A shop fit-out turns an empty unit into a business, and almost none of it can ever be taken back out again.
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Sometimes, and it depends far more on your trading record than on the shop. A retail fit-out — shopfront, counters, joinery, lighting track, flooring and signage — becomes part of a leased unit as soon as it is installed, so there is nothing for a funder to recover. That makes it a covenant decision backed by a personal guarantee. New retail businesses are genuinely difficult to place for this reason. Loose fixtures and equipment within the project are the only recoverable elements, and pairing them with the works improves how the package reads.
Used kit: No — fit-out works cannot be resold or recovered, so there is no second-hand fit-out market for funders to lend against.
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Business asset finance is quoted on a flat rate, so that is what this shows — with the equivalent APR underneath, because the two are not the same number. A quick guide only; your actual rate depends on the asset, term, deposit and lender.
Representative example: on Hire Purchase, borrowing £25,000 over 48 months at a 6.0% flat rate (equivalent to 11.5% APR representative), you would repay around £646 a month; total amount repayable approximately £31,000, of which £6,000 is the cost of finance. This calculator is for illustration only — it is not a quote or an offer of finance, and the rate and repayments you are offered will depend on the asset, term, deposit and your circumstances. CW Asset Finance is a credit broker, not a lender, and may receive a commission from the lender that funds your agreement. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval. CW Asset Finance is an Appointed Representative of Rural Finance Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 630701).
Retail fit-out is unrecoverable spend in a leased building, and a broker who pretends otherwise is not helping. Shopfronts, bonded flooring, fitted counters and lighting track have no resale value and legally attach to the premises, so funders assess the covenant: accounts, banking, sector, time trading and the director’s credit position, almost always with a personal guarantee. New-start retail is one of the hardest asks in the whole market, and the failure rate on the high street is the reason. Franchise fit-outs sit slightly better where the franchisor is established, because funders can see a proven model and sometimes a resale route for the site itself. Where a package includes refrigeration, tills or other recoverable equipment, separating those on the quotation gives the funder something tangible to point at.
Examples of the machines we are asked to fund. This is not an exhaustive list — if what you are buying is not here, it does not mean we cannot fund it. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.
| Machine | What it is |
|---|---|
| Comar 9P.i shopfront system | Aluminium shopfront and entrance |
| Reynaers CS 77 glazed shopfront | Thermally broken shopfront glazing |
| Applelec LED light panel signage | Illuminated shopfront signage |
| Corian solid surface counters | Counter joinery and serving tops |
| Erco track spotlights | Retail display track lighting |
| Zumtobel Tecton lighting track | Continuous retail lighting track |
| Amtico Signature retail flooring | Luxury vinyl retail flooring |
| Karndean Opus flooring | Commercial vinyl plank flooring |
| Bushboard changing room cubicles | Fitting rooms and cubicle systems |
| Daikin Sky Air shop air conditioning | Retail heating and cooling install |
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Typically an independent retailer taking a unit and needing the shop built before opening, or an established shop rebranding after years of trading. Franchisees fitting to a brand specification are a large group, since the franchisor sets the standard and the cost. The trigger is nearly always a signed lease with a rent-free period counting down. Existing retailers taking a second unit in a nearby town are a steady part of the pipeline.
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Bought on hire purchase, business plant and machinery normally qualifies for capital allowances on the full cost even though you pay for it monthly, which is a large part of why hire purchase is the common structure. On a finance lease you generally set the rentals against profit instead. The rules change between budgets and your position depends on how you trade, so treat this as the direction of travel and get your accountant to confirm the detail before you commit.
It is one of the hardest requests in this sector, and you should know that before spending time on applications. With no trading record and nothing recoverable, funders are relying entirely on the director. Strong personal credit, retail experience, a signed lease and a meaningful contribution from your own funds are what make it possible.
Often, yes. An established franchisor gives a funder a proven model, documented performance across other sites and sometimes support if a franchisee fails. Some funders have dedicated appetite for particular franchise brands. It does not remove the need for a guarantee, but it can change a no into a maybe.
Yes, and you should. Refrigeration units, merchandisers and till systems are the only parts of a typical shop fit that have any recovery value, so a mixed package reads better than pure works. Ask the fit-out contractor to itemise equipment separately from construction on the quotation.
It usually stays, and your lease may even require you to strip it out and reinstate the shell at your own cost. Either way you do not take the value with you. That asymmetry is exactly why funders treat fit-out as unsecured and why lease length matters to them.
Harder, because there are no premises and often no filed accounts. Some physical assets — a trailer, a unit, refrigeration — might be fundable in their own right if they carry value. A temporary pop-up fit-out, by contrast, has even less substance than a permanent one.
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Not an offer of finance. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval.
Tell us what you’re looking to fund and Conor will come back to you personally — usually the same day.
Prefer to talk? Call 07581 364281 · serving Leeds, York, Harrogate, Wakefield, Selby, Tadcaster & across North & West Yorkshire.
A decline from one lender reflects that lender’s appetite, not the whole market’s.