Register +

In 2014, Candy Hero Ltd. came to rebuildingsociety.com looking for an influx of funds in order to expand. They planned to use the investment to boost wholesale sales, strengthen equity and then open a new UK store in time to maximise Christmas time sales. Candy Hero Ltd. was founded in December 2008, by two entrepreneurial siblings with a mission to bring unique, specialist and delicious sweets from all over the world to sweet-toothed customers in the UK and Europe. The online shop was launched in 2009, to be followed later by high street shops in York and Leeds. Visit one of their shops, and prepare to be tempted by Birthday Cake Golden Oreos, exploding cinnamon candy, Nerds, giant lollipops, wasabi candy and boxes of Jelly Belly Buttered Popcorn Jelly Beans, to name just a few from the vast collection. The 10,000 square foot warehouse in Bradford sees around 4,000 unique product lines carefully handled by employees individually chosen to fit the company’s high energy, innovative ethos. The sweet importers and retailers’ first loan application was a great success; brothers and co-owners Frank and Leo managed to raise the target £50,000 from investors. Candy Hero Ltd. invested the money they raised into the wholesale distribution of imported sweets, snacks, and groceries. They decided not to open a shop, as they were unable to find an adequate unit within their chosen city. Instead, they focused on their online sector. In the last two years, the company has:

• grown turnover significantly; 2015 to 2016 saw 83% growth
• increased their stock-holding capacity from 5,000 to 10,000 square feet
• acquired a great number of additional wholesale customers
• built a proprietary pre-order system
• co-ordinated a huge UK product range comprising around 10,000 lines available for pre-order and export
• improved internal systems with strong procedures that improve staff training processes
• added powerful price and margin controls and mitigated currency fluctuations

Frank commented on their experiences with rebuildingsociety: “They provided a smooth process prior to listing the application, support throughout, and a platform that is clear and easy-to-use. Rebuildingsociety is a very impressive social business that is a powerful tool when you need extra finance above and beyond what may have been already possible.” Perhaps one of the keys to their online funding success was the company’s open-door policy. Frank discusses business with his team quite openly, “from the top to the bottom of the organisation, in response to any question.” Therefore, he embraced the discussion forums available on rebuildingsociety.com, believing that “talking business with lenders in a peer-to-peer environment with the same openness and clarity builds up the confidence to invest in us.” Now, Candy Hero is back with a new loan application. The return borrowers are well-supported by rebuildingsociety’s lender base, something they hope will help them fund their £300,000 loan application. If successful, the team plan to refinance £184,000 to achieve cheaper interest per month and fewer capital repayments per month, and use additional capital to add to the stock cycle. When asked why they decided to return to Rebuildingsociety, Frank explained that while their bank is very supportive, recently offering them a new import loan facility, they cannot approve a loan of this size. As he commented: “The only method of gaining a loan of this size would be crowdfunding and the only place I want to crowdfund is Rebuildingsociety.” Read about the company on their website, and find out more about their loan application at rebuildingsociety.com. Lending to businesses carries risk. Past returns are not necessarily a guide to future returns. Any unrepaid capital is at risk of arrears or default. To find out more please visit http://reb.so/risk