It was the sale of Interleasing Australia – part of the Masterlease Group – to McMillan Shakespeare that originally brought Skinner into contact with the company.

“A couple of years later they approached me to do some consultancy work for them,” says Skinner.

“They wanted to develop a presence in the UK and knew me and the team, and a joint venture seemed the best way forward.

“Our original proposition hasn’t changed, but what has changed since forming the joint venture is the scope and speed at which we can develop the business.

“It’s meant we’ve been able to move the business forward. For example, the acquisition of CLM Fleet management was a key milestone in our development.”

Maxxia is attempting to differentiate itself from traditional contract hire and leasing companies by offering a broad spectrum of corporate funding.

“We provide enterprise-wide funding to both the public and private sector,” says Skinner.

Customers can choose from a range of financing options, including contract hire, sale and leaseback, operating lease, salary sacrifice and contract purchase.

“We’re finding a number of clients who are interested in alternative funding strategies.”

Skinner, who has more than 30 years’ experience in the UK asset finance and international fleet and asset management sectors, believes Maxxia offers “a refreshing new approach” to funding.

Historically, the boundaries of direct vehicle leasing and asset finance have seldom crossed in a single business, but Skinner says they have an excellent understanding of both markets and can deliver a holistic approach to funding, which includes the likes of IT asset management, for example.

While there is liquidity in the market, lending conditions remain tight, and Maxxia is aiming to tap into this.

“We’re bringing together a number of different funding sources,” he says.

“That includes writing business on our own book and leveraging banking relationships, both our own and McMillan Shakespeare’s.”

Skinner is also promising a back-to-basics approach, where trust and transparency are important qualities.

“We’re not about hiding costly surprises in the small print when it comes to end of contract charges, for example,” he says.

“Trust and openness with our clients is very important to us and it’s also vital that we understand their business, because with our product portfolio it then means we can help them in their overall funding strategy.”

It’s still early days for the business, but Skinner says there has already been a lot of interest for both fleet and non-fleet financing.