The Black Farmer has received a £1m investment aimed at supporting the business’ expansion into high-street retail premises.

The urban farm shop’s new cash injection follows a partnership with independent SME funder, Bibby Financial Services (BFS), and is designed to fund line and specialist foreign exchange (FX) services.

As part of its new deal with BFS, The Black Farmer elected to handle its own credit control, which is understood to give the firm all the benefits of a factoring facility while maintaining ownership of its customer relationships.

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The Black Farmer founder and managing director Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE said: “We’re a pioneering company leading the way for black British businesses and agricultural entrepreneurs. I’m passionate about maximising the untapped potential of small businesses and wanted to collaborate with a likeminded partner.

“We needed the confidence that our funder is both an expert in their field and committed to supporting our goals. BFS provided exactly that. They engaged with our ambitions from the start, working to understand our business.

“Their offer of an extended funding limit and a higher advance rate was a perfect solution and demonstrated their confidence in our business. We look forward to working with the BFS team as our business continues to grow.”

In 2023, The Back Farmer opened its first permanent retail site in London’s Brixton Village, following its own brand products being stocked in retailers including M&S, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Ocado.

Established by Emmanuel-Jones in 2004, the retailer, which champions diversity in farming through initiatives such as the Black Farmer Scholarship, now has an annual turnover of £10m.