Business finance for kitchen & bathroom fitters

Why kitchen and bathroom jobs tie up cash

Kitchen and bathroom installation is project work with a big materials bill landing in the middle. A typical job runs design and quote, a customer deposit, then the order of units, worktops, appliances, sanitaryware, tiles and fittings, followed by a rip-out and a fit that can take one to three weeks across several trades. The expensive items — carcasses, doors, stone or laminate worktops, ovens, hobs, taps, showers and tiles — are usually ordered and paid for, or substantially deposited, before they're delivered to site and well before the job completes.

The cash sequence is the problem. The customer pays a deposit on order, perhaps a stage payment, and the balance on completion — but you've already funded the units and appliances, paid suppliers' deposits, and covered fitters and any tilers, electricians or plasterers along the way. Bespoke and made-to-order kitchens carry supplier lead-times of several weeks, so the money for materials goes out long before the final balance comes in. A job that's profitable on paper can still leave you funding its middle from your own cash.

Lead-times, deposits and running several jobs

The recurring pressures for fitters:

• Supplier deposits and lead-times. Bespoke units and worktops are ordered weeks ahead, often with a deposit or payment before delivery.
• Appliance and sanitaryware spend. Ovens, hobs, showers and stone worktops are high-value items bought before completion.
• The deposit-to-balance gap. The customer's deposit rarely covers the materials bill, so you fund the difference until the job finishes.
• Multiple jobs in flight. Run two or three installs at once and several materials orders are funded ahead of their balances at the same time.

As with other fit-out trades, a fuller order book increases the up-front cash you carry, because each job's materials are bought before its balance lands. Lead-times mean you can't simply order on the day you're paid — you commit early to hit the install date.

What kitchen and bathroom fitters use funding for

Working capital for fitters typically covers:

• Units and appliances up front — carcasses, worktops, ovens, hobs, sanitaryware and tiles bought against a deposit before completion.
• Supplier deposits and lead-times — funding bespoke kitchens and bathrooms into manufacture ahead of delivery.
• The deposit-to-balance gap — bridging between the customer's deposit and the larger materials and labour cost.
• Subcontracted trades — paying tilers, electricians and plasterers across the fit before the balance lands.
• Running several jobs at once — funding multiple installs whose materials are ordered ahead of their balances.
• Van stock and tooling — fixings, adhesives, sealants and the kit each install consumes.

For vehicles and powered tools you'll keep for years, asset finance usually spreads the cost more cheaply. Short-term working capital suits the units, the deposits and the wait to completion.

What to weigh up before you borrow

Tie the borrowing to confirmed jobs with deposits taken. Funding units and appliances against signed work with a clear completion date is sensible; treat the customer's deposit and any stage payment as money towards their job, not spare cash, and don't over-order beyond what your confirmed pipeline supports. Allow for supplier lead-times honestly — committing early is part of the trade, so confirm delivery dates so the facility's timing matches when you'll actually be paid.

Watch margin where prices have moved between quote and order on appliances or stone, and make sure it still covers the cost of finance. Look at the total repayable figure rather than a headline rate, and line repayments up against realistic completion dates, not optimistic ones. This is general information, not advice on your accounts — model it against your own job pattern and supplier terms.

How no-personal-guarantee company finance fits

Credicorp lends to the limited company, not to the director — so there is no personal guarantee and your personal assets are not pledged against a business facility. As an exempt business lender we provide short-term working capital to UK limited companies, structured around how an installation business actually orders, fits and gets paid on completion.

For kitchen and bathroom fitters that means money that lands when units and appliances are ordered and clears when the customer's balance is paid. A business loan suits a single defined push — the materials and labour on one large installation. A revolving line such as Credicorp Flex fits the steady flow of installs, letting you draw to fund units and deposits and repay as each balance lands, then draw again for the next job. You can apply online. If you also fit windows and doors, our window & door installers page covers very similar ground.