18th July 2019

MEIF Debt Finance provides Advance Tapes with a £600,000 funding package

Specialist manufacturer of adhesive tapes secures business loan to support ambitious growth plans

MEIF Debt Finance, managed by Maven Capital Partners (“Maven”), has provided Advance Tapes International Limited (“Advance Tapes”), a manufacturer of pressure sensitive adhesive tapes, with a £600,000 loan.

The funding package will support the Leicester company’s ambitious expansion plans, helping it develop its extensive product portfolio and also providing working capital as the firm enters a new growth phase. The loan will also create 20 new jobs in the Leicestershire region.

Advance Tapes is an independent manufacturer specialising in the design, creation and sale of pressure sensitive tapes, for which it designs and formulates its own specialist adhesives. Advance Tapes’ speciality products are suitable for use in a wide variety of sectors, including heating and ventilation, agriculture, entertainment, building and construction, asbestos removal and industrial consumables. This is due to their high-tensile strength and bonding and fastening properties.

The firm’s tapes are also resistant to various factors such as water, fire and dust and provide further benefits – for example, acrylic and rubber-based adhesives are used in the manufacturing process to produce a soundproof tape. The company supports a range of blue-chip customers and is renowned for its high-quality products and commitment to innovation.

The global speciality tape market is currently worth just over £6bn and is forecast to grow by up to 7% per annum over the next 10 years. Increasing demand for speciality tapes across various industrial sectors such as electronics, building and construction is projected to drive growth of the global market over the coming years.

David Tindsley, Investment Manager at Maven said, “Advance Tapes is a long-established business with a strong customer base and impressive track record for product development and innovation. The business is a leader in the speciality tapes market and, in providing this loan, we are delighted to support the management team’s ambitious plans to develop its impressive product portfolio and continue its growth journey.”

Michael Ayres, Managing Director at Advance Tapes said, “We are extremely pleased to receive the MEIF funding package. As we operate in a market with significant growth potential, we look forward to implementing our current strategy and driving expansion.”

Lewis Stringer, Senior Manager at the British Business Bank added, “Providing SMEs with the finance needed to fulfil their ambitions is what the Midlands Engine Investment Fund was created to achieve. It’s great to see that the investment in Advance Tapes is supporting product development as well as job creation. We would encourage any other smaller businesses looking to grow within Leicestershire and the wider Midlands to look at the options available through MEIF.”

Kevin Harris, Chair of the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership said, “Advance Tapes’ track record in innovation makes it exactly the sort of business the Midlands Engine Investment Fund was set up to support. I’m pleased that this loan will secure another Leicestershire business’s future, and help protect the diversity that is such a great strength of our local economy.”

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.

The MEIF debt funds, managed by Maven, focus on providing growth funding to high-growth potential businesses located across the Midlands. Composed of two separate lots, of £50m for SMEs located in the West Midlands, and £40m for growth businesses in the East and South-East Midlands, the funds can provide finance of between £100,000 and £1.5million.