Fashion firm has designs on growth after landing £250,000 investment
304 Clothing, a fashion designer and retailer based in Kings Norton, Birmingham, has received £250,000 from MEIF Maven Debt Finance.
The debt fund is part of the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), managed by Maven Capital Partners, and backed by the Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS).
304 Clothing was co-founded by Sean Cotter and David Powell, from their apartment in Manchester in August 2012. The pair met while studying in Liverpool and moved to Manchester for work. There, they began renting apartment 304, which inspired the name of their fashion brand. The company later moved to Birmingham and has been designing and trading there ever since.
The business will promote its ranges in ASDA and with ASOS, which will supplement customers coming directly from its website.
304 Clothing will use the funding from the MEIF to support its expansion plans, which include additional stock purchases for its wholesale contracts, sourcing new equipment to serve increasing product demand and hiring to support new wholesale customers along with the businesses B2B platforms.
The business will also take up additional unit space to expand its manufacturing capabilities and invest in a dedicated B2B software.
Sajid Sabir, investment manager for Maven, said: “It’s great to be involved in supporting a business with such a good brand story. Sean and David are committed to making their brand a success and they have grown their audience successfully. I’m sure that, with Maven’s support, 304 Clothing has an impressive growth journey ahead of them.
“304 Clothing is expecting e-commerce sales to rise as awareness of the brand grows, and plans to continue to develop by increasing its marketing spend in line with sales in order to advance its reach and build an even bigger customer and wholesale base.”
Sean Cotter, CEO & founder at 304 Clothing added: “We cannot speak highly enough of the team at Maven who have fully supported our business growth plans. With Maven’s help, we have been able to obtain the financial backing to support our ambitious growth plans, whichwill allow us to grow our team and create new jobs in the coming years.”
Tracy Sherratt, senior manager UK Network at the British Business Bank, added: “This investment from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund will support 304 Clothing’s ambitions to grow through increased manufacturing capabilities, new equipment, and roles to support wholesale contracts, whilst serving growing demand. Other start-ups with growth potential in the Midlands are encouraged to consider MEIF financing options to support expansion.”
