eople are increasingly turning to pawnbroker H&T to access cash, the business said on Tuesday, as households continue to be battered by high living expenses.
The company said demand for its services had “gathered momentum” in the first six months of the year, as its profit jumped by nearly a third.
It said borrowers were also taking out bigger loans – on average around £423 each, compared with £405 in December last year.
However, despite the pressures people are facing, around 85% are still paying off their loans and reclaiming the items they pawned, which is “above historic levels”, H&T said.
Customers are also paying off their loans quicker – within 97 days compared with the long-term average of 108 days, the business said.
“Demand for pledge lending continued to gather momentum during the first half of 2023, as customers’ increasing need to access small sums of short-term credit comes at a time of reduced market supply following the departure of several firms from the unsecured lending market,” H&T said on Tuesday.
“Demand for lending has been growing consistently through the period, across all customer segments and all geographies.”
Pre-tax profit rose 31% to £8.8 million, the business said.
Chief executive Chris Gillespie said: “I am delighted with the progress we have made and the momentum with which we enter the busy second half of the year.
“We are mindful of the impact upon our employees, suppliers and stakeholders of persistent inflation and rising interest rates.
“H&T is not immune to these factors, which have resulted in operating costs being higher than previously envisaged.
“However, much of this cost inflation is now factored into the cost run rate.
“We expect a lower level of cost inflation in the second half of the year which, alongside the growing revenue momentum of the business, puts us on track to deliver record profits in 2023.”