Inside Newsletters - Agriculture - September 2023

AGRICULTURE

Meet the Expert

Meet our industry specialist, James Palmer, Regional Sales Manager

New Motor Home financed through Hire Purchase agreement

Close Brothers Asset Finance has helped a professional photographer with a funding solution

2023 Issue 2

Welcome to Inside Agriculture I’m delighted to bring you the latest business news from the Agriculture industry. As always, it focuses on the current issues affecting SMEs, whilst also showcasing how Close Brothers Asset Finance has supported businesses within the industry and will continue to do so.

We start this issue on page 3 with a case study looking at Charlotte Graham.

Charlotte is a professional photographer based in Northern England, Close Brothers Asset Finance worked with her to provide a Hire Purchase agreement for a new motorhome.

We pride ourselves on not only knowing about asset finance and being able to tailor suitable financial solutions, but our specialists have also worked within the industry themselves.

By working closely with businesses, our team of industry experts see the potential for growth and provide straightforward asset finance solutions to support this.

Asset finance is an alternative form of funding used by businesses to obtain the equipment they need to grow. In effect, it utilises the residual value in an asset to either pay for or put down a deposit on another piece of kit. Our experts consider all aspects of a customer’s business and then recommend asset finance solutions that best suit their cash flow and long-term goals.

Common examples of the asset finance products we offer are Hire Purchase, Refinancing (Capital Release), Finance Lease and Operating Lease.

To find out more about any of the finance options we have to offer and how they could work for your business, contact the team today.

On page 4 you can find a piece looking at Agricultural SMEs attitudes to funding. A key finding from this survey is that nearly half of Agriculture business owners are not aware of asset finance, meaning many

haven’t unlocked the benefits this can bring.

Finally, on page 5 we have our ‘Meet the Expert’ feature. James Palmer is a Regional Sales Manager and industry expert within our Agriculture team, here he discusses his predictions for the next 12 months across the industry and the favourite aspect of his role.

We hope you enjoy the read and as always, we look forward to working with you in the future.

Andy Sagar

Managing Director, Construction, Recycling & Agriculture

Close Brothers Asset Finance launches 4th Sales Academy Close Brothers Asset Finance is delighted to announce the return of its highly successful and industry-leading Sales Academy, which is designed to attract new and diverse talent into the sector from across the UK. There are six positions available in this year’s Sales Academy, and in keeping with previous criteria, experience in finance or sales is not a prerequisite. Close Brothers Asset Finance is looking to attract enthusiastic candidates from a range of backgrounds who want to build a successful career in sales and become specialists in one the many sectors the funder supports, including Renewable Energy, Engineering, Print and Agriculture.

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Steve Gee, CEO of Close Brothers Asset Finance’s Industrial Equipment division: “We are very proud of our specialist business model and want to build on the outstanding success of the first three Sales Academies, which has seen many of the previous ‘graduates’ fully integrated into the Asset Finance and Leasing sales teams and leading very successful careers in their chosen sectors.”

“This is an incredible opportunity to be trained by an industry leader and mentored by an experienced Sales Manager for 'on the road' training. Following their training period, successful applicants will concentrate on building a customer base, territory and business plan, with full assistance from a mentor.”

Case Study:

Hire purchase agreement helps photographer purchase new motorhome

Charlotte Graham is a professional photographer based in Northern England. She is involved in photography in a multitude of areas including wildlife, equestrian and agriculture. Her work is regularly published in national newspapers, Charlotte has also been used for cover work for leading tourism and leisure attractions venues.

A new investment Charlotte was looking to purchase a new MAN TDE180 motorhome, this would give her the flexibility to travel across the UK for her photography business without having to worry about overnight accommodation.

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Whilst at the Great Yorkshire Show, Charlotte met with Sarah Smith, Area Sales Manager for Close Brothers Asset Finance. Sarah worked with Charlotte to put together a finance package that met her requirements, recommending a Hire Purchase agreement to acquire the motorhome.

Hire Purchase will enable Charlotte to spread the cost of her investment in the motorhome over an agreed timescale, making it easier to budget.

Outcome Through the finance agreement provided by Close Brothers Asset Finance, Charlotte was able to purchase the motorhome. She is now able to travel across the UK, expanding

her portfolio which will help her grow her photography business further.

Sarah commented: “It was great to work with Charlotte to put together this new agreement to purchase the motorhome. I look forward to seeing Charlotte’s portfolio grow and watch her business expand further.”

“Working with Sarah at Close Brothers has been a pleasure. She understood my requirements and put together an agreement that has allowed me to have more freedom with my work and grow my portfolio. I would look to work with Close Brothers Asset Finance if the need for finance arose again in the future.” Charlotte Graham, Charlotte Graham Photography

Attitudes to funding At Close Brothers Asset Finance we regularly survey business owners in the sectors we fund, including Agriculture. Taken from our latest survey, in this piece we focus on attitudes to ‘funding’, finding out, for example, if firms are planning on seeking funding, and if they’re confident about getting access to the loans they need to grow their business.

A key finding is that nearly half of Agricultural business owners are not aware of Asset Finance, meaning a large number still haven’t taken advantage of the many benefits to be gained from leveraging value from their existing assets..

Access to funding

Impact of energy price rises

Nearly a third of Agricultural SMEs say getting access to funding is a ‘major challenge’ and more difficult now than it was a year ago.

The increases in the cost of doing business has had a major impact on businesses in all sectors, including Agriculture.

58% 25% 77% 35%

tell us it’s a ‘moderate challenge’ and as difficult now to access finance as it was a year ago.

admit to having been declined access to finance by a bank in the last six months.

of Agriculture businesses, despite the challenges are planning on seeking funding for investment in 2023.

have missed a business opportunity in the last 12 months because of a lack of available finance.

Interestingly, 34% of Agriculture SMEs are confident the economy will grow in the coming 12 months, against 56% who expect a further slowdown of economic activity. The rest anticipate no change.

53%

have seen an increase in their cost of borrowing.

27%

of Agricultural SMEs have switched funders because of increased interest rates.

53%

have considered alternative forms of finance because of increased interest rates.

34%

of those surveyed think interest rates have peaked.

Unfortunately, 55% of Agricultural respondents to our survey have had to increase their prices to cover the increased cost of borrowing.

For more industry insights, please visit closeassetfinance.co.uk

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Meet the Expert:

James Palmer Regional Sales Manager

James Palmer is a Regional Sales Manager and industry specialist within our Agriculture team.

Here he discusses the favourite part of his role and his predictions for the sector over the coming 12 months.

Briefly tell us about your role and what you do…

work with customers to help grow their business.

I am currently a Regional Sales Manager within the Agriculture team at Close Brothers Asset Finance. I work with farmers and businesses across the Midlands to help grow their business by using asset finance.

What’s the favourite part of your role?

What was your journey to Close Brothers Asset Finance?

I am a farmer’s son, so I was almost destined to end up in the Agricultural industry. I have worked within the industry for my whole life in various roles, from cowboy in the USA through to a fertiliser specialist. I then transitioned into the sales side, working as a combine harvester Sales Manager in the UK. I also worked for the second largest tractor manufacturer in the world. Following on from this I began my journey in Agricultural finance, a journey which has so far spanned over 10 years. Whilst in my previous role, a recruitment agent contacted me about a role within a brand-new Agricultural team at Close Brothers.

This opportunity sounded too exciting to pass up and here I am, ready to

The best part of my role is working with customers to find a solution that will help them purchase equipment and assets they need to grow their business. The opportunity to go out and meet my customers offers me a good variety within my role as often no two days are the same!

Give us an example of a deal structure that demonstrates how you can you help a customer We had a customer who was looking to buy a tractor through a manufacturer who we work closely with. After putting together a great deal structure that was at a lower cost than the customer thought, they decided not only to buy the tractor but several attachments as well. The customer was very happy as they could afford to buy more than they thought, and it helped solidify our relationship with the dealer as they had sold more machinery.

What are your top 2 predictions for your sector in the coming 12 months?

I think that within the Agricultural sector we will see two growth areas. First, I think there will be growth in Agricultural diversification. This will see us financing more renewable energy projects such as solar and wind turbines, we will also end up financing more assets such as glamping pods. Second, I think we will see growth in the number of customers looking to structure deals in a more efficient way to suit their cash flow. I believe this will involve the more traditional customer looking for payment profiles that are more structured to match the income stream from their business.

Our teams are specialists in their fields and experts in asset finance. Contact James and the team today by visiting closeassefinancet.co.uk/enquiry-form

closeassetfinance.co.uk

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SUPPORTING THE UK AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY WITH ASSET FINANCE With specialist industry knowledge and tailor-made support, we offer a range of finance options which can: • Let you invest in new equipment • Create positive cash flow for your business • Unlock the value of existing assets

Contact us today, we’re here to help closeassetfinance.co.uk/agriculture

Products and services are subject to eligibility, status, terms and conditions and availability.

All lending is subject to status and our lending criteria.

The right to decline any application is reserved.

Close Brothers Asset Finance is a trading style of Close Brothers Limited. Close Brothers Limited is registered in England and Wales (Company Number 00195626) and its registered office is 10 Crown Place, London, EC2A 4FT.