To be a successful importer you need three things – good suppliers, solid customers and the right financing. As a matter of fact, having the right financing can make or break your company.

Importers always play a delicate balance with their financing. The idea is to have as much financing as possible that is active (in use), backing up active purchase orders from clients. However, this delicate balance of living on the edge with financing has its drawbacks. What happens when you get an order that exceeds or exhausts your bank financing? Unless you have a great track record, it is unlikely that the bank will extend you further financing.

Your best option is to use purchase order financing.

Purchase order financing can cover up to 100% of the necessary financing to deliver on a purchase order from a large client. The financing company handles the process of getting a letter of credit (or similar method of payment) and paying your supplier. This enables your supplier to deliver the product and allows you to book the sale.

Purchase order financing also allows you to increase your purchasing capabilities dramatically, enabling you to book orders that in the past may have been too big for your company. With it, you can take your company to the next level.

As a financing tool, purchase order funding is easy to use. The process of establishing an initial account with a financing company can take a week or two. All qualified orders after the account is established can be financed in days. And, qualifying for purchase order financing is much easier than qualifying for a bank loan or line of credit. The main requirement is a purchase order from a solid commercial customer.

Purchase order financing is commonly used in conjunction with factoring (invoice factoring). Generally speaking, factoring is cheaper that purchase order financing. So, by combining both financing tools, you can lower the total cost of financing.

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Account receivable factoring is one form of commercial finance. This consists of selling open invoices for cash that can be used right away in the business. There are many benefits to this financing option including not giving up equity, being able to take advantage of early payment and volume discounts from your suppliers, you can actually purchase in greater volume from suppliers, and you also accrue no additional debt in your business.

Another popular commercial finance option is purchase order financing because it offers quick cash flow reserves. When any business is growing or expanding their business the cash flow simply isn’t there because of the money it takes to market and produce products. Suppliers also want to be paid with C.O.D. and your customers are on Net-30 terms; so you run into a cash flow problem. Purchase order financing solves this issue by paying for the costs of your goods directly to the supplier, thus giving you more cash to use on more critical business expenditures. To begin with purchase order financing simply obtain a purchase order from your customer, find an approved supplier, place the order through that supplier.

Asset based loans, an additional commercial finance option, provide a short term approach to maximizing cash flow within a business. This form of financing is used as test for a business to show how they would perform with a long term loan. The business who is receiving the asset based loan has a short window to prove that with the proper financing their business model is effective, and that a long term loan would ensure business growth over a long period of time. This form of financing is perfect for the business that can’t afford to wait to establish their business credit. The assets that are accepted as collateral for this type of loan include real property, accounts receivables, and completed inventory.

Other forms of commercial finance include bankruptcy reorganization, expansion financing, import and export financing, inventory loans, secured lines of credit, and merchant account advances. Financing a business is a difficult process, but if you utilize the financing resources available, your business have a much greater chance of success.

It is also good to work on establishing your business credit, ensuring that you separate your personal credit from your business credit. With good business credit scores obtaining large loans and other forms of capital is very simple, and you won’t be one of the 97 percent that actually have a loan application denied. One other strategy that is easy to do and beneficial on your quest for business capital is to use a free business capital search engine.

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One method used is to offer small business financing that involves credit cards and limits. The lender offers your small business a credit card with a specific credit limit that can be used to make purchases. This option is not ideal for a few reasons. First of all credit card interest s generally much higher than a line of credit or loan, so your business can end up paying huge interest charges. Credit cards can not meet many of your small business needs, because salaries for workers, more space or a new building, and even equipment and supplies may not be purchased with these credit cards. This financing method benefits the credit card lender, because they receive high interest for the financing, and the small business is stuck paying exorbitant interest rates for credit that can only be used for certain things, many of which do not include helping the business grow and expand.

Another common small business financing options is to use a program that offers vendor credit. This is another common program available, and it is usually not that helpful for most small business owners. Vendor credit is great if the small business needs something from a specific vendor, but this credit is not versatile and can not help potential growth or expansion needs. This financing option can not help the business meet expenses, or make purchases anywhere but through the vendor offering credit. This financing option has a very limited scope, and is usually not very beneficial to a small business in these tough financial times.

The third financing option that many small business owners use, which may have not be very helpful, is to use financing programs that offer a low cash line of credit. These programs do offer cash financing options, but in very low amounts. For a small business, this may be as effective as not getting financing, because the amount may not be enough to keep the business going.

Instead of using traditional financing programs, there is a unique new small business financing programming option available. This program requires minimal documentation, offers cash financing anywhere from one hundred thousand dollars to one million dollars for small businesses, and requires no credit check, financial business documents, or tax returns. This financing program can help your business stay open without all the hassles and documentation that other financing options require, and you get the financing your small business needs in cash, which is how it can do the most good. This option is far better than the other choices, and can help you keep your small business profitable and growing instead of becoming stagnant and closing.

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Starting or running an import business has never been more profitable because of computers, the internet, and the availability of low cost imports from countries such as China and Mexico. These imports may be resold for up to ten times their cost depending on the competition in your field of operations.

It is essential that you have good, honest suppliers plus creditworthy customers with purchase orders for your imports. If you have the right financing, your business can grow exponentially. But how do you finance growth if your own resources or bank lines of credit are not sufficient to take advantage of big opportunities? A combination of purchase order financing, accounts receivable financing with inventory financing may be the solution.

Definitions:

Purchase Order Financing

Purchase Order financing is the assignment of purchase orders to a third party, a commercial finance company, who then assumes the obligation of billing and collecting. Purchase order financing can be used to finance all current and subsequent orders to improve your company’s cash flow. The process works as follows: 1) Your company obtains a purchase order for products to be sold another company; 2) A letter of credit may be issued, based on a finance companies’ credit, to guarantee payment to suppliers or factories producing the goods; 3) The order is shipped, delivered and accepted by your customer; 4) The customer receives an invoice for the goods; 5) The Purchase Order Company pays the supplier/factory; 6) a commercial finance company or Accounts Receivable Finance Company pays the Purchase Order Financing Company after the products are delivered to your customer; 7) The customer pays the commercial finance company for goods received; The accounts are settled and the profit is paid to you.

Accounts Receivable Financing

Accounts Receivable Financing is the selling or pledging of your company’s account receivable, at a discount, to a Factor, a Commercial Finance Company or to an Accounts Receivable Financing Company who may assume a risk of loss. You receive a portion, usually 80% to 90% of the face value of your receivables in advance of payment from your customers in return for a fee, or interest, to be paid to the commercial finance company. When the commercial finance company is paid by the customer, the appropriate fees are deducted and the remainder is rebated to you. “Accounts receivable financing” is also called accounts receivable factoring, factoring financial services, invoice factoring and cash flow factoring. The terms are used to convey the same meaning.

Inventory Financing

Inventory financing is a loan secured by the inventory of your business. Inventory finance enables import companies to hold more stock without cash flow strain and to generate more sales. Inventory finance is often part of a Purchase Order and Accounts Receivable Financing commercial finance package.

These three types of financing can enable an import business to increase purchasing capabilities dramatically; you can accept larger orders and grow your business exponentially. You can use your inventory to leverage your purchasing power. You can use your customer’s credit to obtain these three types of financing; and you can use the commercial finance company’s credit to obtain a letter of credit.

The concept of financing your import company with “other people’s money” is part of a safe and sound business plan. Add strong product quality controls, inventory controls, and good accounting to maximize the success of your import company.

Copyright © 2007 Gregg Financial Services

www.greggfinancialservices.com

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Vehicle financing

If you’re looking for a bad credit finance for a new or used vehicle, your best option is most likely going to be to visit a finance company as opposed to a traditional bank.

Some finance companies are more likely to offer bad credit finance options for vehicles than others, and the financing will usually depend upon the type of vehicle being financed, where the vehicle is being purchased from, and what sort of insurance and driving record you have.

Other factors that will be taken into consideration include your annual and monthly income, any cosigners that you might have for the loan, and any recommendations or referrals that you might have.

Home financing

Finding someone to offer you a bad credit finance for a house or other real estate can sometimes be tricky, but generally real estate shouldn’t be too difficult to finance.

Major factors in getting a mortgage lender to approve you for bad credit finance options include your income, any insurance that you will purchase for the house or real estate, the amount of a down payment that you’re willing to offer, and any references of former landlords that you can offer.

Mortgage lenders for bad credit finance loans can be found online, at finance companies, and at some real estate and property management services.

Other financing

Should you be seeking bad credit finance options for other items (such as collectibles or electronics), you might find your search to be a little more difficult.

Read more on

http://myfreeinfo4u.com/finance/a_guide_to_bad_credit_finance_options.html

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