Lendus.

Column Still Finance

Spread the cost of a column still from £15,000 to £500,000+ with flexible finance options. HP, lease, or refinance, compare rates from 40+ lenders.

Can you finance a column still?

Yes, column stills are financed as a standard asset purchase, usually on hire purchase or a lease, with the machine itself acting as the security. UK prices typically run £15,000 to £500,000, and most deals are written over 12–84 months with a deposit of around 15–25%. Decisions typically take 24–48 hours. Used machines are financeable too, usually with a shorter term.

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Typical Cost

£15k – £500k

Approval Speed

24–48 hours

Same-day for < £60k

Rates From

5.4% APR

What would a column still cost per month?

£90,000
10%
60 months
9%
£0

Your estimate

Indicative only. Not a quote and not an offer of finance.

Pre-filled with a typical column still price. Indicative only, not a quote.

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Finance options

Hire Purchase (HP)

Rate
From 5.8% APR
Term
12–84 months
Deposit
15–25%
Ownership
Yours at the end
Best for
Distilleries wanting to own the plant outright

Finance Lease

Rate
From 5.4% APR
Term
12–84 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return or buy (balloon payment)
Best for
Tax-efficient, claim the lease payments against profit

Operating Lease

Rate
From 6.1% APR
Term
24–60 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return at end
Best for
Scale spirit output without tying up capital

Representative example

On a purchase price of £90,000: a 10% deposit of £9,000, then 48 monthly payments of £1,899 at 5.9% APR representative (fixed). Total amount payable £100,152, including the deposit. The rate you are offered depends on your business and the asset.

What buyers actually specify

Guide prices for sizing a finance agreement, not quotes. Manufacturers in this market mostly price on application, so where a current UK list price could not be confirmed the row describes a specification class rather than naming a model. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.

Machine or specification Guide price Type
Small Craft Column Still £18,000 – £40,000 Batch Column
Mid-Scale Column Still £45,000 – £100,000 Batch / Continuous Column
Production Column Still £110,000 – £250,000 Continuous Column
High-Capacity Column Plant £260,000 – £480,000 Continuous Column

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Tax benefits

A column still qualifies for capital allowances, so most of the purchase cost can be set against taxable profits well within the Annual Investment Allowance most brewing and distilling businesses have available in a given year. Hire purchase lets you claim allowances as the owner from day one. Finance lease and operating lease payments are typically deductible in full as a trading expense, which suits businesses that would rather smooth the deduction over the term than take it all upfront. Speak to your accountant about which structure suits your current tax position.

Market context

A column still is generally bought by an established rather than a first-time distiller, most often to produce or purify neutral spirit in-house instead of buying it in, or to run continuous rather than batch production once volume justifies the extra cost and complexity over a pot still. Because a column still typically represents a bigger single investment than a pot still of comparable output, and runs for long production campaigns once installed, distilleries tend to keep them for many years rather than trading up, so the used market is thinner than for pot stills. Operating a still, column or pot, still requires HMRC approval, and adding a column to plant that already has an approved pot still is generally a variation to existing approval rather than starting from nothing.

Bad credit?

Several of our 200+ lenders specialise in businesses with imperfect credit histories. You may need a larger deposit or personal guarantee, but options exist. Checking your options here does not affect your credit score, because we do not run a credit search to match you. A lender will run their own checks only if you decide to apply.

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Frequently asked questions

Why would a distillery choose a column still over a pot still?
A column still runs continuously and can achieve a higher and more consistent purity of spirit in one pass than batch distillation in a pot still, which suits producing neutral spirit for gin, vodka, or as an in-house alternative to buying in neutral spirit from a third party. A pot still, by contrast, retains more of the character of the base ingredients, which is why whisky and many characterful spirits are still made in pot stills even at large scale. Many distilleries eventually run both.
Does adding a column still need a new HMRC approval?
If you already hold HMRC approval to operate a still at your premises, adding a column still is typically a variation to your existing approval rather than a completely new application, though HMRC will still need to assess the new plant. Build the expected timescale for this into your equipment delivery and finance drawdown planning rather than assuming the column can be installed and run the moment it arrives.
What deposit do I need for a column still?
Hire purchase typically asks for a 15 to 25% deposit, similar to pot stills, though given the larger total value of most column still deals, lenders will look closely at trading history, cash flow and what the column is being used to produce before confirming terms. An established distillery with several years of trading history is generally offered better terms than a start-up attempting to begin with a column still.
Can I finance a used column still?
Yes, though the used market is smaller than for pot stills, since column plant tends to be kept in long-term use once installed rather than traded as businesses scale. Where a used column does come to market, typically through a distillery closure or a major upgrade elsewhere, it can be financed subject to an independent inspection, usually up to around 15 to 20 years old.
Is a column still more expensive to finance than a pot still?
Column plant of equivalent output capacity generally costs more than a pot still, given the additional engineering involved in continuous distillation, so the total facility size tends to be larger for a comparable spirit output. The interest rate itself is broadly similar to a pot still of similar value, since both are assessed as specialist distilling equipment with a narrower resale market than general brewing kit.

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