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Invoice Finance Case Studies

Invoice Finance: A Growth Tool for Business

While many businesses explore insolvency options like CVAs and liquidation due to financial distress, it’s important to distinguish between companies in trouble and those that are simply cash-constrained while growing. For the latter, invoice finance — whether invoice discounting or invoice factoring — can be a highly effective way to manage working capital.

If you offer credit terms to your customers, you’ll often face a mismatch between when you spend money (on materials, labour, delivery) and when you receive money. For many industries, the need to spend upfront to earn later is built into the business model. Specialist lenders understand this dynamic and offer funding that scales with your invoicing — helping you unlock growth, not just survive.

Jump to Sector:

Building & Construction

If you’re purchasing materials and paying staff weekly, but offering clients 30- or 60-day credit terms, cashflow problems are inevitable. This is especially true for subcontractors working under main contractors on long payment cycles.

Example:
A construction firm sees a sudden surge in accepted quotes. While this is good news, it leaves them without enough liquidity to fund labour and materials across multiple sites. Factoring gives them immediate access to the majority of the invoice value — enabling them to deliver the work and unlock profit without delay.

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.

Manufacturing

Manufacturers deal with an inherent delay between receiving an order and getting paid. Materials, labour, and overheads are all paid in advance — and invoicing only happens when goods are delivered.

Typical use cases:

  • A sudden influx of orders that exceed your cash reserves
  • A seasonal ramp-up in production
  • One-off large orders that disrupt normal cashflow

For growing manufacturers, invoice finance is the bridge that turns backlog into revenue — without delaying production or turning down work.

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.

Importers

Importers often face long cashflow cycles: you pay for goods up front, wait weeks for delivery, and only then sell to customers — usually on credit terms.

How invoice finance helps:

  • Use trade finance to fund the supplier upfront
  • Layer on invoice finance once goods are sold to UK buyers
  • Smooths cashflow over long lead times

This combination lets you scale without depleting reserves or relying on high-cost debt.

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.

Wholesalers

Wholesalers often carry stock to meet future demand — but even with supplier credit, there can be significant time lags between purchase and payment collection.

Why invoice finance works:

  • Frees up cash locked in invoices
  • Helps fund reorders quickly
  • Supports rapid-response stock purchasing

Factoring vs Discounting:
If you deal with many small accounts, factoring may help with outsourced collections. If your buyers are large, creditworthy chains, discounting could be more discreet and cost-effective.

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.

Recruitment Agencies

Recruiters face a fundamental timing mismatch: you pay temp staff weekly, but get paid monthly by clients. During growth, this becomes even more critical.

Invoice finance enables you to:

  • Cover payroll without delay
  • Take on more contracts without straining cash reserves
  • Focus on winning business, not chasing invoices

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.

Project-Based Service Businesses

This group includes agencies, consultants, production companies, training firms and more — all with a gap between delivery and payment.

Shared challenges:

  • Milestone-based or post-delivery invoicing
  • Costs incurred upfront: freelancers, venues, software
  • Misaligned payment cycles with suppliers

Use case:
An agency wins a major new project and needs to scale up resourcing — invoice finance allows them to pay contractors without waiting for the client’s milestone payment.

Need help finding a lender who understands your sector?
Fill out our contact form or call 0800 058 8196 for immediate attention.