Finance for Events Management

The events industry includes events of all sizes from political party conferences and the Olympics down to business meetings and anniversary parties. Many businesses, industries, and interest groups hold events to market themselves, build business relationships, raise money, or draw attention to a particular issue. Many individuals now turn to professional help for parties and family celebrations.

Whether your focus is on large-scale events such as festivals, conferences, and conventions, or smaller scale such as wedding (including finance for asian wedding venues) and parties, the success of your Events Management business depends on the ability to manage costs just as much as it depends on your own project management skills.

The process of planning and coordinating events can include budgeting, scheduling, site selection, acquiring necessary permits, coordinating transportation and parking, arranging for speakers or entertainers, arranging decor, event security and catering. You will need to negotiate with third-party vendors.

Having access to the necessary funding is essential to allow you to make the necessary arrangements - which will often need to be paid for before you receive payment from your clients.

At Rangewell we work with event planners at all levels across the UK. We help them find the financial solutions that they need.

Understanding your funding options

Getting the most appropriate funding solution will depend on your particular business needs. You will need to look at funding options for:

• Start-up Costs
• Operational costs
• Equipment
• Income and Billing
• Marketing

At Rangewell, we can introduce you to the whole range of funding options, from lenders throughout the UK market. It means getting the funding answers that your Event Management needs.

Start-up costs

Although it may be possible to manage small events with little more than a mobile phone and a laptop from your kitchen table, if you are serious about running a profitable business you will need a more businesslike approach.

Working from home will keep your initial costs low, but you can't run an Event Management business on a shoestring. You may need to rent office space to present a professional approach to potential customers. How much money you need to start your event planning business may depend on your business plans, but may include:

• Rent
• Equipment
• Communications
• Payroll
• Advertising/Promotion
• Legal Fees and Accounting
• Insurance

You should be able to calculate your needs as part of a detailed business plan. You may be surprised to find how large your investment may need to be, and may look for external funding to provide it.

Many lenders are reluctant to lend to start-ups, preferring to make their lending decisions based on evidence of previous business performance. Although you may be able to provide projections for your business, most would expect to see accounts for one or two year’s trading before making the decision to lend.

At Rangewell we know lenders who are able to take a more positive approach and can often help arrange funding for start-up ventures, based on solutions such as Secured or Unsecured loans.

We can also find solutions if you want to buy an existing Events Management business. contact us to find out how.

Operations

Once your Events Management business is up and running you may have further funding needs. Hiring venues, casual staff and equipment will all require payments to be made, and you will be faced with ongoing overheads even while you are building your business up to profitability.

Marketing will be a substantial cost in the early months of your business. You will need a website and an online presence, which may require substantial investment.

You may need to provide a steady cashflow for the initial period when you are concentrating on bringing in business. Working Capital Finance and a Revolving Credit Facility can both be useful in providing the additional funds you need.

Working Capital Finance

Working Capital Finance can help you stay afloat and pay staff and suppliers during the early stages of your business. It is designed to provide the operating expenses, from staff costs to supplier bills while cashflow is slow. It is a loan usually designed to be repaid in the short- to medium-term, once your events business is fully on its feet.

Revolving Credit Facilities

Overdrafts are a well-known form of business finance, but in the current climate, banks may be reluctant to provide them. Revolving Credit Facilities can be an alternative, providing a line of credit, with an agreed limit that you can call on when you need it. You only pay for the money you take out, so it can be a cost-effective way to draw on funds if you require short-term finance.

Funding for your equipment

Your equipment needs may be minimal at first, and you will need little more than a laptop, phone and printer. However, as your business grows, you may need the full suite of office equipment and furniture, and vehicles.

While it is possible to hire items such as marquees and seating as required, you might also consider providing this type of equipment as an additional source of income for your business. At Rangewell we have found that asset funding can provide the most cost-effective solutions for most kinds of equipment you will use. Leasing and Hire Purchase let you spread the cost of the equipment you need, with fixed monthly repayments helping you to budget with confidence.

Hire Purchase

For basic equipment that you want to go on giving service for many years, Hire Purchase (HP) may provide the simple way to spread costs.

With Hire Purchase, you pay a deposit plus monthly instalments over a fixed term, between 12 and 72 months, after which the equipment becomes yours.

Payments are fixed, making it easy to plan ahead and to arrange an agreement that is tailored to your monthly turnover and budget. Office furniture might be ideal for HP finance.

Leasing

If you want to use the latest equipment without the responsibility of owning it, leasing will give you freedom and flexibility and avoid the need to make any capital investment. There is usually no upfront cost to find, meaning that you can bring the latest equipment such as IT into your business. It can make higher cost items more affordable by spreading the cost over their economic life.

Funding for vehicles

A car and a van might both be important assets for your events business. They may be purchased outright using Hire Purchase or other loans. Business Contract Hire is an alternative. Costs are based on the purchase cost, less the value of the vehicle after the contract period, substantially reducing the costs of operating new.

Find out more about Asset Finance here.

Income and billing

There are various revenue models that your Events Management business might adopt, depending on whether you are dealing with the public or with corporate customers. Although you may be able to insist on payment upfront with some customers, corporate clients may expect to take time to pay. You may also find that you need cash to help your business through slow periods.

There are solutions that can help.

Invoice Finance

If your income stream is based around corporate sources, you may find that there is a severe restriction on your cashflow as a result of late payments. Large clients may be lucrative, but they may take weeks or even months to pay large invoices.

An Invoice Finance arrangement can bring you a cash advance as soon as you issue an invoice, providing a flow of revenue that keeps pace with the amount of business you do.

Find out more about Invoice Finance, including Invoice Discounting.

Merchant Cash Advances

If you deal with the public on a retail basis, you will probably receive card payments.

Merchant Cash Advances are an arrangement which will allow you to secure a cash advance based on the level of payments you take. Repayment is made automatically as a percentage on every card transaction you take.

Find out more about Merchant Cash Advances.

Unsecured Loans

Unsecured business loans can also help you deal with seasonal downturns, or allow you to have funds to grow your business. They operate much like a personal loan which can be used in any way you wish. They are suitable for smaller sums, usually below £250,000. The loan is repaid in monthly or quarterly instalments over an agreed term, under 5 years.  

One of the advantages of an Unsecured Loan is that the funds can be made available quickly. Decisions can be made inside a working day with some lenders, but you will need to provide a personal guarantee. This means that you will become personally liable for the debt if your business was unable to pay.

Tax Loans

Tax is an issue for every business. A large quarterly VAT or annual tax demand can cause problems with your cash flow, particularly when it falls at the same time as other costs.

Tax Loans help you to spread the cost of your tax demands into affordable monthly payments, helping ensure that your business does not have to go through a cash flow drought caused by an unexpectedly large demand.

Benefits of a Tax Loan:

• Better control of cash flow
• Fixed monthly payments
• Quick and simple to arrange
• Avoids issues with HMRC and potential penalties

How we help you capitalise your Events Management business

Finding the most appropriate solution for your funding needs takes a thorough understanding of both of the lending market and the products available on it.

At Rangewell we have the expertise you need. We know the lenders who can offer the most competitive rates, and we find solutions for all types of finance including Unsecured & Secured Loans, Invoice Finance, Asset Finance, Merchant Cash Advance, Commercial Mortgages, Growth Finance and more, from both conventional and alternative lenders.

Whether you have a straightforward finance need or require a complicated ‘Jigsaw’ funding plan made up of a combination of products, we can work with you to find the answers

Call us now to get our experts working for you. From generalised event management businesses to specialised festival or niche wedding businesses, we can help.