Blog/News

Express Provides a $3.5M E-Commerce Facility to a well established Manufacturer.

Express Trade Capital (“ETC”) is thrilled to announce the addition of a $3.5MM B2C – Ecommerce financing facility to a well-established and fast-growing cashmere apparel manufacturer.

The client produces sustainable cashmere apparel sourced from ethically farmed and well pampered Mongolian goats.  Not content to be just another sheep in the herd, the client signed with Express over 6 years ago and obtained a multi-tier facility that included factoring, PO financing and both documentary and standby letters of credit.  Equipped with the proper facilities, the client wisely spent their time and capital, growing over 10x since starting with ETC.

In addition to producing high end, sustainable and affordable cashmere products, the client also employed savvy marketing skills to create quirky comedic content which garnered millions of views and helped rocket their online sales to over $25MM in annual revenue.

As their B2C ecommerce business took off and exceeded their wholesale revenue, the client needed additional assistance to keep up with heavy, growing demand.  They needed more capital but didn’t want to get fleeced by promises of quick cash at exorbitant rates. Naturally, they approached ETC based on the trust earned from shepherding their current facilities.  Upon discussion, it became clear these cashmere merchants needed more than mere cash – they needed a program that could scale along with their sales. 

Given the client’s solid longstanding history with the client and ETC’s deep knowledge of the client’s products and operations, ETC was able to quickly structure an e-commerce financing program to help them shear their sheep of expanding revenue. 

This facility allows the client to meet and exceed their internal projections and includes an accordion feature to expand the facility further based upon reaching certain credit milestones.  

This is just another example of how ETC can quickly deploy a vast suite of services to help clients grow and prosper.  Is ETC the GOAT of finance? Maybe. Maybe not.  But in this case, they certainly stepped up and led their flock to the promised land of greener pastures and great growth, ensuring their client’s capital needs shall not want.

Since 1993, ETC has been advising its clients on the following:

  • How to structure transactions for maximum profitability.
  • How to most efficiently move your goods from pickup to delivery to your customer.
  • How to manage cash flow and mitigate risk throughout the various stages of production and delivery.
  • How to eliminate bad debts.

To schedule a discovery call and see how ETC can help your business, contact us here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e84Ti6hg

Express Trade Capital’s feature in California Apparel News, February 2023 edition.

Express Trade Capital’s feature in California Apparel News, February 2023 edition. Mark Bienstock weights in on 2023 climate for manufacturers, retailers and consumers.

”As a result of a difficult 2022 holiday-sales environment, apparel importers and manufacturers are facing dual issues going into 2023. First is bringing their inventory back to a more manageable level. Many companies were dealing with a logistical logjam of too many containers arriving at the same time as well as missing the current season. This forced the retail community to postpone or cancel many orders. The importing and manufacturing trades are still carrying elevated inventory, causing added margin compression to their bottom lines.
Second, the rising interest-rate policy of the Federal Reserve to tame inflation is causing many in the apparel community to resize their respective entity structures as we are potentially heading into a recession. Cost containment throughout the entire manufacturing and selling ecosystem will be paramount to come out stronger once economic recovery is underway.”

At Express Trade Capital, we provide financing along with logistics solutions, and serve as your consultant – providing advice including:

– How to structure transactions for maximum profitability.
– How to most efficiently move your goods from pickup to delivery to your customer.
– How to manage cash flow and mitigate risk throughout the various stages of production and delivery.

This advisory capacity truly sets us apart from other financiers. It’s in our best interests to give you the best advice because our own profitability is determined by your success.

To read this top story on California Apparel News, click here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/gjxxDD84

To schedule a discovery call and see how ETC can help your business, contact us here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e84Ti6hg

ETC COOKS UP A DEAL-IGHTFUL FACTORING FACILITY FOR A WHOLESALER OF FROZEN VEGAN MEALS.

VP Ashley Orlando discovered the client through her extensive network and contacts in the plant-based food and beverage industry. Two years ago, the client created a Vegan frozen lasagna that quickly gained popularity and flew off the shelves. Like an Italian grandma serving a guest in love with her food, the client is back in the kitchen and using ETC’s patented financial sauce to cook up more Italian staples like vegan ravioli, mozzarella sticks, meatballs, and arancini. 
 
After rolling out to a good start in 2022, the client forecasts robust sales growth for 2023 as they continue to open more doors and gain precious shelf space. But they needed the working capital to get there. Through a referral, the client approached Ashley and ETC with the perennial problem of cash flow crunches caused by a disparity in payment terms between customers and suppliers. 
 
Since the client’s retail customers were paying on net 30-day terms, the client consistently ran into cash crunches with their copacker who provided only net 10-day payment terms. Although the client had several promising talks to open more doors with larger accounts, the logistics proved difficult as each new account required an industry standard of net 30-day terms or greater which only increased the client’s financial burden with each additional order. 
 
Looking to thaw the client’s frozen growth, ETC opened a factoring facility to accelerate the payment of advance receivables. With a bit of good history, the client has the option to add a PO funding facility, allowing them further flexibility to juggle the working capital required to scale rapidly. ETC is thrilled to welcome this new client into our expanding food and beverage portfolio and proud to help entrepreneurs creating sustainable, earth and health friendly products. No animals were harmed in the making of this facility.

Don’t hesitate to contact us here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e84Ti6hg for questions about how Express Trade Capital can help your business. 

Express Completes $7MM Factoring and $3MM PO Funding Deal for Hong Kong-based Denim Wholesaler.

In September 2022, Express Trade Capital Inc. secured a deal for a Hong Kong-based denim manufacturer who will work directly with top U.S. retailers who previously bought their denim goods through indirect wholesale channels.
 
The prospect reached out to Express to expand their U.S. wholesale presence which would allow them to take advantage of growing interest from top U.S. retailers. Led by AVP Dina Davletshina and VP Drew Cohen, ETC’s team worked directly with the client to develop a uniquely tailored program for their U.S. entity. 
 
To support an expected annual sales revenue of $15MM, ETC created a $7MM factoring facility and a $3MM purchase order funding line. Prior to signing with ETC, the team assisted the client with setting up their U.S. entity and bank account. ETC will also handle the client’s shipping and logistic needs, ensuring goods arrive promptly and POs are fulfilled timely. According to Dina Davletshina, who shepherded the deal to smooth completion: “our team worked hard to overcome several challenges inherent in funding a company that was technically new on paper but had many years of good history overseas. Although this was a non-traditional prospect, their customer base, product line and management team all fit well into our family of clients, so we rolled up our jeans and got creative. Overall, we were able to get the comfort and security we needed to get this deal done right.”
 
ETC specializes in financing companies through factoring, purchase order funding, letters of credit and inventory-based lines of credit. In addition, ETC offers back-end support from logistics to warehousing to credit protection. Since 1993, ETC has helped companies grow, fulfill purchase orders, mitigate risk, and navigate supply chain issues, all while maintaining and enhancing their equity. Our consultative approach leverages our combined 100+ years of experience to ensure clients get maximum support to handle any obstacle.
 
Don’t hesitate to contact us HERE for questions about how Express Trade Capital can help your business. 


Short-Term Future for Retail: Not Looking Great

By: Carli Valinoti – Express Trade Capital, Inc.

It’s not uncommon in today’s retail market that large companies who have been around for years are forced to file for bankruptcy. With growing competition from online retailers, including Amazon, stores have continued to see a decrease in foot traffic and overall sales. Retail stores have accrued debt from overstocking and increasing rent prices. If large, well known retailers such as Forever 21, Barneys New York, and Payless can’t beat the online retail presence, what does the future hold for smaller retailers?

Even with the upcoming holiday season, retail sales are projected to decline. According to the US Commerce Department, retail sales fell in September by 0.3%, the first time since February. Concerns that manufacturing-led weakness and trade tariff challenges are hitting the broader market could potentially have a negative affect on consumers spending habits. If consumers decide to keep their spending to a minimum, retailers should prepare for the potential continuation of declining sales.

expresstradecapital.com
212 997 0155

Section 301 Tariffs Increase to 30 Percent on Chinese Goods Suspended

After meeting with Vice Premier Liu He of the People’s Republic of China, President Trump announced in a news release on October 11, 2019 that the duty increase from 25% to 30% on List 1, 2, and 3 products would be suspended. A final decision will be made later regarding the additional duties scheduled to go into effect December 15, 2019 for List 4B commodities.

Information regarding the phase one deal can be found in the White House news release here.

IF YOU IMPORT FROM THE E.U.

Following a World Trade Organization decision paving the way, the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) has published a list of products form E.U. origin which will be subject to additional duty rates of 10% or 25% ad valorem, effective October 18, 2019.

We expect that a FEDERAL REGISTER notice will be published with the details including confirming the definition of the October 18 effective date; effective dates are commonly based on the date of entry. 

A link to the list of products, countries and additional tariff rates may be accessed at:  https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/enforcement/301Investigations/EU_Large_Civil_Aircraft_Final_Product_List.pdf

As with other tariffs, close coordination with your carrier and EXPRESS representative is needed to avoid duties assessed to shipments arriving before the effective date.  EXPRESS Trade Capital, Inc. is available to answer your questions, help assess impact to your business and discuss mitigation strategies. Reach out to us at logistics@expresstradecapital.com

Recycled Retail

By; Carli Valinoti, Express Trade Capital

One of the newest sustainability trends is making old garments new again. Evrnu, a Seattle-based textile-technology startup, is making old clothes and fabrics into new fibers that can be used for recyclable fashion.

Although their products are still being tested, Evrnu has just launched a limited run of recyclable unisex sweatshirts for Adidas by Stella McCartney, calling them “EVER-new.” The hoodies will not be available for the public until 2020 but will be given to athletes to promote the new sustainable line. “Right now, in the U.S., consumers dispose of about 80% of their textiles directly into their garbage can. That’s the behavior we’re really trying to tackle,” said Stacy Flynn, chief executive and co-founder of Evrnu. Recycled textiles can be made into premium fibers which can be dyed and woven into new fabrics made for all different types and styles of clothing. In 2016, Evrnu teamed up with Levi’s Jeans and launched a prototype of jeans made only from repurposed cotton T-shirts.

Consumers are becoming more aware of certain industries’ toll on the environment, including the fashion industry. Although creating new fibers still has some detrimental impact, the process uses a fraction of the amount of energy and chemicals used to make polyester clothing. These recycled garments may end up having a higher price-point, but as more people become aware of how sustainability can help the environment, people may be willing to pay more.

ETC takes great pride in working with sustainable and eco-friendly companies. Contact us for all your factoring needs!

If you Import from China

By; Carli Valinoti, Express Trade Capital 

After meeting with President Xi over the weekend, President Trump announced decisions regarding the bilateral trade dispute. The President announced that while current tariffs will remain in place, he will not move forward with additional tariffs as negotiations continue. Therefore, there are no immediate plans to implement Tranche or List 4 trade-remedy tariffs.

The United States Trade Representative recently concluded seven days of hearings on the proposed List 4. The testimony and comments solicited from the public as part of the List 4 review may influence the products to be included and tariff rate if and when any additional trade-remedy actions are taken. But for now, any action on List 4 is on hold.

If you import from China, Express Trade Capital is here to assist with trade strategies to minimize the impact, apply for exemptions, and process refund claims where exemptions have been granted. Click here to contact Express Trade Capital for expertise and support. We are here to help.

IF YOU IMPORT FROM MEXICO

By; Carli Valinoti, Express Trade Capital 

Late Friday night the President announced successful negotiations with Mexico.  With a signed agreement addressing illegal immigration, the President has suspended indefinitely the planned tariffs against Mexico. 

The 5% tariff on goods from Mexico will not go into effect on June 10, 2019.