Funding your business
Whether still trading or completey closed, every high street business is facing its own challenges in how to guarantee their immediate and near term survival.
With cash flows under pressure, costs being difficult to cut or substitute quickly, and demand fading for everything but essentials, businesses are looking to strengthen their cash position to keep things going through the lockdown months.
All businesses should consider all potential sources of cash across:
- Fixed assets
- Inventory
- Payment terms
- Grants
- Debt
- Equity
If your business is trading, your monthly cash flow may be positive because you’re still making money, in which case you may need to support growth in your business to be able to meet the increased demand, whilst sharpening your cost management and adding cash as an extra safety net.
Whether your business is trading or not, your monthly cash flow may be negative because you’re losing money due to necessary costs being higher than revenue. In this case, understanding how many weeks or months you can continue operating as you look for new revenue streams to keep your business running until monthly your cash flow becomes positive again is crucial.
The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme is just one of many options for funding your business. All options need to be understood and evaluated properly.
Each business owner should develop their own plan for turning assets into cash, reducing working capital needs and increasing cash by taking on liabilities in a managed way.
There are dozens of different ideas to consider in relation to this goal alone, from applying for a loan to running a crowd-funding campaign, incentivising early payment of debtors, extending payment terms with suppliers, and more.
In addition to funding your business, the other goals that we encourage all high street businesses to work on are:
- Reducing your business costs
- Selling through multiple channels
- Marketing during lockdown
- Collaborating as a high street
- Preparing for the future
Here at SaveTheHighStreet.org, we are now running 12-week COVID-19 support programmes for local high street business owners, working closely with each business to develop and implement a highly personalised plan that considers every possible idea across all 6 goals listed above.
This is our most hands-on support programme ever and aims to give as many local businesses as possible the best chance of success on the high street, for now and for the future.
Click here to find out more and register for the next 12-week programme
