Exeter Finance Opens Sixth Branch Location, On Pace with 2008 Growth Plan

Exeter Finance Corp. today announced the opening of its sixth branch office in Manchester, N.H. This event marks the half-way point of Exeter’s growth plan announced earlier this year. The company is on track to open an additional six branches in major U.S. markets by the end of December. 

Exeter’s expansion is anchored by a business model centered on local relationships with auto dealers, local underwriting and local funding. 

“Before we made our first loan two years ago, we saw that the industry needed a service-oriented approach to auto lending,” says Richard Frunzi, chief operating officer of Irving-based Exeter Finance. “Our underwriting and verification teams work in branches near their dealers – not thousands of miles away in a centralized facility. As a result, dealers enjoy face-to-face service from people they already know and trust … and we receive a warm welcome wherever we open a branch.”

The company also provides convenient, friendly service to its consumers. In addition to easy access to live representatives, Exeter offers online services such as real-time account information and free Web-pay options. Exeter’s loan program focuses on basic transportation and reasonable loan amounts. Frunzi adds, “With higher gas prices and concerns about inflation, we make certain that we finance cars our customers can afford.”

Exeter says its biggest advantage in this market is its dedicated and talented staff. President Sam Ellis explains, “We employ an unbelievably impressive team that believes in our mission as much as our management team does. Every member of our staff could work anywhere in this industry, but they chose Exeter. Simply put, our dealers use Exeter because of our people.”

Ellis says he doesn’t worry about the uncertainty of the U.S. economy. “I believe we started this business at just the right time,” he says. “We consistently price our loans proportional to their risk, which takes economic conditions into consideration. So we look forward to solid returns in the future.”

In January, Navigation Capital Partners, an Atlanta private-equity firm, invested $20 million in Exeter. Navigation plans to invest up to an additional $40 million of equity into the auto lender to support its portfolio growth.

Also in January, the company welcomed auto finance veteran Ed Esstman to its board of directors. Esstman’s 40-plus years of industry experience include 12 years at AmeriCredit Financial Services headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was most recently vice chairman.

Exeter currently operates branches in Irving, Texas (which also serves Denver, Colo.); Independence, Ohio (near Cleveland); Paramus, N.J.; Schaumburg, Ill. (near Chicago); St. Louis, Mo; and now Manchester, N.H.

About Exeter Finance
Exeter Finance Corp. is an auto finance company specializing in purchasing and servicing sub-prime auto finance contracts from select franchised auto dealers throughout the United States. Founded in 2006, the company is headquartered in Irving, Texas. For more information, visit www.ExeterFinance.com.