Funding Story:
The tailored repayment profile, which featured an initial 12-month interest only period, was structured by ThinCats to enable the business to drive increasing organic growth, whilst investing in 10 new showroom openings throughout the year, creating 40 new jobs in-store as well as 10 additional roles at Head Office.
Laura Green, Finance Director at Cubico (UK) Ltd commented: “When the business started, it was funded through equity and, as the business has grown, we have been able to take advantage of the opportunity to bring the shares back into company ownership with the management team. With ambitions to expand our number of showrooms significantly, we sought to refinance the debt on our balance sheet and were introduced to ThinCats via Credit Square in London.”
Laura Green continued: “ThinCats got to grips with what we were trying to achieve very early on, adapting their product to suit our requirements within a bespoke funding package. The facility offers us an additional level of headroom that will allow us to capitalise on the growth that we are experiencing and accelerate our rate of expansion through our new showroom openings. Whereas previously we were looking at opening one store every three months, now thanks to the facility from ThinCats, we will be opening a new showroom every six weeks. Our plan is then to consolidate, maximising our turnover through the new outlets.”
Dave Sherrington, Business Originator at ThinCats added: “This is a great example of a UK business that specialises in delivering stylish and affordable high-end products and deserves the funding to drive further growth and flourish. Cubico (UK) Ltd has developed an established process for successfully identifying and opening new stores. As a relationship-driven funding partner, we looked to gain a strong understanding of the business and its ambitions in order to structure an effective funding solution that will enable it to continue to invest in its store roll out, while maintaining a sufficient cash buffer to reduce pressure on the business as it grows.”
How has the business changed in recent years?
"The tailored repayment profile was structured by ThinCats to enable the business to drive increasing organic growth, whilst investing in 10 new showroom openings throughout the year, creating 40 new jobs in-store as well as 10 additional roles at Head Office."
Funding
When did you start thinking about funding?
“When the business started, it was funded through equity and, as the business has grown, we have been able to take advantage of the opportunity to bring the shares back into company ownership with the management team.”
Why do you think external funding is so important?
“With ambitions to expand our number of showrooms significantly, we sought to refinance the debt on our balance sheet and were introduced to ThinCats via Credit Square in London.”
How will it help you to achieve your goals?
“Whereas previously we were looking at opening one store every three months, now thanks to the facility from ThinCats, we will be opening a new showroom every six weeks. Our plan is then to consolidate, maximising our turnover through the new outlets.”
What were you looking for in a potential funder?
“The facility offers us an additional level of headroom that will allow us to capitalise on the growth that we are experiencing and accelerate our rate of expansion through our new showroom openings.”
Why did you choose ThinCats vs other funders you may have considered?
“ThinCats got to grips with what we were trying to achieve very early on, adapting their product to suit our requirements within a bespoke funding package.”
How did we meet your requirements?
"ThinCats gained a strong understanding of the business and its ambitions in order to structure an effective funding solution that enables a continuation of investment in store roll out, while maintaining a sufficient cash buffer to reduce pressure whilst growing.”
ThinCats got to grips with what we were trying to achieve very early on, adapting their product to suit our requirements within a bespoke funding package
Laura Green - Finance Director, Cubico UK Ltd
