The OakNorth blog

Read the latest industry news, find practical advice on how to grow your business and smart tips to save for the future, all here on the OakNorth blog.

Growing your business

The making of a merger: Why IFAs are consolidating expertise and combining skills to help their clients grow

Friday November 10th, 2023

When it comes to supporting businesses as they grow, we’re interested in more than just your name and your revenue. Our decision-making process gets to know the people behind the numbers, finding out why they decided to take on debt financing, why now and where they are headed. There’s a story behind the journey to […]

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Industry news

Growth in fitness – why physical gyms are seeing more gains

Tuesday October 17th, 2023

There’s the adage that a healthy body brings a healthy mind, but increasingly, we’re seeing this also means a healthy bottom line for fitness businesses. We’re currently witnessing one of the biggest booms in the health space, as the UK fitness industry’s market value has reached an all-time high in 2023.   But what can […]

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Senior living

Insights from the care sector: OakNorth’s continued commitment and appetite for support

Friday October 6th, 2023
Carer walking with elderly person

The care sector has seen significant upheavals over the last five years due to the pandemic, Brexit, the war in Ukraine and the UK cost of living crisis. Yet, despite these tests, the sector has been hugely resilient and shown a lot of potential for growth. OakNorth’s resident care expert, Debt Finance Director Stuart Blair, […]

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Business development

Why family businesses succeed

Wednesday October 4th, 2023

Generations of families are behind some of the world’s largest businesses, like Walmart, BMW and Mars. They lead the way in many countries, making up over 85% of private sector businesses in the UK, 67% of companies in Australia, and 87% of American companies are family-owned or controlled. And, while most family-run companies don’t have the extreme drama of the […]

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Industry news

The rise of the warehouse — how businesses are expanding their storage and distribution efforts

Thursday August 31st, 2023

With changing online shopping habits post-pandemic and a major shake-up in UK distribution lines post-Brexit, it’s no wonder that warehousing and storage companies are on the rise. Many businesses are looking for answers to their growing fulfilment needs, and both national and regional centres are stepping up to meet this demand.

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Partnerships

Getting the best loan for your clients: why cost shouldn’t be the only factor

Wednesday August 16th, 2023

Versions of artificial intelligence (AI) may have been around from the first computers of the 1940s, but when the advanced chatbot ‘Chat GPT’ went viral in late 2022, the pace of AI development rapidly increased.

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