NEWS
Leading footwear specialist secures £6 million from HSBC UK amid pandemic
Gardiners Group CEO, James Gardiner, at the Gloucester headquarters with new COVID-19 safety measures A Gloucester footwear specialist has secured a £6 million finance facility from HSBC UK to
support the business throughout the coronavirus crisis. Gardiners, which is the UK’s leading distributor of global footwear and workwear brands to the
retail trade, has used the funding to retain its entire workforce on full pay during the pandemic, with only limited use of the furlough scheme to support those who were required to shield. The funding has also enabled Gardiners to recruit new staff during lockdown to support its growing digital presence in response to changes in the marketplace brought about by Covid-19.
The business currently supplies to a host of well-known retailers across the UK and EU, such as
Next, Littlewoods and Very and the HSBC UK funding has ensured Gardiners can retain this customer base, as well as enter agreements with new brands to continue its ambitious growth strategy.
Five million pounds of the loan was secured from the government-backed Coronavirus Large
Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) and £1 million was an increase to its existing Trade Finance facility.
James Gardiner, Group CEO of Gardiners, said: “Gardiners was established in 1860, meaning
we have more than 140 years’ experience in providing the best possible service for the different market sectors we operate in. We have worked with HSBC UK for the last 10 of those years and the team has always taken the time to understand the business and identify ways to help us grow. This latest round of funding is no exception; it has enabled us to offer security to those who are at the core of our business and ensure we have a successful future ahead. Our Relationship Director, Mike Bobroff, has been incredibly supportive throughout this funding process, helping us to challenge our thinking and perform better, despite the challenges presented by Covid.”
Worldwide footwear production increased by 21.2% over the last decade
Worldwide footwear production has increased by 21.2% since 2010 at an average yearly growth rate of 2.2%. In 2019 the industry slowed down, growing by only 0.6%. However, this was enough to establish a new production record of 24.3 billion pairs, a record which might hold for a few years yet, given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The footwear industry continues to be strongly concentrated in Asia where almost 9 out of every 10 pairs of shoes are manufactured. Over the last decade, Asia has slightly strengthened its dominance in the international scene, increasing its share of world production by some 2 percentage points.
Textile footwear represents one third of all traded footwear
The steep increase in the importance of textile footwear has been the most remarkable feature of the evolution of international footwear trade over the last decade. Textile footwear now represents roughly one third of all footwear trade, up from 14.6% in
2010 (value). Both rubber & plastic and leather footwear lost share to textile. Nonetheless, rubber & plastic footwear still represents almost half (47.5%) of the volume of all footwear exported worldwide and leather footwear represents 38.8% of its value.
Source: APICCAPS 4 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • SEPTEMBER 2020
www.footweartoday.co.uk
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