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Premier Invoice and Asset Based lender Venture Finance has provided Merseyside-based Dams Furniture Ltd with a Confidential Invoice Discounting (CID) and Plant & Machinery funding package.
The package enabled the management to buy the assets from administrators KPMG Manchester, of Dams International Ltd safeguard the future of the company and 72 employees. In addition, the package, which was turned round within a week, came with an Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) a government-backed loan and gave the management team the necessary headroom to complete the deal.
The funding facility also included the new ‘EFG top-up’ that now guarantees on ‘top-up’ invoice finance and overdraft facilities. Having been introduced in September 2009, the ‘EFG top-up’ provides a guarantee on invoice finance facilities, supporting an agreed additional advance on debtor books, to supplement the invoice finance facility already in place.
Venture was introduced to Dams Furniture through Sterling Corporate Finance that singled out Venture due to its proactive addressing of all issues and ability to finalise deals with a tight deadline. Graham Camm, a specialist in buying businesses from Administration, comments: “It is always extremely satisfying to assist a company in safeguarding its future and, in this case, the jobs of 72 people. Venture is always fantastic to work with and can act quickly to understand the needs of a business and turn a deal around within no time at all.”
Chris Scott, who runs Dams Furniture with his sister Melissa Moore, comments: “We required a financier who could turn a deal around quickly, and Venture’s approach meant that we could do just that. We needed to revise our current cost structure and operations to coincide with the current economic climate. The EFG was vital in completing the deal and has given us the added headroom to stabilise the company and get it back on its feet.”
Fraser Irvine, Venture Finance Business Development Manger comments: “I was delighted to support such a well established business which, like others, was forced into a position to revise its current structure. The EFG top-up was only implemented last week, so we are one of the first to offer the scheme. By using this, Dams Furniture will benefit from maximum working capital at a time when it needs it the most.”
For further information on Venture Finance please visit www.venture-finance.co.uk
About the EFG
The EFG was introduced in January and improves upon the Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) scheme. This Government-backed business loan is designed to help established, viable companies secure additional funding or working capital, and through Venture businesses can raise anything from 25,000 to 1 million with the EFG.