The Fabulous Bakin’ Boys launch new products with the help of invoice finance

Witney-based baking firm, The Fabulous Bakin’ Boys is set to increase turnover to £20 million and bring new products to market after securing a £2 million invoice discounting facility from Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance.

The business, which was established in 1997, makes muffins, flapjacks and cakes, and supplies all major UK supermarkets.

Based in a 75,000 sq ft warehouse in Witney, Oxfordshire and employing 150 people, the firm is best-known for its blueberry muffins and lemon cupcakes.

The Fabulous Bakin’ Boys has recently enjoyed rapid growth due to new supermarket contracts and the launch of the first cake bar to contain one portion of your recommended five fruit and vegetables a day, ‘Fruit and Oat slices.’

As a result of this increased demand, the company found it needed a cash flow boost to pay suppliers in advance.

The firm approached Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance for funding and secured a £2 million invoice discounting facility. 

The facility advances up to 85 per cent of issued invoices within 24 hours of them being raised, meaning the business can put in place an expansion strategy and invest in developing new products and existing lines.

Jon Frank, one of the founding partners of Fabulous Bakin’ Boys, said: “The baked snack market is moving towards more and more healthy options and in order to expand it is necessary to drive growth through innovation.

“Flexible liquidity is therefore essential to invest in developing new products and as demand for all our goods continues to grow, we found a cash flow solution was needed to free up funds.

“As a result of the invoice discounting facility, we are now in a strong position to push out our new products, the Fruit and Oat slices and a range of mini cupcakes.”

James Scarborough, director of business development at Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance, said: “The UK snack market is worth around £2.4 billion a year and consumers are increasingly moving away from high fat options. It is great to see Fabulous Bakin’ Boys capitalising on this trend by bringing out the first cake bar to contain a portion of fruit.

“By using Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance’s invoice finance facility, the company’s working capital is boosted, as the value of issued invoices is advanced. This means the payment gap between supplying customers and receiving payment is no longer a problem.”

May 2011