The attitudes and trends of small businesses have notoriously dictated the provision of financial support for businesses to thrive in the current environment. So, what is the forecasted outlook for SME business owners this year?
For the foreseeable, it's all about recovery, growth and transformation.
Although a Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) poll of 1,211 small business owners reported that lending to small businesses is sliding, one of our leading lenders, Aldermore, has revealed that SMEs plan to spend an average of £11,175 on growth strategies, equating to a total spend of £633 million investment for all UK SMEs. With demand comes funding, and change is constant across the lending market. Confidence is crucial to financial success and it is evidently growing …
UK SMEs are continuing to look to the future and drive growth:
Over a third (35%) are planning to invest in new equipment.
Around half (50%) list expanding their customer base as a main priority.
Over a third (35%) will be embracing the shift to online by improving their online presence - 29% will be investing in digital marketing.
Other priorities include:
Developing new products and services (26%) Improving existing propositions (36%)
Investing in employee retention (25%)
Reacting to sustainability agenda (29%)
Do these priorities align with yours?
It is of course incredibly encouraging to see that SMEs are planning to invest so significantly over the course of the next year. Despite supply chain issues and the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis, confidence is growing, and lenders are looking to lead the way for businesses by providing real world lending at the end of the phone.
We hope that the above findings will inspire you to go even further this year and pursue growth with the reassurance that we could see more businesses applying for finance.
Finance will help your business to:
Improve cash flow
Invest in business operations
Focus on growth
To date, we’ve arranged over £198,000,000 worth of lending and are targeting record levels for 2022.
To see how we can help tailor flexible funding for your business, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us by emailing us at info@charlesanddean.com or calling 01780 763836.
Sources: NACFB > https://nacfb.org/magazine/june-2022/