Chesney’s

Business

Chesney’s is internationally recognised as the leading luxury brand in its field and is the first port of call for architects, interior designers and private clients all over the world who are seeking the very best fireplaces, wood burning stoves and gas fire appliances. Chesney’s is a leading supplier of luxury fireplaces, stoves, architectural design and outdoor living products.
They are an entrepreneurial British family business, built on 35 years of anticipating the needs of our discerning customers and adhering to the highest standards of design, functionality, workmanship and service.

It believes in the fusion of traditional and modern design and manufacturing techniques. Everything they make; be it our period and contemporary fireplaces, our climate-friendly stoves and outdoor heaters or our post-tensioned staircases, is driven by this principle.

Their skilled artisans carve marble for a chimneypiece or their in-house Research & Development team test their latest stoves for eco-design 2022 approval, all are focussed on the right way to deliver timeless quality, combined with cutting-edge innovation.
In addition to its own showrooms in London and New York, Chesney’s has a rapidly expanding trade sales arm and its products are now sold through over 200 authorised dealerships in the UK, Europe, Middle and Far East and North and South America. The company’s products are to be found in the most prestigious residential and hospitality projects.

The business has expanded rapidly over recent years with ambitious investment plans to continue target significant growth year on year, and with the considerable progress of several new products including outdoor living, has resulted in exciting opportunities for employee development. Working at Chesney’s feels like you are in a start-up business, but within an established enterprise and in a genuinely dynamic organisation.

Our history with Chesney’s
Harcourt Matthews have been proactively involved with and retained as a preferred supplier for over 8 years

Situation & Objective
Harcourt Matthews is a Recruitment Business Partner to their Senior Management Team supporting the need to strengthen a key functional area during a period of rapid growth

Actions
HR Business reviews, sourcing & placing people in interim and permanent roles, sustaining the establishment and evolution of the Finance function skills including: –

    • Finance & Accounting including
    • Controls & Transactions
    • Systems, Process & Finance Systems Transformation
    • Financial Planning & budgeting 

Examples: –

In Finance & Accounting
We have provided a recruitment advisory service aiding in the definition of needs in the short-medium term which initially involved the owners bringing onboard their first Finance Director seeking a Strong hands-on Head of Finance to subsume the day-to-day financial management responsibilities from an outsourced accountancy firm; this hands-on role led to a commercial planning & budgeting role play paving the way for much improved financial insights & MI and encompassed ERP systems transformation & implementation and the development of their London HQ Commercial and Financial Reporting team.

RESULTS & Benefits for Chesney’s using Harcourt Matthews
As a preferred supplier Harcourt Matthews has worked closely with the CFO and the Board (SMT), more importantly, met with and contributed to briefings led by some or all of the management team, consequently, everybody is on message, advice sought & given and the challenges dealt with, complimenting the recruitment partnership & process which led to speedier recruitment and Harcourt Matthews delivering results as their preferred supplier

Harcourt Matthews has successfully recruited key senior management and has an ongoing brief to identify talent in the marketplace to backfill those moving on into the organisation alongside the provision of advice on salaries and market conditions

Roles & Teams we have recruited for recently – Interim, temporary & permanent salaries or FTC £50k – £90k and include: 

Finance & Accounting including Strategy and Process & Business Systems Transformation

  • Head of Finance
  • Financial Controller (interim & Perm)