Galway companies flourish with financial aid from fellow small businesses

A company specialising in the growing business phenomenon of peer-to-peer lending has revealed that it has raised €688,560 for Galway businesses.

Linked Finance raised 31 loans for 23 Galway-based businesses through Linked Finance’s online lending platform, including Schoolbooks.ie, Sleepzone and Turas Bikes to facilitate business expansion.

Over the past three years, Linked Finance has helped over 500 businesses all over Ireland to raise funding to meet their business objectives.

In its next phase of growth Linked Finance is targeting to have lent over €350m to SMEs by the end of 2019.

Velocity Bike Store, based in Oranmore, launched in 2014 supplying a wide range of bikes and associated equipment, housing an in-house bike fit and customisation workshop.

The store opened a speciality coffee shop, The 53 Coffee House, in the same building.

The coffee shop proved to be an instant hit, and Velocity Bike Store chose Linked Finance to raise €20,000 to facilitate the expansion of the café, so they could meet increased consumer demand for the café’s home blend coffee and sweet treats.

Both Schoolbooks.ie and Sleepzone have completed two rounds of funding through the Linked Finance platform. Schoolbooks.ie, Ireland’s largest online retailer of schoolbooks, raised €45,000 through Linked Finance to increase its stock to cater for their peak trading time in the summer, before children return to school.

Sleepzone operate top-quality hostels along the west coast of Ireland. The company began in 2001, with a 200 bed hostel in Eyre Square, and today owns and operates hostels in Connemara and Lisdoonvarna in County Clare.

Sleepzone raised €43,000 through two rounds of funding through Linked Finance to upgrade and renovate facilities in their portfolio of hostels.

“Ireland’s economy is getting back on track and this is particularly evident in the tourism sector, this year we opened our newest venture, The Cliffs of Moher Hotel in Liscannor,” said Sleepzone owner Ronan Garvey.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.