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Developing your business, to keep up to date with the latest technology and thinking, can be costly in terms of both time and financial outlay.

Here, at Credo Asset Finance, we can help you get the best deal with our policy of responsible lending. Basically, we take the hassle out of the buying process so you can get on with the important job of running your business and making sure it thrives.

We feel it’s important to give you sound advice, from our hand-picked expert team, about the finance options so you can buy or lease the right type of equipment and transportation you need to make sure your business can grow successfully to meet the latest challenges.

A recent example of how we have helped a warehouse and distribution business refurbish its warehouse and also invest in new vehicles to meet the requirements of a new contract.

The whole project would’ve taken 3 years for the business to fund from cash reserves. Instead the firm was able to spread the initial investment over a 12 month period, and finance over 3 to 5 years.

Our haulage and HGV specialists can offer you alternative ways to buy new equipment without putting pressure on your business.

Here are the funding solutions we came up with to help that warehouse and distribution business.

HGV/LCV –These vehicles, enabling the business to upgrade from a Euro 5 to a Euro 6 fleet crucial for the new contract in and around the London low-emissions zone , were funded on hire purchase (HP).

The large lorries brought the stock in the warehouse while the team of couriers distributed the goods to clients in Luton vans.

Forklifts –The three forklifts that the business uses in the warehouse were replaced over nine months. All were financed on a competitive operating lease agreement with the support of the supplier.

Warehouse racking – With an impressive lifespan for this type of equipment, cashflow management was crucial and a HP contract over 60 months was put in place.

Warehouse electronic systems – The client and its supplier agreed that the business would need to upgrade and improve its radio frequency identification (RFID) and closed-circuit television (CCTV) security systems every three years.

A fixed-term lease deal was written, allowing the client to simply hand back the now depreciated equipment, at the end of the three-year term, and replace it with a new agreement.

Fran Brown, Credo’s Marketing Manager, said: “Credo can help fund most assets. Even though financing cars and vans are a big part of our business, we are specialists in our field and can project manage a finance plan to include equipment, vehicles and other assets to enable businesses to expand at the rate they deserve ”

Credo promotes bespoke finance solutions for the farming and construction industries as well as companies’ offices which might involve investing in new technology such as solar panels or electric vehicle charging points when upgrading their transport fleets.

“We are your independent finance broker so please feel free to talk to us about your finance requirements,” she said. “We can sort the finance and take all the hassle away by saving you time and money”.

“We are here to help businesses grow and we will know how to find what you are looking for.”

To find out more, call one of our specialist advisers on 01603 381955

Clean air zones are very much in the news as more cities around the UK look to drive down pollution by restricting, or even banning, certain vehicles.

Bristol is the latest to get on the go-green bandwagon by becoming the UK’s first city to plan a ban on diesel cars from entering parts of the city centre in a bid to cut air pollution, particularly high levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2). A wider clean air zone (CAZ) is proposed to extend further away from the city centre.

The city council has agreed to ban privately-owned diesel cars from a central zone during the day. Commercial vehicles will pay to enter the area. It is due to start in 2021 but needs government approval.

London already has a low-emission zone and other UK cities, including Sheffield and Leicester, are debating having one. Meanwhile, Birmingham, Derby, Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton are required introduce a CAZ by next year to improve air quality and address sources of pollution.

Expect other cities to follow suit as they are forced to clean up their act to meet targets.

Local authorities create CAZs with measures in place to improve air quality. In a charging zone, drivers and companies pay a fee to go into it if their vehicles do not meet the environmental standard, normally based on its Euro emissions standard.

For lorries and coaches, this fee could be £50 to £100 a day so there are significant benefits to having electric and the latest Euro 6-compliant vehicles.

Many of these schemes involve older, more polluting diesel vehicles being banned from certain areas or vehicles having to pay to enter zones. Similar systems exist in many European cities.

CAZs are great news for people living, working and visiting the city centres but have a knock-on effect for drivers, companies making deliveries and transport operators.

Credo Asset Finance marketing manager Fran Brown asks: “Are you Euro 6-compliant? Is this part of your business plan?

“It’s a considerable expense for a lot of companies and, while it might not apply to you or your business at the moment, it may in the future.”

So where does Credo fit into cleaning up our cities?

As well as brokering finance from around 20 hand-picked, trusted lenders, we provide our own book finance which opens up lending to a wider range of customers and for more diverse and unusual assets.

We can find you the best finance deal, tailored to best suit you and your company’s needs under our responsible lending ethos, on a range of transport assets, be they cars, vans, lorries or coaches.

“So, if you want to talk to us about your future business plan we are here to help. It’s better to do in your own timeframe rather than having it thrust upon you.”

Call us today on 01603 381955

Credo are still in a generous mood after the Canaryball Rally success!

We are passionate about our local community and the people/causes/charities that make this wonderful county a better place to live for so many.

So we decided to give our lovely followers on social media an opportunity to share the local causes close to their hearts and at the same time have a chance of winning them a £100 donation.

The giveaway is being run across Facebook, Instagram & Twitter and entries close on 17/11/2019. Full terms and conditions are on our Facebook page.

Enter here:

Neil is in his fourth year working for Credo and has excelled in everything he puts his mind to, however his big successes have been in the Prestige Car sector and is now known as the ‘Prestige Car King’ in the office.

We wanted to see what makes Neil the successful guy he is, so asked him a few questions about his work and his home life..

Name: Neil Dunlop

What is your role at Credo Asset Finance? What does it involve? I’m currently a Business Development Manager, this involves being on the road building my customer network and working closely with my existing client base to give them the exceptional service Credo is renowned for. Being on the road allows me to regularly see my introducers and work on strategies for us both to increase sales.  Along with the above I manage a team of 8 internal sales staff.

Do you have a specialist field in the finance industry? With Asset Finance being so vast, you have to be a specialist in every area ranging from Renewable Energy to the Motor trade. If I had to pick, my specialist areas would be Construction, Haulage & Prestige Cars.

Where were you educated? Like most in the Credo office I attended North Walsham High School before furthering my education at Paston Sixth Form College.

How many years have you been in the finance industry? Do you have any other relevant experience such as working in the motor trade, agricultural or marine industry: I’ve been working in the finance industry for just under three and a half years. Prior to this I was a labourer regularly operating Dumpers, Excavators & Telehandlers on site, working on site has certainly given me the knowledge and understanding of the construction world.

How many years have you worked at Credo Asset Finance? I’ve been at Credo for just under three and a half years.

Have you held other positions at Credo? I started off in Payouts before quickly moving up into Sales Support, I’ve been in my current sales role for around 18 months.

What do you like about your job? The diversity of the job keeps it interesting, one minute I’ll be dealing with an enquiry on a high end car and then the next call will be a request for financing solar panels. This coupled along with putting customers in their dream car and seeing business I’ve helped go from strength to strength really makes the job enjoyable.

Why is Credo a good business to work for? The team in the office is great, we all help out one another on deals and development which makes coming in to work easier. We are regularly rewarded with nights out which are always good fun!

What are your hobbies, past-times, and sports? I’ve recently got into Golf and currently play off 19 (although I have hit 5 under this a number of times this year, bandit!). Football has always been my main sport, when I’m not injured… which is very rare.

Have you achieved anything special in your career or outside of work? I’ve funded around £24m in my last 24 months in sales here, which I’m pretty proud of. My two favourite deals would probably have to be financing a Porsche 997 GT2RS & most recently funding over £350k worth of production machinery for a well established Vegan food manufacturer.

Tell us one unusual fact about yourself – such as a special skill or ability. I’m told I have selective hearing…

Thank you Neil for giving us an insight into your daily life… stay tuned for the next staff profile!