Growth spurt for Weedfree thanks to £100k investment
A weed control company has sown the seeds for growth across Europe after a £100,000 cash boost from Finance Yorkshire.
Goole-based Weedfree Limited and its international arm, Weedfree on Track Limited, offer industrial and amenity weed control including the operation of weed spray trains along rail networks in the UK and in Europe.
Managing Director Neil Bangham revealed the company is hoping to use the huge cash boost from Finance Yorkshire to market its services across the continent.
Neil said: “Weedfree on Track is currently established in Belgium and Denmark and things are going well. We wanted to expand business further in both the UK and Europe but it costs a lot of money to gain business into new countries.
“The investment from Finance Yorkshire is going to help us do that. We hope to build the business here in the UK by increasing our sales across the continent and we are going to use the loan to develop marketing to raise our profile.”
Neil was introduced to Finance Yorkshire by long-serving company accountant James White, of Brown Butler Chartered Accountants.
Neil explained: “James has advised the company’s management team for several years, and works very closely with us in the UK and Europe. He recommended Finance Yorkshire and it was obviously a recommendation that we trusted.
“The investment process was excellent. It was very quick, easy and professional throughout.
“Our Finance Yorkshire Investment Manager, Ian Atkinson, was always on hand and helped us in everyway possible. That meant the whole process was a smooth one without any problems or hitches.
“I would definitely recommend Finance Yorkshire to others. At Weedfree, our focus is now on growing the business by putting time and money into exporting the service into Europe. “
Finance Yorkshire Investment Manager, Ian Atkinson, said: “Weedfree does a fantastic job of controlling the weeds along our railway network here in the UK and with its spray train the company has the scope to have big business success across Europe too.
“This is proven by the service it already carries out in Belgium and Denmark, and we were delighted to be able to offer the support the company needs to reach its full potential. The investment means that the UK operation will expand allowing it to generate more sales from both the UK and overseas.”
Finance Yorkshire has invested over £10 million in companies throughout Yorkshire and the Humber.
Helping a range of small and medium sized businesses to meet their funding requirements for growth and development, Finance Yorkshire provides seedcorn, loan and equity linked investments, ranging from £15,000 to £2m.
The project is supported financially by the European Union. It has attracted £30million investment from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of Europe’s support for the region’s economic development through the Yorkshire and Humber ERDF Programme, £15million from Yorkshire Forward’s Single Programme, and £45million match funding from the European Investment Bank.
For more information about Finance Yorkshire, please visit www.finance-yorkshire.com or ring 0845 649 0000. Alternatively, follow Finance Yorkshire on twitter @financeyorks
Note: this news article is from Finance Yorkshire’s previous fund. Read more about Finance Yorkshire