How Africa News
A businessman who was refused a loan for being ‘too young and inexperienced’ when starting out as a young man has had the last laugh 17 years later – by buying the same bank’s building, safe and all.
Adam Deering, 39, overcame the rejection of his £10,000 ($12,800) business loan application in 2002 to build a successful debt management company, which he sold for £5 million ($6.4m) in 2014.
Now at the head of five different multi-million pound businesses, he has had his revenge after splurging £450,000 ($580k) to buy the bank premises where his dream was belittled by staff.
Adam said: “I’ve always firmly believed that if you work hard enough to achieve your dream, then anything is possible. I quit my job as a salesman aged 21 because I knew I had it in me to create a successful business, but I didn’t have a penny to my name so I needed a bank loan.
“I presented them with a comprehensive business plan and asked for £10,000 but the bank manager didn’t seem to take me seriously at all. I’d put my heart and soul into the business plan and I remember having my fingers crossed under the table as I nervously waited for the manager to go through it.
“I was devastated when she told me I was too young and inexperienced and there was no way they could take a risk on me. Without the money, I spent four months cold calling people from the floor of a small office because I couldn’t even afford a desk and a chair.
“Those early months were so difficult, not knowing if I was going to be able to make it work and not knowing if I’d be able to pay my bills. There were lots of times where I thought it was the end, but I refused to give up and it paid off.”
Adam spent the last month’s salary of his salesman job on the rent for a small office in Stretford, Greater Manchester.
He was determined not to be defeated by the rejection of the loan from the bank, which had a branch in Adam’s hometown of Urmston, Greater Manchester.
Using a phone he secured on credit, he used a telephone directory to cold call potential clients while sitting on the floor of his cramped office for the first four months.
But his hard work and determination saw the debt management firm take off and he sold it for £5m in 2014.
Today, Adam is a widely respected businessman who has built a series of multi-million pound companies, including debt management firm Hanover Insolvency and funeral company Pride Planning.
He uses his rags to riches background to inspire others as a motivational speaker, while he also holds a property portfolio worth millions of pounds.
Buying the bank building in Urmston carries a degree of emotional significance, but Adam has exciting plans to turn it into a mixed retail and residential scheme.
Having spent £450,000 to purchase the premises, he will spend another £500,000 ($643k) to develop eight apartments and one retail unit.
He added: “Building a business from scratch certainly isn’t easy and there are always times when you wonder if it is going to work out. The key is to stay true to your vision and keep going, there will always be hurdles to overcome.
“When I was turned down for the loan, it was tough but because I had a dream and I was so focussed on achieving it, I made it happen anyway.
“To me, buying the bank building brings things back full circle and it shows that I was right to keep believing in myself.”
