News

29th May 2019

£55k loan helps Spotless Cleaning grow

A rapidly growing Truro cleaning business is the latest company to receive funding from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF).

Spotless Cleaning Cornwall will receive a £55,000 loan made up of £48,125 from CIOSIF and £6,875 from SWIG Finance, who work with The FSE Group, the appointed CIOSIF Fund Manager, on delivering smaller business loans. The investment will help owner, Ilona Ziarko, take on new staff and expand her services to other holiday lets businesses across the area.

Spotless Cleaning Cornwall operates mostly in the holiday let sector and has grown significantly since being established a little over three years ago, with turnover increasing from around £50,000 in 2017 to an expected £100,000+ this year. By offering B2B customers high-end housekeeping with added-value services, Ilona has grown the business to full capacity and is now taking steps to ensure future demand can be met.

She said: “We reached the point where we could not take on any more business so the decision was made to find a way to grow the company rather than keep turning away work. The CIOSIF loan means we can move to new premises and purchase the necessary commercial equipment to do our laundry in-house, which will allow us to take on more staff and manage more cleaning contracts. We are really excited about the opportunities that lay ahead and look forward to expanding our offering to new and existing customers.”

The Spotless deal was handled on behalf of The FSE Group by SWIG Finance Business Manager, Aaron Hamshire, who said: “Ilona has carved a niche for Spotless with her determination to provide a service that exceeds the expectations of her clients. With the holiday let sector continuing to expand, the company has a growing pipeline of potential custom that we are delighted to help develop.”

John Acornley, a non-executive director of the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) who chairs the CIOSIF Advisory Board, added: “I’m delighted to see the investment fund unlock the growth potential of another Cornish business. Without this loan Spotless was being held back – now they have the support to grow with confidence.”

The £40m Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund provides debt and equity finance from £25,000 to £2 million to help growing small businesses across the region. It aims to make a further 195 investments over the next five years. The fund has been established by the British Business Bank in partnership with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP, and is operated by appointed fund manager, The FSE Group.

CIOSIF is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. Further investment has come from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP and HM Government.