A Wiltshire businessman’s company selling eco-friendly compost is blossoming thanks to the help of a £25,000 Start Up Loan delivered on behalf of the British Business Bank by SWIG Finance.
The BioCharged Compost Co, run by Eddie Bailey and Clive Neame, manufactures specialist environmentally-friendly peat-free and chemical-free composts and extracts for the gardening and horticultural sectors. These use a variety of natural coppice, fallen leaves and species-rich meadow hay to mimic the debris that accumulates on a forest floor or grassland; there is no animal manure, food waste or green waste, and strictly no chemicals.
The Start Up Loan supported the purchase of equipment and materials to produce composts, as well as covering the costs of marketing, advertising and community engagement.
Eddie Bailey, Co-Founder of The BioCharged Compost Co
Start Up Loans is part of the British Business Bank and offers personal loans of up to £25,000 per director and offers free mentoring to help anyone start or grow a new or early-stage business.
SWIG Finance is the Bank’s Business Support Partner for the government-backed programme in the South West, and last year alone delivered £7.2 million in Start Up Loan funding to over 400 new and early-stage businesses.
The brains behind the business, Eddie is a chartered geologist with 36 years’ experience working in the construction aggregates, horticultural sands and soils, landscaping materials and building industry. As a gardener, he has been committed to organic principles for three decades. An associate member of the British Society of Soil Science, he has been using a version of his compost for 15 years: “The results just blew my mind.”
Eddie was inspired to offers gardeners and growers a sustainable alternative to traditional industrial composts. “I’d been running workshops on how to make composts, but a lot of people were saying, ‘We don’t have time to do what you do – do you sell it?’ And I thought, I could do.”
Eddie says most composts contain waste materials and as such have to be processed in a way that destroys vital microbiology.
BioCharged sources its materials from Wildlife Trust reserves, in Cumbria, Wiltshire and Avon – and is sold locally, thereby minimising carbon emissions. “We buy coppicing products which might otherwise be used as biomass for energy, or hurdles, and meadow hay that might be used for cattle feed,” says Eddie. “The Wildlife Trusts sell to us because they can see the value in doing so.”
The company also retails a spin-off liquid product containing organic matter extracted from the compost. It’s been dubbed “CompBucha” because its effect on the soil is similar to that of the fermented beverage on human gut health. The Start Up Loan has also funded bottles, tops and labels, and the travel costs of taking it to agricultural and flower shows.
The ultimate goal is to expand the association with other Wildlife Trusts and persuade national garden chains and allotment groups to stock BioCharged products. Eddie is confident the business will flourish with some TLC (Tender Loving CompBucha!) and spends endless hours researching. “I love to know how the world works, especially soils and plants – it’s in my DNA to drill down into molecular detail. There are 24 million gardeners out there, and I think they would like our compost.”
Eddie and co-director Clive Neame each invested their own money in the business. “But to make a go of it, we needed more. Clive Googled Start Up Loans and the business partners both immediately knew it was exactly what they needed.
“It was brilliant. I was impressed by how connected everything was. A big selling point was the application template, which encouraged us to double-check everything. It was also reassuring to have someone holding my hand in something I was unfamiliar with. Ellie from SWIG was always very clear about what she needed from us.”
Ellie Garbett, Start Up Loans Officer for SWIG Finance, said: “I wanted to support this business because I was inspired by its commitment to the community and the values it promotes. Eddie’s and Clive’s dedication and drive are the heart of what makes this business truly special, and I love how they have found a practical and impactful way to contribute to a cleaner, greener future.”
About SWIG Finance
SWIG Finance is a people-based lender that provides loans and support to help smaller businesses in the South and West Country grow. We base our lending decisions on potential rather than collateral, which means that we can often support businesses when others can't.
We’re growing every year. In 2024/25, we lent £14.8m to 501 businesses, helping to create and secure over 1,272 jobs and generate £75.7m in social impact. Download the report here.
If you’d like an informal chat about your funding requirements, get in touch with our friendly and professional team to see how we can help: info@swigfinance.co.uk / 01872 227 930