The fourth cause of poor cashflow - Your debt or capital structure

Anna Stubbs • April 19, 2024

Often a reduction in interest charges as well as significant cashflow improvements can be achieved with a regular review of existing debt.

A good place to start is to list all bank loans, mortgages, finance company loans, hire purchases, credit card debts, and any other debts (don’t include amounts owed to suppliers in this list). Add columns to cover:

  • The amount of the debt owed
  • The interest rate being charged
  • Whether the interest is charged on a fixed or floating rate basis
  • Repayment terms (the number of years the debt is to be repaid over)


Perhaps your debt can be consolidated, financed by one lender and paid off over a longer term. This will help you retain more cash in the business which is vital for growth (or even just to cover expenses and your drawings).

Are the drawings you take from the business for personal expenses placing pressure on cashflow? If so, that might mean that we need to look at strategies to lift the profitability of the business. It might mean that your drawings are just too high for the business to support right now. The business may need an injection of capital to fund its growth.

Here’s an interesting exercise for you to do. List out your annual personal expenditure in detailed categories; everything from rent, childcare, groceries and eating out. You may need to prepare yourself for a shock. If you’re serious about this, we have a Personal Budget Template that you can use to make life easier.

Getting your debt and capital structure right makes a big difference to the cashflow in your business. This is a subject that we have a lot of experience in. The first step is to prepare an updated personal budget and a Cashflow Forecast, then measure the extra cash the business will have as a result of making some simple changes. We can help you calculate this extra cash at our Cashflow & Profit Improvement Meeting.

Doing a forecast for the first time seems scary, but once you’ve done it, you’ll realise that it’s one of the most essential business tools you’ll ever put in place. We can do the forecast with you. You’ll sleep better for it!

Keeping your tax and expenses in check when you are self-employed

By Anna Stubbs • September 4, 2026
Contracting or freelancing requires you to wear a lot of hats. Relationship-building, keeping track of your time, marketing your skills and actually doing the work. But one of your priorities should also be establishing how you handle your money and setting the groundwork for good habits.

Does the electricity cut help your small business?

By Anna Stubbs • September 4, 2026
The UK’s new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has wasted no time making new tax policies since taking office, having announced a tax cut to remove VAT from domestic electricity bills from 1 October. While this measure is primarily targeted at households, some smaller businesses will, importantly, also be eligible for relief.

Budgeting for success: the importance of good financial management

By Anna Stubbs • September 4, 2026
When you’re operating and managing a small business, you have a finite pot of cash to work with. Because of this, it’s incredibly important to manage your cash well and to have clear budgets and spending limits for every area of your business operations.  Let’s take a look at why budgeting is such a vital part of your financial management, and what you can do to keep your company on budget and in a positive cashflow position.