Autumn Newsletter
Further to our summer communication we have seen increased volumes of business month on month compared to last year. There are also further indications that this will continue up until Christmas and beyond. Following the ‘Brexit’ announcement and weakness of the pound we would have expected a natural nervousness towards the economy. However, our customers remain buoyant continuing to invest and make robust plans into 2017.
Interestingly, we recently sat at a Bank of England round table forum where we were encouraged to share our views on how we see the local economy currently. There was a wide a spectrum of approximately 20 attendees who all owned businesses across a variety of sectors. The BoE representative opened the discussion expecting to hear the local economy was suffering and business volumes had reduced. However, he actually listened to quite the opposite as everyone had extremely positive feedback regarding their business growth and a strong outlook going forward.
It appears there is certainly a defiance amongst business owners to carry on as normal and not postpone future growth plans. Ultimately no one knows how turbulent times may be ahead, given the unknown timescales involved, therefore 'business as usual' is certainly the message we are hearing.
Autumn Statement
Philip Hammond is gearing up for his first Autumn statement to Parliament on 23rd November. The annual update will reveal the Government’s plans for the economy, including how tax will be used and plans for spending.
What can we expect?
Borrowing – Mr Hammond has abandoned his predecessors pledge to balance the books by the end of this parliament, giving him leeway to borrow more money. Therefore, expect a significant shift away from the Osbourne strategy.
Corporation Tax – The new chancellor has indicated that he will not slash corporation tax to 15% to boost the economy. He has indicated that he intends to sick to a plan to cut the rate to 17% by April 2020.
Infrastructure – He has also signalled that any fiscal stimulus in the Autumn statement would be concentrated on boosting Britain’s roads and railways and measures to help smaller house builders, including a £3 billion housing fund to ‘get Britain building.'
Plans for 2017
We are aligned to various professionals across the Midlands who can help provide key support and guidance for your business. Now is a good time to start planning into 2017 and through business coaching your plans and goals could potentially be accelerated. Having a vision that is clear along with a strategy and realistic plan to make it happen is key. Therefore, if you feel this may be of benefit please let us know and we can put you in touch with a trusted individual who could make 2017 a very good year for your business.
Deal Summary
Lincolnshire hire company secures funds required to expand and flourish…
A strong and established client of ours approached us as they needed some capital to expand into new areas. The amount required was £450K which would enable them to consolidate their current position and achieve their growth plans. We acted quickly to value the hire fleet consisting of over 950 assets, in order to provide the necessary security. The re-finance deal completed within 3 weeks from start to finish, thanks to our experience working closely with the funder, ensuring the relevant timescales were achieved. The customer was especially delighted with the speed of turnaround noting the large and complex nature of this transaction.
Nottingham based logistics company expands trailer fleet…
We have a strong relationship with the business who were looking to streamline their processes and where possible reduce overheads. They were hiring approximately 10 trailers, which were costing significant amounts per month compared with ownership. Therefore, they negotiated a large discount with a local supplier due to the bulk purchase and structured the payments over 3 years, saving nearly 50% against the cost of rental. They will now own the trailers at the end of the agreement and their existing contracts will yield a stronger margin. Ultimately, once the agreement expires they will have no hire purchase commitment and an even larger share of the profit within their contracts. Needless to say the client was pleased to secure the funding quickly and at a competitive rate.
Nottinghamshire based fire fuel provider expands through local grant funding…
We have supported this client for a number of years and watched the business steadily grow. They recently won some large contracts and therefore needed to buy capital equipment to support the significant volumes of anticipated business. They also secured a business growth grant which supported 20% of their outlay on equipment. The overall spend was c.£150K for various items including a biomass boiler, a wood processing plant and some stillages. We acted quickly to put the necessary facilities in place across a number of our specialist funders over a 3 year term. They were overwhelmed with the support and guidance we offered whilst also working with the grant representatives on their behalf to ensure the necessary criteria was met to achieve the 20% saving.
We continue to support customers and introducers alike, maintaing our values of building strong relationships and offering competitive facilities in a quick and efficient manner. Thank you once again for your continued business, it is very much appreciated.
We look forward to a strong end to the year for all our customers and also look forward to catching up with you before Christmas.