M&D Catering

The challenge

As a young company, M&D Catering Technical Services was seeking a loan of £30,000 to provide working capital to fund the expansion of the business. It often had to turn work away as it did not have the capacity to deal with the high volume of service requests. One area in which the company had the ability to make extra profit is through the purchase of new equipment for clients when an item cannot be repaired. However, replacement items need to be paid for upfront and this puts a financial burden on the company.

The solution

After being turned down for funding by the bank, David carried out an online search for ‘business loans’ which generated a wealth of information on peer-to-peer lending. David contacted a number of funding platforms and LendingCrowd was quick to respond, accepting management accounts and bank statements as input to the credit assessment process. Impressed with the service provided, David decided to proceed.

The outcome

After three weeks on the Loan Market, the company’s loan reached its target of £30,000, securing 45 bids from 20 individual investors. The money was transferred to the company the same day the loan closed.

To date, the funds have been used to cover the cost of essential staff training, and to purchase new pieces of equipment for clients if they cannot be repaired – a hugely beneficial service in the fast-paced catering industry. The additional money made through equipment sales will allow the company to employ additional engineers and take on more work, helping the business to grow.