Onside Issue 5 - 22

A SPOTLIGHT ON
ALTERNATIVE FINANCE
Frustrated business owners are finding new ways to finance their business aspirations through the
growing world of Alternative Finance.
Ben Smart had been knocking
on high street banks and private
equity firms' doors for months and
getting nowhere.
Ben was a qualified solicitor, providing commercial contract advice
to, amongst others, waste management and recycling companies.
However, he had ambitions to own
his own business and researched
companies in this field of activity,
with good growth prospects and
the potential for a management
buy-in (MBI). He soon identified
a 14-year-old business, Whitham
Mills Engineering, which had been
primed for a retirement sale, and
made the bold move to ditch his
lucrative legal career, complete an
MBA and move into industry.

| ONSIDE WINTER 2016

"Even after all these years, the majority of UK
SMEs turn to their bank before anyone else. "
The Todmorden-based company
provided a range of well-known,
efficient and reliable bailing
systems used in the recycling
industry. It had created a niche
market, in high quality bailing
modules and low cost linkage
manufacturing. However, its sales
were limited to segments with few
multi-site clients and less emphasis
on repeat business. In addition,
the company had not pursued
contracts with recurring revenues,
tendering for public contracts, or
working with intermediaries.

Ben completed his business plan and
set about sourcing the third party
funds he required to support a Buy
In Management Buy Out (BIMBO)
of the company. After 12-months'
effort Ben's bold move into the
world of industry looked doomed.
He was being turned away by banks
and also private equity funders.
Following on from the 2008 banking
crisis, a lack of a funding solution
is an all-too common challenge to
UK SMEs, from start-up funding
through to development and
expansion capital.
Simon Thorn, Corporate Finance
Director of Acceleris Capital, has
led many transactions that fall
under the definition of Alternative
Finance: "Even after all these years,
the majority of UK SMEs turn to
their bank before anyone else.
Banks will match what a business or
its investors put in, but if a business
has nothing, this doesn't help.
Without cash, small businesses
simply aren't able to grow."
The ongoing problem of banks
being less willing to lend to SMEs,
has caused cash flow problems,
prevented project development,
and stunted growth. In response,
businesses have been willing to
explore
more
unconventional
sources of funding, in the form of
Alternative Finance.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Onside Issue 5

Contents
Onside Issue 5 - Cover1
Onside Issue 5 - 2
Onside Issue 5 - Contents
Onside Issue 5 - 4
Onside Issue 5 - 5
Onside Issue 5 - 6
Onside Issue 5 - 7
Onside Issue 5 - 8
Onside Issue 5 - 9
Onside Issue 5 - 10
Onside Issue 5 - 11
Onside Issue 5 - 12
Onside Issue 5 - 13
Onside Issue 5 - 14
Onside Issue 5 - 15
Onside Issue 5 - 16
Onside Issue 5 - 17
Onside Issue 5 - 18
Onside Issue 5 - 19
Onside Issue 5 - 20
Onside Issue 5 - 21
Onside Issue 5 - 22
Onside Issue 5 - 23
Onside Issue 5 - 24
Onside Issue 5 - 25
Onside Issue 5 - 26
Onside Issue 5 - 27
Onside Issue 5 - 28
Onside Issue 5 - 29
Onside Issue 5 - 30
Onside Issue 5 - 31
Onside Issue 5 - 32
Onside Issue 5 - 33
Onside Issue 5 - 34
Onside Issue 5 - 35
Onside Issue 5 - 36
Onside Issue 5 - 37
Onside Issue 5 - 38
Onside Issue 5 - 39
Onside Issue 5 - 40
Onside Issue 5 - 41
Onside Issue 5 - 42
Onside Issue 5 - 43
Onside Issue 5 - 44
Onside Issue 5 - 45
Onside Issue 5 - 46
Onside Issue 5 - 47
Onside Issue 5 - 48
Onside Issue 5 - 49
Onside Issue 5 - 50
Onside Issue 5 - 51
Onside Issue 5 - 52
Onside Issue 5 - 53
Onside Issue 5 - 54
Onside Issue 5 - Cover3
Onside Issue 5 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com