Experienced John Hughes has joined specialist finance and accounting recruitment company Sowena Group to support its next phase of growth.
After spending 29 years at KPMG, Hughes has held a series of high profile including being the current chairman of Cortus Advisory Group.
He’s also advised Modern Milkman, which last week secured a £10m investment from Salica Investments, taking total funding raised by the sustainable grocery delivery business to more than £60m.
Hughes has worked extensively as a non-executive chairman and chief executive of large organisations including Yodel.
Sowena’s founder and chief executive Perran Cooke said Hughes’ experience and strategic insight would help to strengthen the company’s market position and support its expansion strategy.
The company, which Perran founded in summer 2024, now has a team of 12 based at The Tootal Buildings in Manchester city centre.
Sowena, which last year received a six-figure investment from fund manager River Capital to accelerate its growth, specialises in recruitment for high-growth businesses, pre and current private equity-backed companies and venture capital firms across the North West and beyond.
It recruits for chief financial officer, finance director, financial controller, head of finance and newly-qualified roles as well as for interim and fractional senior posts, with salaries ranging from £45,000 to £200,000.
Sowena places candidates across sectors including retail, technology, manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, fast-moving consumer goods, eCommerce, facilities management, professional services and wholesaling.
Perran said: “This is a really exciting moment for Sowena as we continue to build a business with scale, credibility and long-term ambition.
“Bringing John on board as non-executive director is a significant step for us. His experience from KPMG and Cortus Advisory, combined with his strategic insight, will be invaluable as he works alongside me to strengthen our market position and support the next phase of our growth.”
Hughes said: “Throughout my career, the constant has always been people. However strong the strategy or compelling the opportunity, businesses only succeed when they have the right people in the right roles, at the right time.
“I’ve known Perran for many years and have always been impressed by the way he approaches both clients and candidates – with integrity, commercial insight and a genuine understanding of what growing businesses really need.
“Sowena has built a business that reflects those values, and I’m looking forward to supporting the team as they help clients build finance functions that can scale, adapt and create long-term value.”
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Meanwhile, Sowena has strengthened its team with the appointment of Alex Mackenzie as a director and Marcus Polledri as business manager.
Mackenzie brings more than 12 years’ recruitment experience in the North West working with executive-level finance professionals, and has previously held senior roles at Broster Buchanan and Michael Page. At Sowena he is specialising in senior and executive appointments.
Polledri, who has joined Sowena from Simpson Judge, has four years’ experience working in the private equity finance market in London and the south, covering a range of high-growth businesses.
His focus at Sowena is on placing candidates in roles from newly-qualified accountants to senior level across east and south Manchester and Cheshire.