Business loan helps The Boathouse in Ellesmere expand and grow

An Ellesmere restaurant and café is on target to achieve a turnover of £1million by next year, thanks to a business loan from Shropshire Council.

The Boathouse has been run by Richard and Kate Taylor since 2013, under a contract with Shropshire Council.

This busy lakeside venue was seeking an investment loan to cover the cost of various property improvements including a kitchen refurbishment, new external lighting, decking and rain-proofing, as well as the fit out of a new kiosk to serve ice creams, confectionery and drinks.

Thanks to a £30,000 Shropshire Council Business Investment Fund loan – awarded over a three-year period – The Boathouse has been able to not only expand its customer offer but also introduce an additional income stream.

The loans are administered by Impetus on behalf of the Shropshire Council.

Richard Taylor said:

“The loan enabled us to increase capacity by 25% and the new kiosk which is a part of this and serves takeaway food, increased our turnover again by a further 20%. We had approached our bank but we were told the catering industry was ‘out of favour with them’ and they also cited that we had been trading for less than two years.

“Thanks to Shropshire Council and Impetus our business planning has been brought forward by 12 months and our target £1m turnover should be reached by 2016.”

　Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for business growth, said:

“Since Richard and Kate won the contract to run the Boathouse on behalf of Shropshire Council in 2013 the business has gone from strength to strength and is a real success story.

“I’m really impressed with how they have developed and expanded the business over the past two years, and am delighted that the business loan has helped to make this possible.

“The Boathouse plays a key role in attracting people to Ellesmere and the surrounding area, so its success is great news for the local economy too, and I wish the business continued success in the future.”

For more information about the Boathouse, click here.

For more information about Shropshire Council’s Business Investment Fund, click here.

Further information

The Shropshire Business Investment Fund has been launched to help new and existing businesses that need finance when mainstream funding sources such as high street banks are unable to help. Through the fund, loans are being made available from £5,000 up to £150,000. Payment terms can range from six months to five years.

Through a competitive procurement process, Shropshire Council chose Impetus – a Worcestershire-based community development financial institution – to deliver the fund on the council’s behalf. As part of the agreement, Impetus has put in its own resources and further external funding has been added to create a total pot of £3.1m.