In the specialist lending sector, reputation is hard won. But when a business evolves, that reputation does not automatically evolve with it.
This was the challenge facing our client, RAW Capital Partners – the Guernsey-based investment manager behind the RAW Mortgage Fund. For more than a decade, RAW had built a strong reputation providing finance to expats and foreign nationals purchasing UK property, facilitating complex cases for overseas borrowers who often face significant barriers when accessing UK finance.
In 2025, RAW reached an important milestone. The lender prepared to launch a new product aimed at UK-resident borrowers – a significant step in its growth strategy and a natural extension of its specialist expertise.
However, after years of being associated almost exclusively with non-UK residents, the market largely viewed RAW as an overseas-only lender. If the business was to broaden its audience, that perception needed to change, and it was our job to drive that shift.
Repositioning a specialist
Since beginning our work with RAW in May 2024, we have strengthened its reputation in the complex overseas lending space. That positioning gave the brand credibility and a clear market identity.
We didn’t want to dismantle that reputation. Instead, we focused on evolving the messaging to show that the UK-resident product was an extension of what RAW had already been doing successfully for overseas borrowers. The objective was clear: reposition the business without losing what made it distinctive.
Our campaign began with a targeted mass sell-in of a launch announcement to key mortgage and intermediary trade titles. The press release emphasised that this was a strategic expansion to serve a wider range of underserved borrowers, not a departure from RAW’s roots.
Crucially, the messaging reinforced continuity. The new product was framed as a further demonstration of RAW’s expertise in structuring complex cases, regardless of where a borrower is from. Rather than presenting the move as a pivot, we positioned it as the next logical step in the lender’s evolution and growth journey.
Maintaining momentum beyond the launch
But we didn’t want to leave it at that. After all, a single announcement is rarely enough to shift perception.
The specialist trade press is crowded with product launches and criteria changes, so cutting through requires sustained visibility. To maintain momentum, we issued four additional press releases in the weeks following the launch, each announcing incremental enhancements to the offering.
This approach allowed us to continue reinforcing the core launch messaging while also highlighting tangible developments. The story stayed live, rather than fading after day one.
Alongside this, we secured reactive coverage around a Bank of England decision, incorporating similar messaging about RAW’s commitment to supporting complex cases. This ensured the brand remained part of wider market conversations at a strategically important time.
The initial launch announcement secured 12 pieces of coverage across leading trade titles including FT Adviser, Mortgage Strategy and The Intermediary. The subsequent press activity and reactive commentary generated a further 37 pieces of coverage, significantly amplifying RAW’s presence during a crucial period for the business.
At the same time, the messaging was reinforced across RAW’s broker database and LinkedIn audience, embedding awareness beyond the trade press alone. This allowed the lender to explain their adaptations in greater depth and educate brokers on the different ways they could use the new product.
Owning complexity
Moving into UK-resident lending could have positioned RAW as more mainstream, potentially weakening its specialist credentials. We were careful to avoid that.
From the outset, communications emphasised RAW’s continued focus on complex lending. The new product was positioned not as a shift away from specialist work, but as proof that this expertise could be applied across a broader borrower base.
This theme was introduced in the initial press release and explored in greater depth through blogs, newsletters and LinkedIn content. Rather than relying on a single spike of attention, we prioritised consistency and reinforcement.
We also secured a high-profile interview to allow the business to articulate its strategy in its own words. An exclusive in-depth feature with Mortgage Solutions – due to be published shortly – will further explore the significance of the expansion and strengthen RAW’s positioning within the specialist lending market.
A strategic shift, communicated strategically
The evolution of RAW Capital Partners illustrates a broader point about PR in financial services.
When strategy changes, perception must change with it. That does not happen through isolated coverage or one-off announcements. It requires clarity of positioning, sustained communication and careful alignment between growth and identity.
In this case, the campaign delivered measurable results in the trade press while reinforcing engagement across RAW’s own channels. More importantly, it ensured external understanding reflected internal ambition.
It showed that when our clients are ready to take their next steps forward, we ensure that their markets recognise it immediately – and understood exactly what it meant.
