Deck oven finance
Deck ovens are the heart of a craft bakery and the single biggest line on the fit-out, which is exactly why paying for one outright hurts so much.
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Yes. Bakery deck ovens are funded as hard assets on hire purchase or on a lease, and the brands that dominate UK bakeries, Tom Chandley, Mono, Sveba Dahlen, are well known to underwriters. Used ovens are fundable through specialist bakery dealers. The catch is physical rather than financial: these ovens are heavy, often craned in, need three-phase power and sometimes a reinforced floor, and the cost of getting one back out again is high enough that funders discount the recovery value. Keep the rigging and electrical work on a separate quote.
Who finances this
Craft bakeries and bakery cafes stepping up from a rack oven, wholesale bakers adding capacity because a supermarket or cafe contract has landed, and multi-site bakery groups fitting out a production unit. The purchase is almost always driven by a contract win or a lease on a new production space, not by breakdown, because deck ovens outlive most of the people who buy them. Pizza restaurants running high volume buy the same ovens for the same reason.
How lenders see it
Deck ovens are genuinely durable and hold value well in the trade, which is the good news. The bad news is that recovery is expensive: craning, rigging, disconnection and transport eat much of what the oven would fetch, so funders apply a heavier haircut than the resale figures alone would suggest. That pushes the decision back onto the covenant, how long you have traded, your margins, whether you have wholesale contracts or rely on footfall. Bakery is viewed more kindly than restaurants because the revenue is steadier, but new-start bakeries still struggle without security or a guarantee. Floor strengthening, three-phase supply upgrades and steam plumbing are building costs and almost never sit on the equipment agreement.
Buying used
Yes, and a reconditioned Tom Chandley or Sveba Dahlen from a bakery equipment specialist is a normal deal, though funders want it professionally refurbished and warranted rather than lifted straight from a closed shop.
Also in catering and hospitality finance
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Funding a seasonal trade
Flowzo funds restaurants, pubs and cafes against card takings rather than filed accounts, useful when the kit is bought and the quiet months still have to be covered.
Machines we have funded
| Tom Chandley Pico | Compact bakery deck oven |
|---|---|
| Tom Chandley Compacta | Modular bakery deck oven |
| Mono Harmony deck oven | Stone-based bakery deck oven |
| Sveba Dahlen D-Series | Modular bakery deck ovens |
| Zanolli Teorema Polis | Modular electric deck oven |
| Wachtel Piccolo | Compact modular deck oven |
| Miwe Condo | Modular electric deck oven |
| Salva Modular deck ovens | Stackable deck ovens for craft bakeries |
| Polin deck ovens | Italian-built deck ovens for bakeries |
Does deck oven finance cover the crane hire and installation?
Rarely in full. Rigging, craning and making good are services, and the funder cannot recover them if things go wrong, so they usually stay off the agreement. A few funders will allow a modest proportion of soft costs where the oven itself is strong and the business is well established. Budget the installation as cash and fund the oven.
Can I finance a deck oven for a unit I have not signed the lease on yet?
You can apply, but nothing will pay out until the site is yours. Funders release money to the supplier on delivery and acceptance, and an oven cannot be delivered to a unit you do not hold. Get the application approved in principle, sign the lease, then release the order so the two line up.
Is a rack oven funded the same way as a deck oven?
Broadly yes, and rack ovens are sometimes easier because they are wheeled, self-contained and simpler to move. Both are treated as hard bakery assets. Where they differ is installation: rack ovens usually need less structural work, so more of the total invoice qualifies as fundable equipment rather than building cost.
I bake from a leased industrial unit. Does that affect the decision?
It is entirely normal and does not count against you, but the remaining lease term matters. A funder will notice if the agreement runs past the date you have to hand the unit back, since the oven may have to be removed at your cost. A break clause or a renewal option in your favour reassures them.
Can I fund the mixer and provers alongside the oven?
Yes, and you should. Spiral mixers, retarder provers and racks put on the same schedule give the funder a broader asset base and give you one payment covering the whole production line. It is also cleaner administratively than four agreements with four different start dates and four sets of documentation.
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Prime is established and profitable with clean credit. Specialist covers newer businesses and credit that needs explaining, the asset carries part of the risk, so finance is often available where an unsecured loan is not.
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