Fully funded through the Scottish Growth Scheme and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Business Loans Scotland is the Fund Manager for a £7 million loan fund which seeks to invest in new and growing Scottish SMEs.

Ensuring that good, commercially viable proposals do not fail from a lack of access to finance, Business Loans Scotland supports businesses by typically providing up to 50% of the total funding package required.

With fixed interest rates, repayment periods of up to five years and no additional fees or charges, the loans from Business Loans Scotland have been described by borrowers as an affordable solution to start or expand their business.

Upon being issued their first loan of £40,000 in March 2018, Bill Scouller, director of Glasgow based video technology company Odro, was able to implement the business’ strategic growth plans, which in turn saw the business generate an increase in staff members and international clients who were embracing their video technology solution.

Two years on from their initial loan and Odro have since been issued a second loan of £50,000 to open a brand new office in London to support the vast number of clients they have in the city.

Speaking of the £90,000 total funding package received from Business Loans Scotland, Mr Scouller said: “The BLS funding has been invaluable in the growth of Odro. The funding has contributed to the creation of new roles within the business and we have since grown from 12 staff to approximately 25.

“In addition, our revenue has grown by over 100% in the past year. Additionally, we have doubled our customer base and now have clients in US, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, Germany and New Zealand. It is vital for early start businesses to have access to funding in order to grow the business and maximise the opportunity to create both jobs and grow company revenue.”

Andrew Dickson, fund manager of Business Loans Scotland, added: “It’s fantastic to see that our initial £40,000 loan to Odro has had such a positive impact on the growth of the company and I’m delighted that following this, we have been able to support Odro with a further loan of £50,000 to open their new London office.

“We wish the team at Odro all the best with their new venture and would encourage all Scottish SMEs who find themselves in a similar situation to Odro and are looking for finance to start or grow to speak with our team today or submit an online application to start the process.”