can have a meaningful influence on recruitment processes and deliver stronger, more aligned outcomes.”
When a client’s own networks and referrals yield no results, Right Pear can step in to discuss what a business is looking for and benchmark the salary using market guidance. “We’ve carried out extensive market research,” said Jonny. “Because not all candidates are actively looking, we take a blended approach – combining active and passive search methods – and have invested in tools that help us identify and engage hard-to-reach talent.”
“We look for both a strong technical fit and a genuine cultural fit,” added Giles. “That means not only matching the right skills, but also the personality and behaviours that will complement the team. It’s not about sending ten CVs and hoping one sticks — it’s about presenting three to five candidates who are genuinely right for the role.”
The pair dedicated a “rollercoaster” first year to securing retained business, garnering five-star reviews in the process.
“We came to realise you shouldn’t underestimate the amount of stuff you have to do, beyond the day-to-day job, when running a business,” said Giles. “You spread yourself very thinly if you try to do it all yourself, so there’s value in investing in technology that allows you to focus on recruitment rather than admin.”
For Right Pear, that meant software capable of helping to map out the emerging market of businesses in need of their services, and to reach the right candidates at the right time before anyone else. “It takes a lot of time to do that ourselves, and we’re evaluating it over 6 to 12 months – software isn’t a quick win. But it is a jumpstart, automating the things we don’t enjoy, to focus on the things we do.”
“Software has released more of our time to spend on relationship building, which is a key part of the business – meeting people in person is crucial to this,” added Jonny. To this end, Right Pear hosts quarterly networking events; 25 clients came to Bath’s Duke Hotel to hear Jonny Huntington talk about the lessons learned in life and business from becoming the world’s first disabled person to ski solo and unsupported to the South Pole.
In the longer term, Giles and Jonny hope to increase head count in key areas of the business and relocate to a larger office in central Bristol or Bath.
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The South West Investment Fund can support a range of requirements
Not solely profit driven, they give back to their community in many ways, including mentoring under- and post-graduates on their first career steps, and volunteering with local charity Ups and Downs, for whom they’ve raised £2,387 through fundraisers and company donations.
As for the company name, Jonny explained: “I was going through a ‘fruit phase’. Giles says I should drop it, but others found it funny. It suits us – we’re the right pair for you, or a right pair of what-have-yous – however you wish to interpret it.”
Giles and Jonny first met Adele Jones, Associate Business Manager for SWIG Finance shortly after launching Right Pear and were referred to her as a client 12 months later. “Adele was responsive, communicated well and was happy to answer our endless questions,” said Giles. “It was everything you could ever want when going through this kind of process.”
Adele said: “Helping businesses at this stage is vital to ensure they can achieve their next stage of growth. Jonny and Giles’ plans were really important to ensure the development of Right Pear but given the limited business trading history, their options were limited.
“I could see SWIG funding would create the positive impact they needed, and Jonny and Giles were great to do business with – with their hard work, we were able to provide a South West Investment Fund loan.”
David Tindall, Senior Investment Manager at the British Business Bank said: “Right Pear is a good example of a South West business investing in technology to drive productivity and customer acquisition. Having supported the business through our Start Up Loans programme we are delighted that our South West Investment Fund is able to support its further growth.”
The purpose of the South West Investment Fund is to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunity for new and growing businesses across the region. It is increasing the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for South West smaller businesses, providing funds to firms that might otherwise not receive investment and helping to break down barriers in access to finance.
It operates across the whole of the South West region including Bristol, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire.
About SWIG Finance
SWIG Finance is a people-based lender that provides loans and support to help smaller businesses in the South and West Country grow. We base our lending decisions on potential rather than collateral, which means that we can often support businesses when others can't.
We’re growing every year. In 2024/25, we lent £14.8m to 501 businesses, helping to create and secure over 1,272 jobs and generate £75.7m in social impact. Download the report here.
If you’d like an informal chat about your funding requirements, get in touch with our friendly and professional team to see how we can help: info@swigfinance.co.uk / 01872 227 930
