Based in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, art supplies manufacturer Chameleon Art Products has received a £1m funding line from specialist SME financer, Bibby Financial Services (BFS), as the company looks to grow its already global business.
Chameleon Art Products Ltd, the maker of award-winning, innovative art and craft products, exports to a huge number of countries around the world from Ireland to Australia and everywhere in between.
Established in the UK in 2013, Chameleon Art Products flagship item is a pen that uses two nibs to produce a gradient like effect when used. The company prides itself on innovating in the arts space and enhancing the end user’s ability to maximize creativity in all aspects of their artwork.
As Chameleon Art Products is a business with a global remit, the company sought after a funder that could structure a flexible financial solution that would provide overseas payment support and alignment with the US business. After speaking to the corporate team at BFS, Chameleon Art Products secured an Export Finance facility, enabling the business to unlock cashflow globally, access a team of currency and language specialists and focus on international distribution and product development.
Gordon Nardini, Commercial Director, Chameleon Art Products, said: “Our business has seen rapid growth in global markets since its inception in 2013. As our goods are manufactured in China and distributed into 80 different countries around the world, chasing payments from international customers became an increasingly time consuming task.
“The Export Finance team at BFS has enabled us to relieve the pressure of chasing payments. In-turn, this has allowed us to focus our efforts on our expanding product range. Their ability to provide working capital for our operational base in USD in the US and Sterling for our company in the UK has provided us with an integrated funding solution that really works for us as a global art product supplier. Having an existing network of currency, language and legal specialists speeds up our efficiency, which is crucial in our plans to continue to rapidly grow as a business.”
Matt Alis, Business Development Manager, Bibby Financial Services said: “Exporting, particularly to so many different regions, brings a plethora of challenges to any business. Chameleon is a dynamic company that has expanded at such a rate, it needs a funding line that is structured to work in-line with the company’s growth.
“We stepped in where traditional lenders didn’t have the cross-border capabilities to advance funding. Our global funding capability allowed our Export Finance specialists in the UK and US to work in tandem to structure a multi-jurisdiction funding line.”
Export Finance releases the value of outstanding invoices and helps businesses overcome the complexities of selling goods or services overseas through language, currency, time zone and legal support.