Financing for household appliances

Financing household appliances with PrestaFlex

Large appliances (refrigeration, washing, cooking), small appliances (SDA), built-in appliances, air conditioning/ventilation, after-sales service & parts, retail & e-commerce distribution

The household appliances sector combines high inventories, seasonal peaks (sales, Black Friday, Q4), returns/warranties, promotional pressure and currency exposure (purchases in EUR/USD/Asia). PrestaFlex structures financing from CHF 100,000 to CHF 60 million for brands, importers, distributors, e-commerce platforms and after-sales networks.

Your needs, our solutions

A. Cash flow, purchasing & seasonality

  • Revolving line / campaign credit
    Tickets: CHF 250k-10 mio - Term: 12-36 months
    Uses: purchases before sales peaks (back-to-school/Black Friday/Q4), building up A-items stock.
  • Inventory financing (ABL)
    Tickets: CHF 500k-25 mio
    Usual advances (according to rotation/eligibility)
    • Large appliances fast movers: 55-75
    • SDA & accessories: 50-70
    • Slow movers: 30-50% (haircut obsolescence)
      + stock audits, WMS/rotation reports, DOA clauses/returns.
  • Factoring (GMS, pure players, independent retailers, B2B projects)
    Lines: CHF 300k-30 mio - Advance: 80-90% excl. VAT - Typical DSO: 30-75 d
    Options: non-recourse, credit insurance, limits per buyer, multi-currency.
  • Reverse factoring (Supply Chain Finance)
    Capacity: CHF 1-30 mio - Benefit: suppliers paid D+2, DSO 60-120 d on buyer's side.
  • VAT bridge / import duties & fees
    Tickets: CHF 100k-7 mio - Duration: 1-6 months.
  • Purchase Order Finance / purchase order financing
    Tickets: CHF 250k-8 mio - Purpose: to cover factory purchases against firm retail POs.

B. Capex & operations

  • Leasing
    Tickets: CHF 200k-8 mio - Tenor: 3-7 years - LTV: 80-100 % excl. tax
    Equipment: showroom fittings, after-sales test/diagnostic systems, reconditioning lines, conveyors, sorting & packing, logistics center equipment.
  • Prêt Capex / Term loan
    Tickets: CHF 1-20 mio - Tenor: 5-10 years
    Projects: ERP/WMS, warehouse automation, after-sales platforms, compliance/energy labs.
  • Energy & sustainability (green loan / ESCO)
    Tickets: CHF 250k-5 mio - Payback: 3-6 years
    Uses: photovoltaics on warehouse roofs, LED lighting, dimmers, heat recovery on test benches, kWh/package optimization.

C. Branding, go-to-market & e-commerce

  • Innovation credit / NPD (eco-efficient ranges, premium built-in appliances, service packs)
    Tickets: CHF 150k-3 mio - Duration: 2-5 years.
  • Trade finance import/export (LC, SBLC, guarantees)
    Capacity: CHF 500k-30 mio - Uses: securing manufacturer payments, FOB/CIF purchases.
  • E-commerce financing (revenue-based)
    Tickets: CHF 100k-2 mio - Repayment: % of monthly sales (flexible according to seasonality).

D. External growth & capital operations

  • Unitranche / mezzanine
    Tickets: CHF 3-25 mio - Tenor: 5-7 years - Uses: build-up of brands/distributors, MBO/MBI.
  • LBO / acquisitions
    Tickets: CHF 5-60 mio (club deal possible)
    Targets: complementary brands, regional distributors, after-sales service/packaging platforms.

Typical figures (household appliances)

  • EBITDA margin: 6-12% distribution / 8-18% brands (depending on positioning & mix).
  • WCR
    • DIO: 45-120 d (higher on large appliances & end of series)
    • DSO: 30-75 d (GMS/pure players/retailers)
    • DPO: 45-90 d (depending on bargaining power)
  • Acceptable leverage: ND/EBITDA 2.0-3.75x (up to 4.0x if strong inventory collateral & customer contracts).
  • Typical advances: factoring 80-90%, inventory 30-75%, leasing 80-100% HT.

Quick examples

  1. Importer - Black Friday/Q4 peak
  • Set-up: revolving CHF 3.0 mio + ABL stock CHF 4.0 mio (advance 65 % fast movers)
  • Effect: availability of A-items, factory discounts, WCR smoothed without tension.
  1. E-commerce platform - marketing acceleration
  • Set-up: revenue-based CHF 600k + factoring CHF 2.2 mio (85% advance)
  • Impact: ROAS stabilized, DSO reduced from 58 days to 42 days, undiluted growth.
  1. After-sales service network - reconditioning line
  • Assembly: leasing CHF 1.4 m (60 months) for test benches + refurb line + tooling
  • Impact: parts & refurb margin, reduction in DOA/exchanges, "second life" offer.
  1. Built-in brand - acquisition of regional distributor
  • Assembly: unitranche CHF 12 mio (6 years) + term loan CHF 3.5 mio (7 years) for ERP/WMS
  • Impact: vertical integration, increased retail velocity, Group EBITDA +170 bps.

Points to watch & countermeasures

  • Obsolescence/end-of-series → inventory haircuts, rotation policies, planned promotions.
  • Returns/warranties → provisions, eligibility exclusions, breakdown insurance.
  • FX risk → currency-debt flow alignment, simple hedges (forwards).
  • Key account concentration → limits per buyer, credit insurance, channel diversification (retail/e-com/projects).

PrestaFlex process (fast & operational)

  1. 360° diagnosis (1-2 weeks): WCR (inventory/DSO), product mix, seasonality, returns policy, currency exposure.
  2. Term-sheet: structure, pricing, simple covenants (ND/EBITDA, stock rotation, obsolescence thresholds).
  3. Implementation: collateral (inventory/receivables pledge), ERP/WMS integration, dashboards.
  4. Proactive monitoring: seasonal ceilings, marketing/NPD tranches, extension options.

Why PrestaFlex for household appliances?

  • ABL expertise on heterogeneous inventories & retail/e-commerce schemes.
  • Multi-bank access & private debt for CHF 100'000 - 60 mio. tickets.
  • ROI-driven approach: every franc financed must improve cash, margin or velocity.

Make an appointment to launch your financing request

Tell us about your inventory profile (fast/slow movers), your customer lead times and your priority capex: we'll send you a costed, scalable financing structure aligned with your sales peaks and brand strategy.

Contact PrestaFlex today:

An article by Munur Aslan, Managing Director of PrestaFlex

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