Cash injection for upholstery giant as Ultra secures Natwest deal

17th September 2009 | upholstery | West Midlands sofa supplier Ultra Furniture has agreed a funding package with Natwest Bank that will see cash pumped into the business via the Government's Enterprise Finance Guarantee initiative.

The Kingswinford upholstery firm will also benefit from a working capital facility from Natwest's factoring department. Ultra is 100% owned by Raven Holdings, a company sharing the same four directors.

The group is yet to file accounts for 2008, but 2007 turnover came in at almost £17m. In 2007, Ultra made its lowest level of pre-tax profit in at least five years - £41,339. Its best return was in 2004 when it made a pre-tax profit of £565,328.

The Enterprise Finance Guarantee is a £1.3bn scheme that supports bank lending ranging between three months and 10 years. It was introduced as part of a raft of measures acknowledging the difficulty facing UK firms at present. It enables firms to access loans of up to £1m or refinance existing lending, and is available until 31st March 2010.