Ripon car dealership gears up for growth with £650k funding package

After securing a £650k funding package from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, a Ripon car dealership is planning to acquire an additional site in a new area within the next two years.

Batchelors of Ripon secured a commercial loan and overdraft facility as part of plans to step its growth up a gear after switching its banking to Lloyds Bank.

The dealership, which is an authorised franchised dealer for Suzuki and Mitsubishi cars, now plans to hire new staff and acquire a new site by 2018.

The family-owned business currently employs 35 staff and has a turnover of £18m.

Batchelors of Ripon expanded to take on the Mitsubishi franchise last year and, as a result, created five new jobs and increased turnover by 25%.

Tony Denton, the current managing director who instigated a management buyout of the firm in 2013, said: “We’ve always been a forward thinking business, as shown by how we have embraced online buying habits and round-the-clock customer service.

“Switching banks and restructuring our finances offers us the working capital to be that bit more forward-thinking and allows us to plan the future of the business.

“We invited a number of banks to pitch when we decided to switch, and what was most attractive to us was Lloyds Bank’s understanding of our sector, which far outweighed that of other banks.”

Lee Rycraft, relationship director at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, added: “By allowing Tony to spend more time on the forecourt and less time supporting the finance team, this deal has already helped Batchelors of Ripon become the leading dealer in the area for Mitsubishi and Suzuki.

“Lloyds Bank is committed to helping small businesses fulfil their growth potential, which is why we have pledged to increase our net lending to SMEs by £1bn every year until 2017.”