West Creek Financial CEO Boomer Muth
Fresh off a capital raise and financing round that gave it tens of millions of dollars to work with, a fast-growing local startup has taken more office space in Henrico and is in hiring mode.
West Creek Financial, a 2-year-old company that handles lease-to-own financing for furniture, mattress and appliance retailers, recently moved into 6,200 square feet on the third floor of North Shore Commons I at 4951 Lake Brook Drive in Innsbrook.
The move triples West Creek Financial’s space from its previous home less than a mile away at 5030 Sadler Place.
CEO Boomer Muth said the extra space will help the 20-person company accommodate its plans to grow to 50 employees by the end the year.
“It’s got plenty of room for us to grow,” said Muth, who co-founded West Creek Financial in 2014 on the idea that the lease-to-own segment of the retail finance scene could use a new competitor.
Muth said West Creek sees the size of that market segment as $11 billion and it plans to grab its share with a business model built around crunching data, keeping customer service in-house and being transparent with its consumers.
Muth, a former analyst with Capital One, runs the company along with chief operating officer Mark Every and chief revenue officer Bob McCarthy. Every was previously a vice president at AMF Bakery and McCarthy comes from mattress giant Tempur Sealy.
The company has grown its current retail customer list to 300 stores across 17 states in less than two years. Muth wouldn’t comment on its revenue, but said he doesn’t expect growth to slow anytime soon.
In June it landed $3.5 million in capital from institutional and angel investors. A month later it scored a $25 million line of credit from Chicago-based Victory Park Capital to help fund financing plans to consumers.
“With the capital we have – the energy we have as an organization, it feels like gaining new business is something… I’m going to say it’s going to be easy, but it’s something we have a line of sight to,” Muth said.
North Shore Commons I in Innsbrook. Photo courtesy of Highwoods.
In hunting for new office space, Muth said the company decided to stay in Innsbrook for the price and the location. Brian Berkey from Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer helped it with its search.
“The big appeal for us of this location – bang for your buck is a big part of it,” Muth said, without going into detail of how much it pays per square foot. “You can get a lot more for your money.”
“From a recruiting perspective, we’re based among some of the other call centers in the metropolitan area.”
West Creek Financial currently has 10 open job positions to fill and expects to continue adding to its headcount with executives, call center operators and sales positions.
Muth said a big part of the hiring will be for its in-house call center that services both consumers and retailers.
“Keeping it in-house is an important part of ensuring that brand,” Muth said. “If they don’t work for us and aren’t pumped to show the passion we have, that’s not going to translate over the phone.”
West Creek Financial CEO Boomer Muth
Fresh off a capital raise and financing round that gave it tens of millions of dollars to work with, a fast-growing local startup has taken more office space in Henrico and is in hiring mode.
West Creek Financial, a 2-year-old company that handles lease-to-own financing for furniture, mattress and appliance retailers, recently moved into 6,200 square feet on the third floor of North Shore Commons I at 4951 Lake Brook Drive in Innsbrook.
The move triples West Creek Financial’s space from its previous home less than a mile away at 5030 Sadler Place.
CEO Boomer Muth said the extra space will help the 20-person company accommodate its plans to grow to 50 employees by the end the year.
“It’s got plenty of room for us to grow,” said Muth, who co-founded West Creek Financial in 2014 on the idea that the lease-to-own segment of the retail finance scene could use a new competitor.
Muth said West Creek sees the size of that market segment as $11 billion and it plans to grab its share with a business model built around crunching data, keeping customer service in-house and being transparent with its consumers.
Muth, a former analyst with Capital One, runs the company along with chief operating officer Mark Every and chief revenue officer Bob McCarthy. Every was previously a vice president at AMF Bakery and McCarthy comes from mattress giant Tempur Sealy.
The company has grown its current retail customer list to 300 stores across 17 states in less than two years. Muth wouldn’t comment on its revenue, but said he doesn’t expect growth to slow anytime soon.
In June it landed $3.5 million in capital from institutional and angel investors. A month later it scored a $25 million line of credit from Chicago-based Victory Park Capital to help fund financing plans to consumers.
“With the capital we have – the energy we have as an organization, it feels like gaining new business is something… I’m going to say it’s going to be easy, but it’s something we have a line of sight to,” Muth said.
North Shore Commons I in Innsbrook. Photo courtesy of Highwoods.
In hunting for new office space, Muth said the company decided to stay in Innsbrook for the price and the location. Brian Berkey from Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer helped it with its search.
“The big appeal for us of this location – bang for your buck is a big part of it,” Muth said, without going into detail of how much it pays per square foot. “You can get a lot more for your money.”
“From a recruiting perspective, we’re based among some of the other call centers in the metropolitan area.”
West Creek Financial currently has 10 open job positions to fill and expects to continue adding to its headcount with executives, call center operators and sales positions.
Muth said a big part of the hiring will be for its in-house call center that services both consumers and retailers.
“Keeping it in-house is an important part of ensuring that brand,” Muth said. “If they don’t work for us and aren’t pumped to show the passion we have, that’s not going to translate over the phone.”