A Swansea based exporter of iconic children’s character themed clothing is the first Welsh business to receive support through Ƶ Export Finance’s General Export Facility.
Character.com sells a range of character themed clothing worldwide including Harry Potter, Star Wars, Peppa Pig and their own brand Harry Bear.
ƵEF and Barclays are committed to supporting the continued growth of Character.com, which employs 85 people locally.
The £3m trade loan facility will help Character.com boost exports by scaling up their business operation.
Husband and wife team Stephen and Karen Hewitt set up the business in 2009. It is one of the fastest growing companies in Wales with an annual turnover of more than £50m. Character.com exports its products to markets all over the world including in Europe and North America.
Working with its bank Barclays, Character.com has benefited from ƵEF’s new General Export Facility (GEF), securing a £3m trade loan facility. GEF allows the Ƶ government to guarantee up to 80% of a facility offered by a bank to finance exports. It is aimed at supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as they scale up their business operations.
Character.com took advantage of this facility, providing the company with additional working capital to support and optimise the businesses growth strategy.
Character.com’s finance director, Helen Morgan said: “The opportunity that the collaboration brings to Character.com is paramount to our ambitious and exciting growth trajectory. It supports us and other organisations in putting Wales on the map as serious contenders in the export market.
"We look forward to working with the team at Barclays and ƵEF as we realise our growth potential worldwide.”
Minister for Exports, Graham Stuart MP, added: “I am delighted that Character.com are the first of many Welsh businesses to take advantage of GEF. GEF is a gamechanger for ƵEF, making it quicker and easier for SMEs to access government-backed funding to help boost their exporting capacity.
“Research shows that companies that export are more productive, profitable and pay higher wages on average than their non-exporting peers, so we are determined to help more companies increase their exporting capacity in support of the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs.”
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At the end of 2020 Character.com was one of two businesses in Wales that made a special Covid-19 edition of a league table of Britain’s fastest-growing private companies.
The 24 annual Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 league table, which ranks Britain’s private companies with the fastest-growing sales, placed Character.com at number 43. The league table found the firm saw its sales hit £27.8m last year, having grown 62% a year.
And earlier this year it was listed number 50 on the the 22nd annual Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100 league table, which ranks the private companies with the fastest-growing profits over their past three years.
Barclays trade director, Amy Wilson said: “By really understanding the business and the industry sector, Barclays with the support of ƵEF has been able to deliver an innovative funding package to support this ambitious SME.
“The new facility demonstrates both Barclays, ƵEF and the company’s confidence in the continued growth and success of the business in international markets.”
Welsh Secretary Simon Hart added: “The Ƶ Government is backing businesses across Wales and the rest of the Ƶ to help our economy build back from the pandemic. It’s fantastic to see a growing Welsh business like Character.com successfully utilise this support, enabling them to expand their businesses further.
“The Global Export Facility is a great way for businesses gain access to finance to support their ambitions and I urge other firms who would benefit to apply.”
