Home Business Awards & Achievements The East Yorkshire entrepreneur making recruitment a Sure thing

The East Yorkshire entrepreneur making recruitment a Sure thing

East Yorkshire entrepreneur Charles Draper has taken to the stage at the prestigious Recruitment Agency Expo at London’s Olympia, providing insight and advice to aspiring young business tycoons.

Charles, 26, is the founder and managing director of Sure Group, a specialist group of companies launched to service the Recruitment, Logistics, Commercial and Healthcare sectors in locations across the UK.

He used his guest speaker slot at the Recruitment Agency Expo on Tuesday 5th February to reflect on his own experiences during his short career, which has seen him grow Sure Group from a single office in Hull to a nationally recognised business and has generated up to 20% return per year on over £1 million of commercial property across the UK.

The Recruitment Agency Expo is the UK’s biggest recruitment networking event, featuring more than 100 exhibitors and attended by more than 3,000 senior level staffing professionals.


Hailing from East Yorkshire, Charles Draper launched the Sure Group in 2013, when it was founded as Sure Staffing, a local recruitment business operating from a single office in Hessle, Hull.

Following year-on-year growth, the business, which is celebrating its fifth-year trading, has since more than doubled its turnover from £1.2 million in 2016 to £5 million plus today and is anticipating a similar growth by 2020.

The Sure Group today employs more than 300 people nationwide, with its four businesses operating from sites in Hull, Knottingley, Wakefield, Manchester, Liverpool, Northampton and Gloucester.

The Group has made several major investments in recent years to support its growth. Its Logistics business has recently invested £500,000 in a new vehicle fleet and opened a second depot in Manchester to service clients onsite.

Its Healthcare business, founded in 2017, recently gained CQC accreditation which allowed it to launch a dedicated domiciliary department for clients requiring in-house care.

Discussing the rapid growth of Sure Group, Charles said: “Following significant investment in our four businesses we have enjoyed some fantastic success which has resulted in our consistent growth. A catalyst for this has been our investment in commercial property across the UK which has helped us target key regions we have identified as target areas for our business streams.

“For example, operating from Wakefield and Liverpool gives us good access to the M62 corridor while Northampton and Gloucester sites have increased our presence in the Midlands.

Charles added: “Since our formation and throughout our short history we have worked in partnership with some of the UK’s largest businesses, supplying skilled personnel in various sectors and offering services such as distribution and storage to high standards at cost-effective prices.

“Our foundations were built in Hull and we’re proud to serve the region by helping people find employment and providing local businesses with a one-stop solution for their recruitment and logistics requirements. Following our huge organic growth, we now supply staff in both temporary and permanent positions anywhere from the North-East down to London and are exploring opportunities for further market growth.”

The Sure Group celebrates its fifth year of trading with a clear vision to become a leading UK recruitment provider. With the business’s ethos of exceptional client services and dedicated team working around the clock, Charles believes anything is possible for Sure.