Agribur, a citrus exporter based in Castellón, has an ambitious growth plan. Its CFO, Juan Gaspar García, explains in this interview that the traditional banking pool no longer met their financial needs. With the help of Kaizen Consulting, they have accessed new financing options and secured the liquidity required to continue expanding their revenue.
– What prompted you to contact Kaizen Consulting?
– About 6 months ago, we sought their expertise for a very specialized matter: our goal was to implement a projected investment plan to significantly improve our production lines, which would double our production capacity. Therefore, we needed long-term financing and working capital to execute our investment and growth plan. Part of our needs were covered by our current banking pool, but mergers have complicated traditional bank financing: the range of options has narrowed, and the market has not opened up to new players, nor to banks from other EU countries or major tech firms that theoretically will offer loans in the future (as they already do in other countries). This is why we needed support and guidance in the process to explore alternative financial possibilities.
– What new financing options have you explored?
– We were looking for options, and with Kaizen Consulting’s assistance, we have complemented our financing with alternative banking, French banks, and investment funds, in addition to including banking entities that were not previously part of our pool. We will continue with our growth plan and invest to achieve it: two campaigns ago, our revenue was €18.4 million, the last campaign reached €22 million, and this year we expect to hit €25 million, aiming to double that within 4 to 5 years to reach €50 million in revenue.
– Agribur is a predominantly exporting company. Does this entail special financial needs?
– Last year, we exported 70% of our production directly, and a significant portion of the remaining 30% also went abroad. What has changed for us are the financial needs to drive our growth plan. We were operating at a certain revenue level and covered our needs with the banking pool, but we saw the opportunity to grow, supported by a well-established, high-level European client base. We explored new options to generate working capital by leveraging our own assets.
– What options?
– Thanks to Kaizen Consulting’s advice, we used our existing assets to increase liquidity, through rent-back and lease-back arrangements. Each of these formulas has distinct advantages: with lease-back, I retain the assets on my balance sheet and amortize them, while with rent-back, the assets are no longer on the balance sheet, but we gain tax advantages.
– What would you highlight about your collaboration with Kaizen Consulting?
– First and foremost, their professionalism from start to finish. They are specialists with a personal and approachable manner, who have supported us and been very quick in resolving issues through effective mediation. They are very transparent, always available, and we will continue working together to advance our expansion plans.