Earlier this year through the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF), we supported housecleaning company, Spotless Cleaning, to help fund their expansion.
Back in June 2019, Spotless Cleaning had reached the point where they could not take on any further customers without investing in expanding their services.
Having been turned down for finance by high street banks, business owner Ilona Ziarko was referred to SWIG Finance and the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund and we were delighted to be able to provide a £55k loan to help finance the business’ next phase of growth.
Six months on, SWIG Finance Business Manager for CIOSIF, Mike Chapman, visited Ilona to find out how the funding had impacted their growth plans.
Upon arrival at their new premises in Truro, the growth transition is evident – new machinery, including two industrial washing machines, an industrial dryer and an industrial press machine, had been put to good use with constant cycles running like clockwork.
The new premises and machinery were a key part of the growth plan as it allowed the company to bring services in-house, giving them more control, while making operations more time efficient and reducing overhead costs.
Another new addition to the business is the fleet of work vans, which have been branded with the eye-catching company logo, reinforcing their professional, passionate and hardworking ethos.
Over a cup of tea and a Jaffa cake, Mike was delighted to learn that the Spotless Cleaning team had exceeded their £100k turnover goal for 2019, an outcome which would not have been possible without the necessary funding.
Consistently high standards have played a significant role in the growth of the business with customers regularly providing glowing testimonials and feedback – in fact, word of mouth has been a steady driver in increasing their customer base and bookings for 2020 are showing 75% of their clients are now repeat customers, which is a significant achievement in a market that is often viewed as overcrowded.
We asked Ilona about her experience obtaining the funding and what it meant to her; “it’s about giving a chance to people who may not get one otherwise”, Ilona commented. She added: “there was always someone available to talk to and the team were supportive and enthusiastic in helping my dream evolve.”
At SWIG Finance, helping people like Ilona achieve their dreams is what are all about. We pride ourselves on taking a personal approach to lending and our business managers work with you to understand your business, basing decisions on potential, not collateral.
If you would like to know more about SWIG Finance, click here.
SWIG Finance work with FSE, the appointed CIOSIF Fund Manager, on delivering smaller business loans as part of the £40 million Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund. CIOSIF provides debt and equity finance from £25,000 to £2 million to help growing small businesses in Cornwall and Scilly. It has been established by the British Business Bank in partnership with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP and is operated by appointed fund manager, The FSE Group. CIOSIF is supported by the European Regional Development Fund, CIOS LEP and HMG grant funding.