BEF Football Team
Didn't they do well!
BEF Football Team
The BEF team, with a little help from their friends, played in a one of celebrationary tournament at the Weekend. Despite a few of the members having come out of retirement from decades ago, they managed to come third and make a decent show of it. No heart attacks or hospital visits!
Come on the BEF!!
Palmer Flatt
Having spent many years in catering Chris Wright and Lesley Corfield decided, in mid 2009, to leave industrial West Yorkshire for a calmer life in the Dales. They moved to Aysgarth where they took on the management of the successful 12 bed room Palmer Flatt Hotel and pub, adjacent to the famous Aysgarth Falls.
In late 2009 the landlord of the hotel decided to move on and Chris and Lesley jumped at the opportunity of taking on the tenancy. Having raised the necessary funding from BEF they took over as landlords in October 2009, with a structured plan for redeveloping and redecorating the premises ready for the 2010 season.
Then came the worst winter for many years which cut the pub off and decimated their Christmas trade and completely wiped out the New Year trade on which they were dependant to set the business off on a strong footing.
It was not until late February that things returned to normal, this did however mean that all the plans for refurbishment were put on hold because of the lack of income to cover normal running costs. The flexibility of The BEF fund did mean that the couple were able to renegotiate their finance deal without any penalties and at a level sufficient to see them through the bad times and complete the most urgent refurbishments.
Spring has now returned to Aysgarth with the influx of tourists which will now rise weekly and bring the business back up to it’s original projections. Chris and Lesley are now looking forward to a successful summer season and whilst they will not achieve all that they hoped for in their first year, the flexibility of BEF has enabled them to survive the bad winter and be in a position to build the business back to its full potential.
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Palm Cove
Palm Cove Society is a social enterprise which provides temporary supported housing for refugees and vulnerable individuals, it was established in August 2007. They started with one house with space for three women in Bradford. They currently have over 60 rooms and continue to expand.
In addition to the original loan, BEF have continued to support Palm Cove with further financial support and mentoring since its inception.
"The Business Enterprise Fund team are approachable, knowledgeable and innovative professionals who proved to be the catalyst that turned our vision of Palm Cove Society into a reality. They helped us create a strong foundation ensuring future sustainability through their excellent business management and dynamic mentoring facilities." Yvonne Hall - Director Palm Cove Society
Palm Cove have a unique approach in this sector providing primary care, guidance and support on lifestyle and health related issues to all its clients in addition to providing accommodation. Their clients are encouraged to engage in training and employment and they promote lifelong learning through collaborative involvement with local training and development facilities. They have successfully create a strong community among their clients and a system that allows a high level of support to be provided.
Fat Trap
Trap your Fat
Pierre Nortje Director of Capcan Ltd approached BEF in 2007 having designed and registered a EU patent for a new type of fat trap. Fat Traps trap fats oils and greases thereby stopping them from entering the waste water system and causing costly blockages. He needed funds to take the product to market and had exhausted all other financial avenues.
His product differs from those already available on the market due to its unique disposable liner, it is also cheaper, smaller, environmentally friendly and easier to maintain than competitors products.
BEF approved a loan and with the help of his mentor he designed a strategy to take the product forward. After making some sales arround the UK he signed a licencing agreement with an established supplier of fat traps, Catering Waste Limited.
Further product development took place to make it British Standard Compliant and a smaller liner was developed to prevent waste coffee granules entering the waste system. The product was rebranded The Renflo Range, and these new innovative products are making in roads into this established market.
http://www.renflo.com/products/coffee-grounds-and-food-solids-trap/
Salts Security Systems
“I almost called it a day” says security systems expert Paschal Duran. His growing business, Salts Security Systems, is now so busy that it has already created jobs for three installation engineers and is poised to become a major force in its sector.
A far cry from the situation Paschal, aged 47, of Edward Street, Saltaire, faced just a few months ago. He recalls: “I left my job with a Bradford security alarm company last February, determined to launch my own business. With many good contacts I soon won numerous orders, which were confirmed in writing.
“But the first three months were really tough. I didn’t have enough cash to pay for all the technical equipment customers wanted installing so I went to several banks looking for a business loan. Every one of them turned me away, saying my proposal was too risky.
The Business Enterprise Fund provided a substantial loan to Paschal to enable him to pay his staff and buy vital stock for the business. This money came from Bradford Council’s Kickstart programme under the Access2Finance scheme.
To top it all the Fund sourced a favorable invoice factoring deal for Salts Security to get the company’s cash flowing again. Says Paschal: “In one recent bumper month we raised invoices valued at more than £30,000 and we will smash our first year target of £150,000.
“Without Kickstart and the Business Enterprise Fund we would not have made it.”
