Allica Bank closes £1.9m deal for UK glass rooflight manufacturer, Glazing Vision
Allica Bank, the business bank dedicated to empowering small and medium-sized businesses to succeed, has announced the completion of a £1.9m remortgage for Glazing Vision, the world’s largest manufacturer of high-end bespoke glass rooflights. The remortgage deal was completed in just six weeks, from initial enquiry through to drawdown, against the backdrop of the global pandemic and when many traditional finance providers had let Glazing Vision down. The funding has allowed the Norfolk-based company to finance its further international expansion.
Glazing Vision is based in Norfolk, where it employs over 100 people and has been in business for over 25 years. It is the largest manufacturer of bespoke luxurious glass roof lights in the UK and is on a rapid growth path, expanding internationally. The company was looking for funding to help support its ambitious growth plans, but found it challenging to find the right banking partner to support its growth.
It comes at a time when the Bank of England predicts a drop of 24% in available credit outside of the government’s Covid lending schemes to established SMEs over the next three months.
Allica Bank, on the other hand, has continued to support established SMEs, just like Glazing Vision, throughout the pandemic, recently announcing it has received well over £1bn of SME lending enquiries since the end of the first national lockdown. Indeed, Allica has made over £100m of committed loan offers to these businesses, since the end of the first national lockdown in June.
Jon Shooter, managing director of Glazing Vision, commented: “It was tough finding a bank we could work with to find the finance we required, we’d been let down by several banks. Securing funding with Allica, though, was a different story. We worked closely with a dedicated local business relationship manager who took the time to understand us and our ambitions for the business. Alternative banks spoke a good game, however they were not supported by their credit departments. Our local business relationship manager helped break down any walls for us and went the extra mile to assist in making the deal happen.
“We’ve got big plans for Glazing Vision domestically and internationally. And I look forward to working together with Allica Bank to make them a reality.”
Jonathan Prince, business relationship manager, Allica Bank, commented: “Established and thriving businesses like Glazing Vision have been underserved by the market for a while, but 2020 has made this funding gap even more acute. The current focus for many lenders has understandably been on providing support to those businesses most at risk from the impact of Covid-19, but this has led to a sharp fall in funding for businesses outside of these schemes. At Allica, we’ve built a new type of bank that is committed to ensuring these companies can get access to the funding they need.”