Success Story
| Region/Nation | South East |
|---|---|
| Programme | Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) |
| Partner |
With bricks-and-mortar stores making up a large percentage of Stone Marketing’s sales, the closure of such outlets due to COVID-19 caused significant disruption to this Kent-based stationery company’s income. Receiving funding via the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) enabled the business to alleviate the impact of the pandemic on its cashflow and balance sheet.
Read what it had to say in this CBILS case study.
British Business Bank: Can you tell us what your company does?
Simon Stone, managing director of Stone Marketing: We distribute high-quality stationery, writing instruments and corporate gifts. We’re exclusive distributors for a number of products and our customer base consists both of high-street stores and online retailers.
The coronavirus has affected a huge number of businesses across the UK. What problems were you facing as a result of the outbreak and what made you apply for CBILS support?
Historically, a significant percentage of Stone Marketing’s sales have come from bricks-and-mortar stores, including well-known chains and independent outlets. From an early stage in the COVID-19 pandemic, our senior team forecast that a drop in footfall could disrupt our income and, over the longer term, negatively affect our balance sheet.
How long did the application process take? Did you need any support?
We worked closely with our account manager at Close Brothers Invoice Finance to complete the CBILS application form and make sure that the additional lending would meet our requirements if our income changed. Once we’d completed the application, the funds were deposited in our account within a week.
The CBILS funding has given us a safety net. It’s allowed us to sleep at night and feel confident about the future despite the challenges many markets continue to face. - Simon Stone managing director of Stone Marketing
How has the CBILS loan helped your business to weather the outbreak? And what might have happened if you hadn’t received it?
Because we needed to make rapid changes to our business model, and with the ongoing uncertainty affecting our key markets, we deemed it prudent to seek additional funding. We’d planned for a range of scenarios and could use the additional liquidity in lieu of lost revenue to reduce any adverse effects on trading.
The CBILS funding has given us a safety net. It’s allowed us to sleep at night and feel confident about the future despite the challenges many markets continue to face.
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