Midlands recruiters rebrand following rapid growth

Recruitment firm SF Recruitment has announced it is rebranding as SF Partners after more than two decades of growth.

Founded in Birmingham in 1998, the business began as a specialist provider of finance and accountancy recruitment across the Midlands.

Today the firm operates across the UK and internationally, with offices in Birmingham, London, the East Midlands, Manchester and Frankfurt.

SF has also developed six specialist practice areas spanning Executive Search, Finance, Technology, Transformation, Engineering and Professional Services.

Since 2020, the firm has more than doubled revenue, expanded its headcount by over 200 per cent, opened its first international office in Frankfurt and delivered more than 500 private equity-backed mandates.

The business is now approaching its 60,000th successful placement, an average of more than 2,200 hires per year since it was founded.

As the firm’s client base has grown and matured, so too has the nature of its work, with an increasing proportion of mid-to-senior appointments, executive search assignments and investor-backed mandates shaping its portfolio.

CEO Saira Demmer (pictured) said: “We’ve been in the market a long time and naturally our consultants have built strong relationships with both clients and candidates. It’s not unusual for us to place someone multiple times during their career and then go on to help them build out their own teams as they move into leadership roles.

“When we spoke to clients and candidates about what differentiates us, the word that came up again and again was partnership. As our business has evolved, we felt it was time to make that focus more visible.”

Saira added that while technology is reshaping recruitment, the firm believes human expertise and relationships remain central to delivering the right outcomes.

She said: “Automation is changing parts of the recruitment process, but the real value still lies in understanding people and organisations properly.

“That means taking the time to build relationships, offer honest advice and focus on long-term fit rather than quick wins.”

Alongside recruitment services, SF Partners also offers a number of advisory and consultancy services including Private Equity Pre-Deal Support and Insights Discovery® coaching.

Looking ahead, the firm plans to continue investing in its specialist teams and international reach, with ambitions to grow revenues by a further 50 per cent over the next three years.