New loudspeaker manufacturer booms with £850k funding

Liverpool-based Bibby Financial Services has provided an £850,000 funding facility to a new entrant to the high-end loudspeaker audio market.

The funding line includes export invoice discounting as well as a foreign exchange facility which will help the business access working capital and fund its export debts to reach its growing international client base.

Based in Glasgow, Fyne Audio is the brainchild of a group of former employees from a prestigious Scottish-based loudspeaker manufacturer.

With more than 200 years of audio industry experience between them and a host of sector contacts, Fyne Audio is set to launch three high-performance loudspeaker ranges, with products ranging from £200-£24,000.

Through a combination of an established management team, quality products and an international customer base, the business has caused quite a buzz and has pre-orders coming in from as far as in Asia.

To help support its quest to excite the audio market and plans for global growth, Fyne Audio needed extra working capital.

Working closely with Bibby Financial Services the business has secured an export finance invoice discounting facility which will enable it to bridge the cashflow gap between awaiting payment and paying supplier invoices.

Furthermore, using export finance will also allow the business to benefit from Bibby Financial Services’ language, currency, time zone and legal support when trading in overseas markets.

As Fyne Audio deals directly with international markets, Bibby’s corporate team also structured a funding package to include bad debt protection and a foreign exchange line.

While the bad debt protection will protect the business against poor payment practices and customer insolvency, the foreign exchange feature enables Fyne Audio to convert the cash released from invoices to a currency of its choice, shielding it from currency fluctuations.

Andrzej Sosna, Fyne Audio managing director, said: “As industry veterans, we knew our products had to be high-quality and differentiated if we were to make waves in the market.

“But we also knew that to help us on our path to growth, especially with a growing international customer base, having access to working capital was vital in these early stages.”

“From the offset, Bibby Financial Services stood out to us.

“The corporate team invested time in getting to know and understand our management team and products. As a result, they recognised the strength of our business plan and structured an export finance facility that other funding partners could not.

“Having the export finance team to support with our transactions takes away the administrative hassle of prompt debtor payments in multiple currencies, allowing us to focus on growth.”

Ronnie Stokes, corporate manager, Glasgow, Bibby Financial Services, said: “Fyne Audio is an innovative new business with impressive industry backing and support.

“Cashflow is an issue for almost every business, but it is particularly difficult to navigate when dealing with customers in multiple markets, with multiple currencies.

“Our team worked closely with Fyne Audio to structure an export ID facility, which will not only allow the company to pay suppliers and staff, but also the flexibility of making payments in the currency of their choice from cash released from invoices.

“With the facility in place, it is an exciting time for Fyne Audio and we look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on growth.”

Craig Durnell, managing director of export finance, Bibby Financial Services, said: “Although it has been suggested that the UK is experiencing a slowdown in export growth this year, our team is really bucking the trend with record levels of new business and opportunity.

“It is great to see that our expertise and appetite to support SME exporters like Fyne Audio is really penetrating the market.”