Catering Equipment sales
Now Quarter One has come and gone, many catering equipment suppliers will be reviewing their sales figures. This will include comparisons to last year’s figures, reviewing budgets, sales targets, and strategies for the rest of 2017.
Few could have predicted what 2016 had brought us: a new Prime Minister, Britain’s vote to leave the EU, and Donald Trump becoming the President of the United States. Even fewer could have predicted Leicester City winning the Premier League! It was a tough 12 months for the catering industry, with uncertainty in the market leading to price increases being passed onto customers, and some well-known companies sadly leaving the industry.
From the many conversations with our catering partners and manufacturers, we’ve been told that heavy equipment sales have slowed down. While many of our partners are still very busy, it seems to be with historic projects, with new enquiries down over the last 6 months. Pubs and restaurants seem to be holding onto their cash, and would rather pay to have their equipment repaired and refurbished instead of replaced with new units or models.
This doesn’t have to be the case, nor should it cause alarm for the industry. While it is true customers are holding onto their cash, this doesn’t immediately mean that your equipment sales must suffer. By offering a leasing option on your equipment, it allows your customers to keep their precious cash in the business while benefiting from the new equipment paid through fixed monthly or quarterly payments, over a term of their choice.
Instead of paying for equipment upfront, the customer can spread the cost of the equipment over a 1 to 5 year term. With advantageous tax benefits, this often makes the equipment cheaper than if they were paying cash!
Your customer needn’t rely upon their old, sub-standard equipment, which may break at any time, possibly leading to loss of earnings. Instead they can get new, more efficient catering equipment to help their business thrive, and pay for the equipment while they use it.
So next time you’re speaking with a customer, there’s no harm in mentioning you offer a leasing option. It may be the difference between making a sale and sending your customer to a competitor who already offers a finance option.
For more information on WestWon, contact one of our catering leasing specialists on 01494 611 456.
Written by George Shillingford.
