BRIGHTPOINT

I have been in the retail sector for around 18 years and am now running multiple stores in and around Hastings. Having had 7 years experience at Sainsbury in the fresh food section, I was thrilled when the opportunity to open Brightpoint Ltd. came about. The location is prime and we have grown to cater to about 2000 households, we also have many visitors, given the surroundings which include hotels, pubs and the beach.

Providing customers with a leading service and a range of products that truly make their lives more convenient is our goal. Alongside our attention to providing top quality service and our commitment to sourcing the best products, we are also lucky with our location. There’s an increasing trend of attracting more and more tourists around the area, and our store is a popular choice among the visitors as it is in the vicinity of the beach and is recommended by locals.

Recognised as the most convenient retail store in and around the Marina-St Leonards, we aim to expand our retail business to give our customers an enhanced shopping experience that fulfils most of their needs. Funds raised will be used for expansion, allocating six separate isles which will comprise of frozen food, chill items, fruit & vegetables, alcohol & wine, grocery items and pet foods. There will also be a large deli counter and a fully automatic touch screen coffee machine.

Credit commentary:
The director is providing a personal guarantee, this means that if the business fails, the director becomes personally liable for the loan. The director is a homeowner, however, this does not ensure there are sufficient assets should the loan need to be recovered. There have been no CCJs for the business or director. In 2022, admin costs were £49,877, depreciation and other amounts written off were £4,233, and other charges were £46,009. In 2021, admin costs were £20,785, depreciation and other amounts written off were £4,159, and other charges were £41,436. The admin expenses in the financial table below includes depreciation and other charges. The bank statements demonstrate reasonable affordability and the accounts remain well in credit.

Inflation risk:
The company has been affected by higher energy costs and higher labour costs. After the pandemic, the increasing demand but decreasing supply of raw materials and semi-finished products resulted in price increases as well. As the majority of lending to the business is at a fixed rate, they will not be immediately affected by interest rate increases. Despite increasing living costs, the directors of Brightpoint do not expect to draw money from the business as all capital is vital for the expansion of the business. Brightpoint Ltd advised that they are less likely to be impacted by inflationary pressures as the business trading line is predominantly for the sale of necessity goods. Nonetheless, they plan to tackle rising inflation using several strategies. They will perform a price audit to measure whether profit margins can be met by increasing prices, and this will be done after a fresh break-even analysis. Steps will be taken to consider which customers are most affected with price increases of certain goods. As sudden price changes could affect customer loyalty, prices will only be increased after a thorough study of the customer base and competitor prices. The business intends to create new cash flow forecasts and budgets in line with changing market conditions.