DF Capital helps multi-award-winning Ducati dealer to expand his dream

DF Capital helps multi-award-winning Ducati dealer to expand his dream

At the end of 2020, DF Capital helped Ducati Manchester group acquire the Ducati and Triumph stores in Glasgow, enabling the owner to continue his dream.

Ducati Manchester

Founded in 2001, Ducati Manchester was the UK’s first Ducati store. Over the last 20 years the dealership has gone from strength to strength, opening showroom locations in Preston, Stoke, Worcester and Glasgow. It provides customers with unrivalled support when they are buying a Ducati motorbike, dedicated finance and insurance schemes and Ducati Performance accessories and clothing.

It has recently been named ‘Dealer of the year for Europe and Africa’.

What did Ducati Manchester need?

Ducati Manchester was given the opportunity to acquire the Ducati and Triumph dealerships in Glasgow at short notice so therefore needed to make sure it had adequate financing in place to buy the business and to reassure the motorbike manufacturer that it had ample funds to continue stocking the brand.

How did DF Capital help?

DF Capital has been working with the owner, Chris Booth, since 2017. From the very start, it has provided a floorplan facility to Ducati Manchester to enable it to buy new and used items to then sell to customers. To coincide with the Glasgow acquisition, a facility increase was made available within two days of request to support the expansion of the business.

These funds allow Ducati Manchester to protect the cashflow within the business, whilst providing it with capacity to show, display and demonstrate a broader range of assets.

What do our customers say?

Chris Booth, owner of Ducati Manchester, commented: “I used to work with another lender, but it was not willing to support my growth ambitions. Andy Stafferton and Paul Evans from DF Capital were a breath of fresh air. They saw the potential of the business and came up with a number of great solutions to help me expand and grow Ducati Manchester’s footprint in the UK. Without the
DF Capital team, I would never have been able to achieve this level of success and I look forward to being part of this partnership over the coming years.”

Andy Stafferton, chief commercial officer and co-founder of DF Capital said: “It’s a pleasure working with Chris. He has such drive and a razor-sharp focus that enables him to identify opportunities and act on the ones most likely to succeed. It’s testament to his love of the industry and his hard work that he’s achieved the accolades he has. And our partnership with him is very much a two-way street – he’s also helped us grow our business by introducing and championing us to other distributors and dealers.”