{"id":790409,"date":"2024-09-11T07:03:58","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T05:03:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=790409"},"modified":"2024-09-11T07:04:04","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T05:04:04","slug":"how-to-fund-your-next-big-project","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/industry-news\/790409\/how-to-fund-your-next-big-project\/","title":{"rendered":"How to fund your next big project"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\"><em>Garth Rossiter, Chief Risk Officer at Lula<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now is the perfect time for SA&#8217;s SMEs to take on bigger projects, says Garth Rossiter, Chief Risk Officer at Lula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lula.co.za\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/lula.co.za\">Click here to learn how Lula can help your SME take on big projects.<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe&#8217;re currently in a perfect storm,\u201d he explains. \u201cIn 2023, we saw record-high interest rates, unprecedented load shedding, and soaring inflation, all of which hit consumer spending hard. But now, with interest rates expected to drop in September, inflation coming under control, and a long streak with no load shedding, the current business environment may present opportunities to expand, upgrade equipment, or diversify offerings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you&#8217;ve got a solid business that&#8217;s survived the post-COVID era, this could be as close to an ideal climate as you can expect for launching new ventures,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cYes, there&#8217;s still economic uncertainty,\u201d Rossiter acknowledges, \u201cbut that&#8217;s often when the best opportunities arise. When sentiment is high across the board, it&#8217;s actually not necessarily the ideal time to launch projects. You don&#8217;t always want to invest at the peak of the market; you want to invest when markets are turning around or on the cusp of a growth phase.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This strategic approach positions businesses to capitalise on future demand. \u201cWhen there&#8217;s suddenly a spike in demand for your product or service, you want to be ready for it, having planned in advance, not scrambling to catch up with the competition.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cash flow planning is fundamental to business success, yet often overlooked. \u201c80% of businesses fail early on, largely due to cash flow issues,\u201d Rossiter notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOur surveys show it&#8217;s a major growth obstacle. Many SMEs struggle to get cash flows planned out 3-6 months ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSMEs need short- and medium-term capital not just as a buffer, but to seize current market opportunities. We&#8217;ve supported construction firms, retailers, and eateries with things like building projects, equipment purchases, premises upgrades, and inventory restocks, as well as just to maintain operations and pay salaries. We provide the crucial day-to-day cash flow relief that underpins these big projects in the background.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When it comes to funding big projects, SMEs often find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place. Traditional banks, with their demand for collateral and extensive credit histories, can be slow and inflexible. \u201cBanks typically take a month or more to process applications,\u201d Rossiter points out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the other end of the spectrum are unverified lenders, who might offer quick cash but often without proper affordability checks. \u201cThis can put businesses under immense pressure,\u201d warns Rossiter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He believes Lula has successfully carved out a niche in the middle-ground, with an approach geared towards the dynamic needs of SMEs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe take affordability and risk assessment extremely seriously,\u201d he explains. \u201cOur algorithm assesses businesses using alternative data, allowing us to provide capital within 24 hours.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;We pre-approve based on affordability, allowing businesses to then access cash whenever the need may arise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rossiter expands, \u201cBusinesses can dip in and out, with no penalties for taking less than the maximum allowed, thereby freeing up cash for development projects or managing cash flow fluctuations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This kind of real-time capital financing facility is a game-changer compared to traditional month-long waits, in the fast-paced world of SMEs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cRepeat business lies at the core of Lula&#8217;s model. We&#8217;re proud that 80-90% of our clients return for additional funding,\u201d Rossiter shares. \u201cThis high retention rate reflects our commitment to responsible lending and client success.\u201d He stresses that Lula \u201cwants to see our clients thrive, not just survive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This focus on long-term partnerships, and their passion to build thriving SME ecosystems in SA also drove Lula to extend their portfolio of financial services beyond just providing capital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe also offer a robust business finance support structure, including our SME-tailored banking app, cash flow management tools, and financial education content. Together these tools empower businesses to make informed strategic decisions about credit and cashflow, helping guide them towards sustainable growth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSMEs are the lifeblood of the economy, and the primary engine of job creation in SA. We\u2019re seeing these businesses grow, and we\u2019ve seen employment increase.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lula.co.za\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/lula.co.za\">Click here to learn how Lula can help your SME take on big projects.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Garth Rossiter, Chief Risk Officer at Lula, says now is the best time for South African SMEs to take on bigger projects.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":790412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10459],"tags":[20515,20514],"class_list":["post-790409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry-news","tag-business-funding","tag-lula"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/790409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=790409"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/790409\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":790531,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/790409\/revisions\/790531"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/790412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=790409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=790409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=790409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}