Everyones a winner

This week I was paying our joiners and suppliers before the week got hectic, when one of our suppliers dropped me a message to say ‘thanks for always paying on time Aaron, it’s much appreciated’.
 
It’s something I’ve always prided myself on - paying on time or where possible, early.
 
I heard an interesting story a long time ago that’s always stuck with me, about the company Benders Paper Cups.

They’ve been going since 1899 and supply some big names with paper cups such as McDonald's, Lavazza and Greggs. Since the very beginning, they’ve always paid their invoices on time.
 
A few years back, they decided they wanted to expand and needed 18 million pounds for a factory. They worked out that their monthly spend was 9 million pounds and so they emailed all of their suppliers, told them of their plans to expand and asked them if they were happy to change their 30-day payment terms to 90 days for just six months. Thanks to their impeccable track record, all their suppliers happily obliged.
 
In just six months, they’d generated the money needed to fund their factory without taking out a single loan.
 
Now, we’re a long way from an 18-million-pound factory but paying our joiners on time means we’re always on top of the priority list when we need to call in a favour.
 
Our guys are more than happy do a last-minute job, especially when they know they’ll probably be paid before their next mortgage payment is due.
 
The knock-on effect of my goodwill also means repeat business and better service for our customers.
 
Everyone’s a winner!