Ladies Sportswear Ready-to-Wear Veteran
Gateway was approached by a longtime veteran of the ready-to-wear business. The company's management was very seasoned, its product was well-accepted and it had solid orders from well-known regional and national retailers. The company had experienced a recent operating loss and was short of the working capital necessary to support its current operations and to issue letters of credit to its European supplier.
Gateway arranged for third-party warehousing, opened the necessary letters of credit, and facilitated the fulfillment of customer orders. The company was able to meet its market demand and was eventually sold to the benefit of the owner.
Career Apparel Start-Up
Gateway was approached by an experienced apparel maker with a start-up business concept. The client had recent orders from major department stores for midpriced career apparel. The principal had many years of experience, both with nationally known apparel makers and also with smaller private label producers. The merchandise was to be produced in the US by a package goods producer.
Accounts were credit checked by a nationally known factor. While the factor was not advancing on the accounts receivable, it was checking credit and providing collection services. The client was using a third-party fulfillment warehouse to receive and ship merchandise.
Gateway opened domestic letters of credit to the client's supplier. Merchandise was shipped from the factory to the fulfillment house and on to the final customers. The factor collected accounts receivable and remitted the balance due to Gateway. The remaining funds were then distributed to the client. The principal was able to launch his own venture with extremely limited capital due to his professional experience and relationships.
Women's Jackets
An aggressive entrepreneur approached Gateway to fund his purchase of licensed designer coats, with sales to specialty retailers, department stores, TV and catalog retailers, with a start-up company. The company had a strong and reliable European / Asian domestic supplier network and excellent sales bookings. By working with the entrepreneur to establish an accounting system, obtaining permissions of the licensor, and feeling confident of his financial commitment to the success of his company Gateway was able to offer a letter of credit facility.
Our client, subsequently, had the opportunity to purchase the name and inventory of his major U.S. supplier who wanted payment in cash. After reviewing the order book and supplier's inventory within a tight time frame, Gateway worked through the transaction structure to protect both itself and our client, eventually purchasing the supplier inventory for our client FOB.
Demand High for Fashion Jeans
The CFO of a rapidly growing producer of fashion jeans contacted Gateway when the firm began to experience heavy demand for its product. The firm's financial situation had grown unstable because of obsolete inventory. As a result, their equity position was extremely weak and the cash flow was marginal.
Gateway established a facility to provide Letters of Credit to the overseas supplier. With the firm’s accounts receivable lender already in place, an intercreditor agreement with the factor was arranged and letters of credit were issued in a timely manner. The factor advanced funds against accounts receivable to repay Gateway.
The client company was able to meet the demand for its popular product during the peak back-to-school season. Sales demand continues to grow and overseas suppliers are now paid promptly.
“The Gateway team is comprised of dedicated and experienced professionals from both small business and international financial service backgrounds. We understand your challenge. We understand your opportunity. We are committed to helping you capitalize on opportunities in a fiscally responsible fashion.”