Pay suppliers on their terms. Get funded on yours.
Wholesale margins live in the gap between paying upstream and collecting downstream. Compare stock and invoice funding with one request; the check is soft, and your credit file stays exactly as it was.
Wholesale cash is locked in stock, then locked in the ledger.
You buy in bulk from manufacturers, or import containers that have to be paid for on order or on delivery, and that stock then sits in the warehouse for weeks before it moves. When it does sell, trade customers usually take it on 30, 60 or even 90 day terms, so the money you spent on goods can be tied up for a full quarter before it comes back.
Add duty and tax on imports, supplier deposits and the cost of holding slow-moving lines, and a profitable distributor can still run short of cash in any given week. That is a timing problem in a thin-margin trade, not a sign that anything is wrong with the business.
Bought early, paid for lateDistribution rarely sells evenly across the year.
You commit cash months before the revenue lands, and the peaks are set by your customers’ calendars rather than your own. That makes the ordering season the point where a facility is worth the most, because it decides how much stock you can afford to stand behind.
You buy for a season you cannot see yet
Supplying retail means your customers order ahead of the festive peak, so you are paying for stock in the summer and autumn that will not be paid for until the new year.
Every category has its own peak
Garden, outdoor and DIY lines peak in spring, food and drink swell around the festive and summer seasons, and back-to-school and the autumn sales events create their own ordering spikes.
The best deals need cash on the day
A supplier offering a bulk-buy or early-settlement discount can lift margin meaningfully, but only if the cash is there. A pre-agreed facility is what turns that into a yes.
A facility already in place is what lets you take the bulk buy at the right moment, and comparing options is a soft search with no impact on your credit score.
Most distributors use a blend, not a single loan.
Because your cash is split between stock on the shelf and invoices out on credit, the right mix depends on which end is squeezed: buying the goods, waiting on trade debtors, or kitting out the warehouse and the fleet.
The pressure point is the debtor book
Invoice finance releases a large share of a trade invoice as soon as you raise it, so you are not waiting 60 or 90 days for customers to pay. The facility grows with your sales ledger, which is why it suits distributors with a strong business-to-business debtor book and a low bad-debt history.
The pressure point is the stock buy
A container order, a bulk-discount opportunity or a deep buy ahead of a price rise is a one-off amount with a known repayment path. Working capital funds it and is repaid as the goods sell through, while trade & import finance pays suppliers at home or overseas so your own cash is not tied up while goods are in transit.
The pressure point is the cycle itself
When the gap simply repeats every time the buy-sell cycle turns, business line of credit is the honest answer: draw as supplier payments fall due, repay as customer receipts land, and pay only for what you use rather than carrying a lump sum you did not want.
The pressure point is the warehouse
Forklifts, racking, a warehouse fit-out, delivery vans and HGVs and stock-management systems all earn over years rather than weeks. Equipment & asset finance spreads them across that working life instead of paying up front out of the money that buys stock.
The pressure point is the next step up
A new depot, an acquisition or a step change in capacity is a project, not a gap. business term loan spreads a fixed amount over a fixed term, and the rule of thumb holds: short-term finance for short-term stock cycles, longer-term finance for assets that earn over years.
The aim is to match the facility to the return it pays for. You can see the whole range on the funding types Capvant covers, and the route from first question to funds is set out on how Capvant works. Amounts in the artwork are illustrative only, in £.
Funding partners read the same numbers you watch.
They look at turnover and gross margin, how fast stock turns, and the quality of the sales ledger: how many customers you have, how concentrated sales are on one or two big accounts, and how promptly those customers pay. A clean aged-debtor report and a low bad-debt history make invoice-led funding especially straightforward.
They will also review filed accounts and recent bank statements, your supplier terms, and whether you import, which brings currency and lead-time risk. Most facilities for limited companies come with a personal guarantee from a director. Knowing what is weighed helps you present the business well and judge the offers that come back.
- Your most recent filed accounts
- The last few months of business bank statements
- An up to date aged debtor and aged creditor report
- A clear sense of how much you need and what it is for
Capvant is a funding marketplace and does not lend, set rates or make the credit decision itself, so every offer, limit and term rests with the individual funding partner and is subject to their approval. Funding is for business purposes only.
Pick the range that covers the container, the season or the depot, and see which funding partners would support it.
Frequently asked questions
Does importing stock make funding harder?
It is something funding partners take into account rather than a barrier. Alongside your accounts and bank statements they look at supplier terms and whether you import, because importing brings currency and lead-time risk, and most facilities for limited companies come with a personal guarantee from a director. Every decision, limit and term rests with the individual funding partner and is subject to their approval.
Can my wholesale and distribution business get funding through Capvant?
Yes. Capvant works with funding partners that fund wholesale and distribution businesses across the United Kingdom. One request matches you with the partners most likely to say yes.
What funding suits wholesale and distribution businesses?
It depends on your goal, common options include invoice finance, working capital, business line of credit, equipment & asset finance, business term loan. Compare them side by side and pick what fits.
Will checking my options affect my credit score?
No. Seeing your options through Capvant is a soft search, so it leaves no mark on your credit file. A lender only runs a full credit check if you decide to accept an offer.
Is Capvant a lender?
No. Capvant is a funding marketplace, we match you with funding partners and you choose the offer that suits you. Funding decisions, rates and terms are set by the lender, subject to approval.
How fast can I get funded?
Once you accept an offer, many businesses receive funds within a few working days, some products fund same day.
Hold the right stock without holding your breath.
One request puts your distribution business in front of competing funding partners who understand the buy-sell gap, and looking never touches your credit score.
No obligation. Checking your offers won’t affect your credit score.
Disclaimers & footnotes
- 1Capvant is a funding marketplace, not a lender. We match business owners with third-party funding partners; we do not make credit decisions, lend money, or set rates or terms. All funding decisions, rates, terms and approvals are made solely by the lenders in our network, subject to their criteria.
- 2Checking your options through Capvant does not affect your credit score. A lender may carry out a soft or hard credit search depending on the product, stage and your consent. A full hard credit check is only carried out where required by a lender before you proceed.
- 3Funding speed, including any reference to funding in as little as 24 hours, is typical for some products and lenders and is not guaranteed. Actual timescales depend on the lender, the product, and how quickly requested information and documents are provided.
- 4Funding amounts and ranges are indicative only and vary with your business profile, trading history, the lender and the market. Figures shown are not an offer of finance and do not guarantee any particular amount, rate or approval.
- 5Any offers, rates or repayment figures shown in illustrations or examples are for demonstration only and are not real quotes. Your actual offers, if any, are provided by lenders and are subject to approval.
- 6Product availability varies by market. Some products are only available in certain countries. Capvant currently serves businesses in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Capvant is not a lender and does not make credit decisions, we introduce businesses to third-party funding providers. Capvant is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Capvant does not compare every lender, broker, funding product or offer available in the market. We only show options from funding partners in our network that may be relevant based on the information you provide.
Capvant may receive compensation from lenders, brokers, funding partners or referral partners when a customer is introduced, approved, funded or takes another qualifying action. This compensation does not guarantee that any lender will approve an application or offer specific terms. Capvant does not charge business owners a fee to compare funding options unless clearly stated otherwise.
If you access Capvant through a partner, introducer or embedded funding page, that partner may receive a referral fee or commission if your request results in funding. This does not increase your cost unless expressly disclosed.
Capvant is intended for business-purpose funding only. Eligibility may depend on entity type, location, trading history, revenue, industry and lender criteria. In the UK, Capvant currently focuses on limited companies, LLPs and plcs, and does not currently support sole traders or ordinary partnerships.
Information on Capvant is general information only and is not financial, legal, tax or accounting advice. You should consider whether funding is suitable for your business and seek professional advice where appropriate.
Calculators, eligibility checkers and funding-readiness tools are estimates only. They are based on limited information and assumptions, and do not represent a credit decision, quote, approval or recommendation.
Company information may be sourced from public registers such as Companies House, or from information you provide. Public register data may be incomplete, delayed or inaccurate and should not be treated as a full credit assessment.
The Business Credit Score by Capvant is an independent statistical assessment based on public register data. It is not provided by a credit reference agency and may differ from scores used by individual lenders.
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Some US commercial financing offers may be subject to state-specific disclosure requirements. Where required, additional disclosures will be provided and must be accepted before a transaction is finalised.