Fund goes where banks fear to tread
A CHANCE viewing of a TV programme highlighting the cash flow plight of a Tadcaster business had led to it being saved.
TID Services has been awarded £30,000 from Yorkshire Forward’s Transition Loan Fund thanks to one of its employees who put the building firm in touch with the regional development agency.
Nearly 10 jobs have consequently been saved.
The £5m fund loan fund was launched in February to help provide general loan finance to viable businesses that are struggling to access cash to keep their business liquid.
TID’s owner Mike Tyrell appeared on the local news programme after being refused financial support by the banking system despite having more than £120,000 of work on its books.
As a result the business was facing the prospect of closing down and the building contractor decided to go public with his frustration.
“My business is in construction and renovation and we work on projects of any size within this category,” he said.
“We are a very healthy small businesses employing eight full time staff, but like all building and construction companies we need materials to begin a project.”
He continued: “Traditionally suppliers will give you credit for goods so that you can begin a project, and then we take stage payments to recover costs. However because of the current climate many require immediate payment or settlement of your existing account, which causes cash flow problems.
“Customers understandably want us to complete work before making a payment, so we are squeezed between the two situations.”
Alex McWhirter, assistant director of enterprise at Yorkshire Forward, said that TID Services was an “inherently healthy business” with a strong order book that was stuck because of the current lending climate.
“These are exactly the kind of business that the Transition Loan Fund is designed to help and I’m delighted at the outcome of this case,” he added.
“So far, the fund has helped 14 regional businesses and safeguarded 58 jobs, and there are further investments in the pipeline.”
He urged small companies in a similar situation to consider whether they could benefit from this support and to get in touch with Business Link Yorkshire to find out about what kind of support is on offer to them.
“In this climate it is easy to just keep your head down and focus on dealing with the day to day challenges, but I would really encourage businesses to take a moment to look at what support there is available from the public sector as it could well help to save your business and provide a good introduction to private sector support in the future,” Mr McWhirter continued.
