Last week, Footasylum, a footwear and sportswear shop, officially opened its doors in the Golden Square shopping mall in Warrington.
This is after the business secured a £35 million Revolting Credit Facility (RCF) from HSBC.
Footasylum is planning to use the funding to roll out a store expansion programme.
This started with a new store in Aberdeen last month, followed by the Golden Square store last week and a new store in Doncaster which will also open this month.
Before the end of the year, two further openings in Rotherham and Wrexham will take place.
These store expansion plans are expected to initially create over 100 new jobs including management, full-time, and part-time in-store positions across the UK. HSBC UK’s support will also provide Footasylum with the financial support to explore international acquisition opportunities.
Nick Scott, chief financial officer at Footasylum, commented: “This funding from HSBC UK is a key milestone in our growth journey and will help us achieve our ambitious Environmental Policy. It will enable us to not only expand our footprint in key locations across the UK but also accelerate our omnichannel technology investments, continue to grow Footasylum’s highly popular exclusive brands, and incubate the influencer talent that underpins our unique and highly successful marketing strategy.
“We’re hugely excited about the opportunities ahead and the positive impact these plans will have on both our business and the communities we serve.”
The HSBC UK RCF funding package includes a Sustainability Improvement Loan, which links the cost of borrowing to Footasylum’s sustainability performance.
The EcoVadis rating will be tested on an annual basis to track Footasylum’s ESG performance.
If the company improves its sustainability rating in line with pre-agreed targets, it could benefit from reduced interest rates on the loan.
As part of its Environmental Policy, Footaslyum has committed to achieve a carbon net zero target for scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 and Scope 3 by 2040.
The retailer began offsetting its carbon emissions in 2020 and plans to have a fully electric or hybrid fleet by 2025, with 70 per cent of logistics journeys already powered by biodiesel.
In line with its sustainability efforts, Footasylum carrier bags are made from 100 per cent recycled material and the company is committed to a Make it Wild environmental tree planting partnership.