From furniture to furlough to future planning

The issue Giatalia faced

Giatalia mainly operate as a wholesaler of furniture to retailers in the UK. When COVID-19 ground the UK to a halt, their main customer base had to shut their stores and orders were either postponed or cancelled.

The steps Giatalia took

Although they continued to sell to the end user on a small scale for a period of time, it wasn’t sustainable and five members of staff were furloughed. In addition, to help keep as much cash in the business as possible, overall stock was reduced by cutting back on surplus supplies, prices were cut to help liquidate stock, marketing costs were significantly lowered and the Director didn’t take a wage.

Why they turned to Atom

Because of the nature of the business, and their proven track record of performance, their belief was that once the retailers reopened the future would be bright. In fact, Giatalia recognised the potential of a post-pandemic UK and wanted to be fully prepared for it. To help them do that they were looking to expand and upscale their operation, and Atom helped them do just that.

How they used the CBILS funding

Giatalia used CBILS to support them in buying new premises to accommodate a larger amount of stock and increase product lines for their consumers. Holding greater stock naturally creates greater efficiency for retailers as they can order at short notice, which in turn means payments are received faster.

The 12 month payment holiday element of the scheme will help provide Giatalia with stronger liquidity for that period. They will also save £34k in rental costs by moving from their previous unit – a great boost for their cash flow - as well as the fact that it allows jobs to be retained and wages paid in full.