H&t Group
H&T Group (Harvey & Thompson Limited) is a UK-founded pawnbroker established in 1897, operating 290+ retail stores across the United Kingdom. It serves individual consumers with pawn loans, pre-owned luxury watches and jewellery, gold buying, travel money exchange, Western Union remittances, and watch servicing.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1897
- HeadquartersSutton, United Kingdom
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
H&t Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- H&t Group
- Legal name
- Harvey & Thompson Limited
- Website
- https://handt.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1897
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- H&T Group (Harvey & Thompson Limited) is a UK-founded pawnbroker established in 1897, operating 290+ retail stores across the United Kingdom. It serves individual consumers with pawn loans, pre-owned luxury watches and jewellery, gold buying, travel money exchange, Western Union remittances, and watch servicing.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
H&t Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Pawnbroking & Precious Goods Retail
- NAICS
- Jewelry, Watch, Precious Stone, and Precious Metal Merchant Wholesalers (423940), Used Merchandise Retailers (459510)
- SIC
- Retail-Jewelry Stores (5944), Wholesale-Jewelry, Watches, Precious Stones & Metals (5094)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Luxury Pawn & Collateral Lending (Watches/Jewelry) (CRAKAKAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Watch & Timepiece Retail (CRAKAGAD), Pre-owned Watch Dealers & Exchanges (CRAKAKAB), Jewelry & Watch Care Products (Tools, Cleaners, Storage) (CRAKALAK), Jewelry, Watches & Luxury Goods Marketplaces (CRAFABAK)
Keywords
Where H&t Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Sutton
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
H&t Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Pawnbroking: Short-term secured loans against valuable items (watches, jewellery, bags) with representative 165.5% APR. Customers receive cash quickly with items held as collateral.
- Retail Sales: Sale of pre-owned and new watches (Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer, Cartier, Breitling, etc.), jewellery (22ct gold, 18ct gold, diamonds), gold bars and coins, and handbags. Margin earned on resale of acquired items.
- Gold and Watch Purchasing: Buying gold items, watches and valuable items from customers at market prices, then reselling for margin.
- Travel Money / Currency Exchange: Foreign currency exchange with 0% commission. Offers almost 100 different currencies. Revenue from exchange rate spreads. Also offers buyback service for unused currency.
- Watch Servicing and Repairs: Comprehensive watch repair services through Swiss Time Services including battery replacement, mechanical servicing, polishing, glass replacement, and bracelet repairs. Up to 24 months guarantee on servicing work.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Pawn loans with representative 165.5% APR |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Watch prices range from under £250 to over £30,000 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Jewellery prices from under £100 to over £30,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Travel money with 0% commission |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
H&t Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
H&T Group operates a UK pawnbroking and retail business that provides short-term secured loans against valuable items (watches, jewellery, bags), sells pre-owned and new luxury watches, fine jewellery and gold bars/coins, buys gold and watches from customers at market prices, offers foreign currency exchange, and delivers professional watch repair services through its Swiss Time Services subsidiary. The business is delivered through a network of 290+ UK stores plus an e-commerce platform, with 125+ years of brand heritage since 1897.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Pawnbroking (Secured Short-Term Loans)
Quantifiable outcome
- 30-minute cash offer on gold items during business hours
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use H&t Group
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
H&t Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
Feature3 records
H&t Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Swiss Time Services GroupcoreH&T acquired Swiss Time Services Group in 2022, the UK's largest independent watch service centre. The acquisition includes Swiss Time Services (established 1993, level 3 accreditation for Omega and Swatch Group brands) and Swisstec (official UK Service Centre for Ball Watches, Carl F Bucherer, CWC, Eberhard, Favre-Leuba, Fortis, Girard-Perregaux, JeanRichard, Maurice Lacroix, Porsche Design, Ulysse Nardin, Cartier, and Baume Mercier). Over 30 skilled staff handling 15,000+ repairs annually.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
H&t Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Ramsdens Holdings: UK-listed pawnbroker and jewellery/watch retailer with ~165 stores. Closest direct peer to H&T in terms of pawnbroking + pre-owned luxury watch + jewellery retail, though smaller scale and more regionally concentrated in the North of England.
- Cash Converters UK: UK pawnbroking and second-hand retail chain offering secured personal loans against watches and jewellery, plus resale of pre-owned items. Highly comparable GTM and customer base, though broader in second-hand categories (electronics, tools, music).
- Watches of Switzerland Group: UK-listed leading luxury watch retailer with showrooms across the UK and US, carrying Rolex, Omega, Patek Philippe and TAG Heuer. Direct peer on the watch retail side but lacks H&T's pawnbroking, gold buying and travel money arms — and H&T lacks WOSG's new-watch authorised dealer scale.
- Albemarle & Bond: Historic UK pawnbroking chain offering pawn loans against jewellery/watches and retail sale of pre-owned items. Closely mirrors H&T's pawnbroking and pre-owned jewellery value proposition, though with a much smaller store footprint.
- Watchfinder & Co. UK-founded specialist in pre-owned luxury watches (now part of Richemont). Sells authenticated pre-owned Rolex, Omega, Cartier and others both online and via dedicated boutiques — directly comparable to H&T's pre-owned watch retail proposition, with arguably stronger brand positioning on the high-end segment.
Regional players
- FirstCash Holdings: Largest US-listed pawnbroker operating thousands of stores across the US and Latin America. Comparable pawnbroking economics and store-level operating model; a useful benchmark for scale economics although geographically separate and more pawn-pure than H&T.
Broad incumbents
- Chrono24: Global online marketplace for new and pre-owned luxury watches, with hundreds of thousands of listings from professional dealers and private sellers. Competes directly with H&T's online pre-owned watch offering but without a physical store network or servicing infrastructure.
Emerging players
- Bob's Watches: US-based online specialist in pre-owned Rolex and other luxury watches, focused on authentication and price transparency. Relevant emerging peer in the pre-owned luxury watch category where H&T competes, particularly for online-savvy buyers.
- The Watch Gallery: UK-based online luxury watch retailer offering pre-owned and new pieces from Rolex, Omega, Cartier and others. Niche overlap with H&T's e-commerce proposition and target buyer profile.
- Borro (formerly Borro Private Finance): UK online asset-backed lending platform offering secured loans against luxury watches, jewellery and other high-value assets. Competes with H&T's pawnbroking business for the same borrower profile but through a fully digital channel rather than store visits.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
H&t Group social profiles
Digital presenceH&t Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
H&t Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
H&t Group subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
H&t Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
H&t Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about H&t Group
What does H&t Group do?
H&T Group operates a UK pawnbroking and retail business that provides short-term secured loans against valuable items (watches, jewellery, bags), sells pre-owned and new luxury watches, fine jewellery and gold bars/coins, buys gold and watches from customers at market prices, offers foreign currency exchange, and delivers professional watch repair services through its Swiss Time Services subsidiary. The business is delivered through a network of 290+ UK stores plus an e-commerce platform, with 125+ years of brand heritage since 1897.
Is H&t Group a public or private company?
H&t Group is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was H&t Group founded?
H&t Group was founded in 1897. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is H&t Group based?
H&t Group is headquartered in Sutton, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does H&t Group make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Pawnbroking is the primary driver. The others are retail Sales, gold and Watch Purchasing, travel Money / Currency Exchange and watch Servicing and Repairs.
Who are H&t Group's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Ramsdens Holdings, Cash Converters UK, Watches of Switzerland Group, Albemarle & Bond and Watchfinder & Co.. FirstCash Holdings is listed as a regional player. Chrono24 is listed as a broad incumbent. Emerging players are Bob's Watches, The Watch Gallery and Borro (formerly Borro Private Finance).
Does H&t Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for H&t Group.
What industry is H&t Group in?
H&t Group's product category is Pawnbroking & Precious Goods Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAKAKAG, Luxury Pawn & Collateral Lending (Watches/Jewelry), with a secondary code of CRAKAGAD, Watch & Timepiece Retail. Its NAICS code is 423940 and its SIC code is 5944.