The client was a multi-site franchise owner opening a new greenfield franchise in Brisbane. Whilst they had other existing businesses, the client had set up a new entity with a new ABN for this particular franchise business.
The client had a very complicated company structure with multi-layered entities, trusts and directors entwined. The company structure made it hard to assess and separate sources of revenue. The entity seeking the asset financing was itself a fresh ABN entity restricting the lending options.
Swoop identified a key lender who could offer a funding option tailored to the client’s needs. However there was an excessive and complicated list of documentation required for the lender. Swoop worked very closely with the client to prepare key documents such as construction plans, forecasted financials and inspection reports. The process took a few weeks but Swoop kept chipping at it diligently and managed to fulfil all of the lender’s criteria for the funding option.
The client was one of four directors in a fitness studio and had been operating the studio for over 10 years. The client had significant management experience in managing the existing site and managing several others in a consultancy capacity. The client had an existing ATO debt and was looking for suitable funding options for a line of credit option to help buy out an existing director.
The client wanted to explore unsecured cash flow facility. However the lender market sentiments in the fitness space remained conservative and risk averse. This was further compounded by additional factors such as no significant positive changes in the revenue and uncertainty about ongoing business operations in lieu of directorship changes.
Swoop team worked very closely with the client to understand their exact needs and offer tailored options keeping in mind the factors identified above. Swoop was able to work with an alternative lender and help obtain an unsecured line of credit. Once the client approved of the option, Swoop was able to secure a quick turnaround and have the funds available to the client within a week.
The client was seeking to open a greenfield site for a fitness franchise in Melbourne and was looking for startup funding. Swoop had an ongoing funding relationship with the franchise network hence making it easy for the client to get in touch with Swoop. The client had minimal capital contribution but had been a past club owner for 15 years and was currently on a PAYG income. She did not have significant management experience however data showed her to be a great operator.
The client was seeking a business loan against a property under her and her husband’s name where both the client and her husband were PAYG. They had previously been in touch with alternative finance providers but were overwhelmed with the application process. The lenders were also asking for a detailed business plan and financial modelling. The client was not receiving adequate start up guidance and were having difficulty establishing debt serviceability.
Swoop team worked very closely with the client to understand their exact needs and offer tailored options. As highlighted, detailed business plans and financial modelling had to be created for funding matching. The Swoop team was able to work with the client and the franchisor to create the modelling documents as well as arrange valuations for the business as per the lenders criteria.
The client operated a successful mining company with an annual revenue exceeding $13 million dollars. The client was seeking to purchase a highly specialised pipeline welding equipment. However the client’s new government contract was yet to be realised on their books making it difficult to show servicing for the machinery.
The client was facing difficulty finding a suitable lender. The client lacked security for the funding as they did not own property. The equipment itself was very specialised further limiting the client’s funding options.
Swoop right away matched the client with a lender who specialised in funding such assets. There were slight obstacles in the way such as lenders requiring a deposit and an on site valuation done by the lender’s nominated personnel. However the Swoop team worked very closely with the client, the lender and the supplier to facilitate all of the lender’s requirements. Swoop was able to help the client secure the funding in less than 3 weeks.
If your go-to funding option dries up, what would you do?
That was the situation facing our care home customer earlier this year as their original facility expired. On going back to their lender, they found that they had made the decision to pull out of the healthcare market.
This came as a severe blow to the customer who just about survived, despite turning away new residents throughout the COVID-19 pandemic in order to protect existing residents. Now, with the care home returning to full occupancy, profits were up – but this wasn’t sufficient for most lenders.
“After doing the right thing and surviving through the pandemic, it felt like a slap in the face to be told lenders wanted a full 12 months of data to confirm our profitability,” explained Swoop’s customer.
“Just as we felt we were bouncing back, it felt as though the rug was being pulled.”
Swoop’s Commercial Mortgage team took on the case. Ed Brown, Commercial Finance Manager at Swoop explains:
“From a business point of view, the only way was up: the home was making its way to full occupancy and becoming as profitable as it had ever been. For me, this was a business that had shown resilience, courage in taking the right actions to protect people, and I thought they deserved another chance to keep the doors open.”
Swoop worked closely with the customer’s accountant to demonstrate to lenders both the current and future trading position. Ed says:
“We were able to put together a strong case that gave us an opportunity with a lender. That lender bought into our customer as an operator and was willing to take a sympathetic view on recent performance rather than focus on the lean years of the pandemic. In the end, we secured a fixed rate loan to protect against future base rate increases with 12 months interest only and a 20 year repayment profile.”
Stuart Pawelczyk, Head of Commercial Mortgages at Swoop says that the customer is delighted with the outcome:
“This is a great example of a healthy business that will thrive now it has the correct funding deal in place. Once again, our Commercial Mortgage Team at Swoop have gone above and beyond to find solutions when other lenders say ‘no’.”
The Challenge
Hoa Le was looking to fund a new beauty business and was in need of a startup loan.
The Problem
Through her own initiative, Hoa had explored various lenders and funding options. However, none of the options Hoa had uncovered were attractive to her unique situation. Hoa had yet to register her business, and the lender market was unsurprisingly scarce.
The Solution
After signing up to Swoop, Hoa was contacted by our finance broker team. A dedicated funding manager was able to familiarise herself with Hoa’s situation and the assets and security she possessed which could work in her favour to secure a loan. Using this information and the Swoop platform, Swoop was able to provide Hoa with a much wider range of lending options than she had previously thought available. With Swoop’s assistance through the application process, Hoa was able to secure a $40,000 startup loan for her business, despite only registering her business ABN days prior!
Testimonial
“I found the team at Swoop and the Swoop platform very easy to work with. I will definitely introduce more people to Swoop!”
F45 Franchisee Laree Smith was exploring alternate refinancing options for her business in Cambridge, Tasmania. However, being a business owner, Laree was hard pressed to invest the amount of time required in researching and comparing refinancing options in order to find the most effective lending solution for her business. The rates which had been proposed to her by several external banks and other financing providers were less than optimal.
Laree was in attendance at an educational webinar organised by Swoop and F45 detailing how the Swoop platform can assist franchisees to secure competitively rated loans to launch and scale their businesses. Laree soon got in touch with the Swoop team, who acquainted themselves with her situation and as a result were able to match her with several alternative financing options. Once Laree had chosen which option would match her needs best, the Swoop team assisted on her application and submitted it to the provider.
Laree Smith’s application for refinancing was successful. Through working with Swoop, Laree was introduced to several alternate lenders whom she had not considered previously. As a result, Laree has been able to fund her business by gaining access to a financing solution that out matched the big banks both in terms of rates and turnaround time, allowing Laree to get back to running her business.
“Swoop was amazing! I was looking for refinancing and they were straight onto finding me the best possible option. I would highly recommend them.”
Laree Smith – Owner, F45 Cambridge, Australia.
Hilary O’Dwyer who heads up Titian Consulting in Australia offers virtual CFO services to small businesses. As a small business owner, you need outside assistance with strategic planning; financial processes, cashflow management and forecasting, reporting and compliance. The same clients often have questions about securing funding for their business including working capital loans and capital raises. The challenge is to provide them with timely information and connect them to right funding suited to their business needs.
Hilary – “I had actually come across Swoop through an event organized by the Irish Australian Chamber of Commerce and thought Swoop’s product offering was fantastic. Some of my clients had been talking about financing and had been trying to access SME Government backed loans without much luck, that’s when I thought Swoop could help”
Swoop worked with Titian Consulting to assist 4 of their clients with their funding needs. The Swoop team was able to work with Hilary to understand the clients business needs and make recommendations for funding options tailored to the business’s requirements. Swoop was able to successfully assist all 4 clients with their debt applications to suitable funders and get speedy approval.
Advisor testimonial – “I have connected 4 of my clients with Swoop and all of them were successfully funded. All 4 had no backing from the big banks yet were able to take advantage of non-bank funding which shows how well Swoop works for businesses like these. This gives me confidence to refer more clients to Swoop for their funding needs”
The Challenge
AreaWealth is a technology driven investment management platform that maximises efficiencies for advisers in managing their clients’ financial needs. The Australian fintech provides a secure all-in-one platform that integrates a vast array of tools and resources through which advisers can assess, identify, and initiate targeted solutions for their clients. With their business model proven, Areawealth was eager to pursue ambitious strategic objectives to further client growth as well as expand their product offerings. In order to do so Areawealth needed access to further equity capital yet was unsure of how to navigate the equity landscape successfully.
The Solution
Areawealth initiated an equity seed capital raise with Swoop and leveraged Swoop’s expertise and connections within the equity funding space. Initially, Swoop – led by our equity expert Tim Brown – assisted in the preparation of AreaWealth’s pitch deck and presentation. Following such, AreaWealth was introduced to First Pacific Capital who would become their strategic funding partner.
The Results
With Swoop working as an intermediary and advisor to AreaWealth and First Pacific Capital throughout the process, AreaWealth was able to secure a capital raise of $2 million dollars.
Client Testimonial
“Swoop has been instrumental in achieving our desired Seed round funding objective which was oversubscribed, through an introduction of a Strategic Funding Partner – First Pacific Capital Pty Ltd. Throughout this process Tim has been strategic, collaborative and supportive working directly with AreaWealth and First Pacific Capital.”
Dean Lupton, Chief Commercial Officer – Area Wealth Administration Services Pty Ltd
The challenge
Having recently been appointed CFO at Concise Media, Mark Winkler had been working with the team for a number of months, exploring the different funding avenues available to the business. With Concise Media growing very quickly, the team wanted to ensure that they found a debt option that was right for the business. They had applied for CBILS previously but had been rejected due to the EU rule on state aid.
The solution
After being introduced to Swoop, Mark had a conversation with Mike and Sam from the Swoop team about the opportunities available to the business. Importantly, he received an update from Swoop regarding changes to the eligibility criteria for CBILS. Following this, Swoop were able to identify two or three parties that they felt might be suitable – in particular, they thought IWOCA would be a good match.
The results
Mark worked closely with Swoop to collate and present the information to IWOCA in the appropriate manner. This led to a call with IWOCA themselves followed by a proposal. Everything was wrapped up that day, and the money came through over the bank holiday weekend.
Client testimonial
“There were a number of elements which were important in this process, but primarily this was access to a broad range of lenders, and a deep level of expertise and genuine understanding of the debt products and the lenders’ requirements. With any debt products, there’s always the risk of downside circumstances so it’s important to have a team like Swoop’s who can share their perspective.
As we continue to grow and our requirements change, if the chance arises, I would absolutely work with Swoop again.”
Mark Winkler, CFO of Concise Media
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