Content provided by Connect supplier K5 Business Finance. More information about Connect can be found here.
Mark Kelly, K5 Managing Director said ‘We are delighted to be a new supplier and member of the ACS family. Being part of ACS provides us with an excellent opportunity to better understand the challenges and issues affecting the convenience sector. Additionally, it will enable us to collaborate closely with members and provide them with access to additional sources of funding for their businesses.’
According to the ACS Local Shop Report 2023, store owners invested £646M in their businesses, with more than half of them using their own cash reserves.
Now, due to the current economic climate, retailers are facing increased challenges in many key areas such as staff safety, reducing shrinkage levels, rising energy costs, green initiatives, and regulatory burdens. Therefore, innovation, particularly technology at the shop level has become critical to stay ahead in this competitive market.
If you are a store owner who needs to make changes to your business and do not want to impact your cash reserves, K5 can help. They are a finance broker with access to a panel of over 280 funders and finance institutions. K5 will work closely with you to understand your requirements and identify the best rates and terms available for you by liaising with select funders. The added advantage is that these funders are separate from existing bank facilities.
K5 has helped retailers fund store refits, self-service checkouts, EPoS, CCTV & Alarms, parcel lockers, shelf edge labelling, digital signage, wireless headsets, HHT barcode scanners, refrigeration, LED lighting, shelving, access lifts, EV charging services, vehicles, and cyber security software. They can also source commercial loans for building works. Combining funding for all or large parts of your store project normally means you can access more competitive finance rates rather than using a combination of vendors.
Working in close partnership with clients is crucial for K5. Joe Williams at the Village Shop in Hook Norton recommends working with K5. Joe worked with K5 during his store refit, and he recommended K5 to one of his suppliers, DB Fruits. They supply Joe with fresh fruit and vegetables and are a third-generation family business that has been operating for over 70 years.
David and Tom Bennett from DB Fruits then contacted K5. The result was another very happy client for K5. This is what they had to say about K5:
"We cannot praise Mark at K5 enough. We first heard of Mark through one of our longstanding customers who has recently undergone a huge renovation project for their shop. We too were in the early stages of making some big changes which were both exciting but extremely daunting. We emailed Mark introducing ourselves and outlining our objectives given our imminent move to a new warehouse. Mark was incredibly attentive and took an immediate interest in not only our financial objectives but also us as a business and a family. Mark has made what could have been an extremely stressful few months of transition feel seamless, always on hand to speak and always checking in with a genuine interest that spanned way beyond the assets we have acquired through his financing.
From an operational point of view, Mark has had a huge impact on our business. We were able to purchase a huge walk-in chiller facility and an electric pallet stacker that has completely transformed the way we work. We found the level of due diligence on both purchases was outstanding and made us feel comfortable that we were in the right hands with Mark.
There is absolutely no doubt that we will continue to work with Mark moving forward and we cannot recommend him more!"
If you are contemplating an investment in your business and would like a no-obligation discussion about how asset finance works and how it can contribute to your business growth, then do not hesitate to get in touch with us at 01925 264733, follow us on LinkedIn or click this link to listen to a series of videos called “Understanding Business Finance” where Mark explains more about K5 Business Finance and his experience.
K5 Business Finance are also members of The Road Haulage Association and the Federation of Small Businesses.
