“I started with nothing. I bought a little van for £1,200 and drove around builders giving out cards saying, ‘I’m going to start a concrete company.’”
In 2016 Paul Moore took a leap of faith, quitting a comfortable job as operations director with a large and established specialist vehicle hire company, and branching out on his own. He created Mix Moore Concrete Limited which supplies high quality concrete through volumetric concrete dispensers across the northwest of England.
In the early days he did a lot of ‘barrow work’ – supplying domestic builders on small sites. He hired his first truck over a six-month period and managed to buy it two months later. He then hired a second truck and brought in another driver. And the business grew steadily from there. Over time Paul shifted his focus onto bigger opportunities.
“When I first started it was very difficult because I had no books, nothing to show credit history. But I’ve been going for a few years now, so the business is looking quite good. The profit we’ve made over that time is healthy.”
Paul has invested heavily in high-value volumetric trucks which carry sand and stone separate from water, allowing concrete to be made on site to customers’ exact requirements. The cost of these trucks ranges from £135,000 to £220,000, compared to the cheaper drum mixers which come in at around £40,000 and carry ready-made but less versatile and lower grade concrete. It is this drive for excellence which has paid off for Paul.
Five years from inception, Mix Moore is thriving. Paul has secured several sizeable contracts with major national house builders covering a huge area from Liverpool to Leeds. His fleet of vehicles supply a dozen sites across the region with bespoke quantities of high-quality concrete.
In 2021 Paul required a telehandler – a vehicle with a front boom used in agriculture and industry. A broker introduced him to MaxCap. “I didn’t really want to finance it over the long term. It was £10,000 and I just thought, if I can get that cash, I can pay it off over a short term, and that’s what I did. And MaxCap was fantastic because I was able to do it on a daily basis: take the funding and pay for it in cash.”
Paul proceeded to raise further amounts of funding from MaxCap that year. “Because it’s a free flowing account it’s good for two things: cash flow and for any purchases over a certain value. What it means is you’re not tied down to a hire-purchase or lease agreement. You’re paying on a daily basis and actually buying the goods, so at the end of the day you own them.”
The process of working with MaxCap was simple and smooth, and certainly an option he would pursue again. “It’s really easy. The way MaxCap works in respect to a daily payment is very handy because it’s a reduced term. So instead of having something over four or five years, you’re paying it in six to eight months on a daily basis and then it’s gone. Finished. And now that I’m on their books, I’ve no need to worry about anything with respect to coming back for cash straightaway. If you need instant cash, you’ve got it. It’s there.”
“MaxCap strives to make financing fast and simple so you can stay focused on your business,” adds Alex Littner, CEO of MaxCap. “We’re thrilled to be helping Paul expand his operations at Mix Moore Concrete. When you apply for a business loan with us you’ll get an answer in a few hours and in most cases, you’ll have finance in one to two days. No hassle. No fuss. Just straight-forward business lending.”
He’s positive and confident about the future. “My trucks are paid off, I own most of the equipment now, and I’ve got just got over the Christmas and New Year period which is always a difficult time as there’s usually no work. I’ve managed to navigate myself over that. And without a doubt I would consider using MaxCap again.” For now though, Paul’s biggest looming bill is his upcoming wedding. “I might have to concrete her feet to the floor so she can’t run!”, he jokes.
Click here to find out more about Mix Moore Concrete Limited.