Montane group expands with new Lancashire hub

A financial and property services group has expanded its operations with a new hub in Lancashire.

The Montane group of businesses has taken an office suite at the £8.4m Strawberry Fields Digital Hub in Chorley, with scope to accommodate further additions to its growing team based there.

The group, which has its headquarters in Buxton and an office in Winsford, Cheshire, comprises specialist business property adviser Montane Care, Montane Finance and Montane Insurance.

Montane Care provides commercial advice on the sale and acquisition of care homes and childcare facilities across the UK. Montane Finance is an award-winning independent finance broker for the hospitality and healthcare sectors.

Last year, the group launched Montane Insurance, a boutique commercial broker for the hospitality and healthcare sectors, headed by director Adam Lee.

Montane’s team had been hot-desking at Strawberry Fields and the group has now taken dedicated office space with additional boardroom facilities for client meetings and seminars.

Scott Murcott, founder and managing director of the Montane group, said: “Our new hub at Strawberry Fields marks a milestone for Montane as we continue to expand our team and our operations.

“Our business strategy involves opening hubs as we develop the group, and we will look to establish similar centres in other key locations as we grow.

“Strawberry Fields is in a prime location, being close to the M61, M6 and M65. It’s very accessible for the team and the clients we work with in the region, it’s modern and well-equipped, and our office suite gives us scope to expand the team as we continue to grow the business.

“We’ve also been really impressed with the business community that’s developing there and the interaction and collaborative working between the various companies based at the site. It’s great to be part of it.”

Strawberry Fields Digital Hub, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and managed by Chorley Council, opened in 2019 to provide fixed office space, flexible hot desks and meeting rooms to start-ups and SMEs across a range of sectors.

The site, off Euxton Lane, has 40,000sq ft of workspace offering superfast broadband and on-site digital support.