Wholesale nursery supplier secures £250,000 loan from MEIF Maven Debt Finance

Award winning family run business will use the funding to accelerate its growth plans, diversify its customer base and take advantage of new market opportunities.

MEIF Maven Debt Finance has provided Opperman Plants, a Lincolnshire-based wholesale nursery supplier, with a £250,000 funding solution. The loan will support the company’s ambitious expansion plans, enabling it to diversify its growing customer base and finance new market opportunities.  

Opperman is an award-winning family run nursery supplying wholesale plants to retailers large and small across the UK. Founded in 1990 by husband and wife team, Michael and Jennifer Opperman, who have grown their Lincolnshire site to 13.5 acres, comprising of glasshouses with ancillary buildings a biomass boiler and kiln, as well as horticultural crops. The business supplies high quality pot-plants in large numbers, grown to order.

The market for house plants and cut flowers stands at approximately £2.2 billion and is still growing. The strongest growth, over recent years, has come from the house plant sector, due to a wider variety of choice and availability. Supermarket chains and other multiples have fuelled this growth by helping to distribute volume in the UK. While there is some competition in the UK, the main competitive threat is seen from Dutch growers who can produce very efficiently.

Backed by a dedicated management team, Michael and Jennifer Opperman have grown the family business which now employs their three children all in management roles to support with day-to-day activities and help establish it as a leading wholesaler in plants to retailers across the country.

Michael Opperman, Founder of Opperman Plants, said, “We are delighted to have the backing and support of MEIF and Maven. The funding will enable us to take advantage of new opportunities to grow our business. With Maven’s support, we are confident we can pursue our ambitious growth plans faster.”

Richard Altoft, Investment Director at Maven Capital Partners, said, “Opperman Plants is an established supplier servicing a range of wholesale customers across the UK. We’re delighted to support the business as they embark on a programme of growth, expanding their customer reach and exploring new market opportunities. We look forward to working with Michael and Jennifer to help the business execute its development plans.”

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.

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If your business is in need of finance to help unlock its growth potential, MEIF Maven Debt Finance may be able to help. Contact Maven’s local team today to find out more.