Built on Trust: How Seico Group Has Grown Alongside SBT and the Sussex Business Community
26th April 2026
Author EditorPosted on Categories Business
When Sussex Business Times was first published in 1975, Britain was a very different place, and the idea of a local business magazine becoming a 500-issue institution would have seemed an ambitious dream.
For an SME like Seico Group, who have been partnered with SBT Magazine for four years, reaching milestones alongside SBT is especially resonant. As the magazine marks its extraordinary half-century of chronicling the Sussex business community, it offers a natural moment to reflect on Seico’s journey, one that began in 1990 and has since spanned over three decades of navigating economic storms, technological shifts and market disruption. Surviving is one thing, evolving to remain genuinely relevant to clients and the wider business community, that is the real achievement for SMEs.
Rob Starr founded Seico Insurance and Mortgages in 1990 with a clear purpose: to provide businesses and individuals with straightforward, expert financial guidance. From those early days, the emphasis was always on relationships, understanding clients’ needs, earning their trust and delivering advice that genuinely made a difference.
Over thirty-five years on, that founding philosophy remains at Seico Group’s core, even as the business itself has grown considerably. What started as a local enterprise has expanded to encompass three offices in Hove, London and South Africa, reflecting both the ambition of the team and the increasingly international nature of the clients they serve.
But growth in this sector is never straightforward. The financial services landscape has been transformed beyond recognition since 1990, from sweeping regulatory change and digital disruption to the upheaval of a global pandemic and volatile property markets. For any SME operating in this space, the challenge is not simply to survive these shifts, but to use them as a catalyst for smarter, more client-focused ways of working. Seico Group has consistently done exactly that across more than three decades in business.
Today, the business offers a comprehensive range of mortgage, commercial finance and insurance services, supported by a team whose expertise spans those same decades. Whether working with individuals navigating complex mortgage decisions or businesses seeking robust commercial lending or insurance cover, the Seico approach remains personal, considered and thoroughly professional.
“We are incredibly proud to be a partner of Sussex Business Times and to be part of this landmark 500th issue cover feature. SBT has always been more than just a magazine; it is the heartbeat of the Sussex business community, and it has been a privilege to grow alongside it over more than three decades. I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Sam Thomas and Jackie Irving-Wilkinson for building something truly special. Sustaining a business community publication to 500 issues takes vision, dedication and a genuine passion for the people and organisations that make this region thrive. We raise a glass to that, and look forward to many more issues to come.”
Rob Starr MBE, CEO, Seico Group
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