How a Spud Farmer Made £200,000 With Bizcap’s Help. The Alternative: Losing Everything

The Challenge:

Nicole Twycross grows spuds on her farm. In 2023 she experienced crop issues: the irrigator she had purchased for one of her paddocks got held up by 11 months, putting stress on the spuds in the ground and resulting in a diminished yield. As a result, instead of making £200,000 on the crop, she made £20,000. 

To get herself out of financial trouble, Nicole was forced to sell some water, a precious asset. Within an hour of putting it up for sale, she had a buyer. But selling the water wasn’t straightforward; it would take weeks to jump through regulatory hoops before Nicole would see the proceeds. All the while, the deposit on the sale got held in a trust account.

Nicole knew the £52,000 cheque for the water was a sure thing, bound to arrive within a few months, but time was of the essence: she needed to get the next year’s spuds into the ground before planting season was over. And in order to do that, she needed funds to cover the costs of diesel, fertiliser and the lease on a new paddock.

She contacted her bank, with which she has a mortgage and overdraft facility, but the bank refused to extend her additional funds.

“They weren't going to help me,” said Nicole. “They weren't even going to give me a temporary exit, nothing. They knew I’d sold the water for £52,000. It's like a carrot dangling in front of a horse, right? I said, ‘I've sold some water. Can you let me go over till me water money comes in?’ They wouldn't let me go over.”

This was despite her farm being valued at £2.6 million and her mortgage of only £470,000 with the bank.

That’s when she turned to Bizcap.

The Bizcap Difference

When assessing Nicole’s application, Bizcap identified that she had good running balances, solid repayment history to the bank, no adverse information on her credit file and that she had been trading for more than 2 years.

In a matter of days, Bizcap used a Fast Business Loan to lend her £17,000. Nicole repaid the loan reliably, never missing a direct debit, and once the water money came in she settled the loan early with a lump sum payment of £10,500. 

“We’re farmers. We’re honest people,” she said. “I told you I’d pay it off straight away. And I did.”

The Outcome

With the funds Bizcap lent her, Nicole planted the next year’s crop in time, which she subsequently sold for the full £200,000 that was expected from a luscious yield.

If Bizcap didn't lend me the money I wouldn’t have gotten a crop in this year, and the banks would have called me in. I would've lost everything.

“I only needed the money for a short time – until the money from the water sale came through. You guys were my last hope. If you guys didn’t lend me the money, the farm would’ve been up for sale.”

Instead, she had a good crop and made good money on it.

Would she come back to Bizcap if she ever needed another loan?

I would come back to Bizcap, 100 percent. I was really happy. I was grateful.