Lendus.

Shop Fit Out Finance

Spread the cost of retail fit-outs from £15,000 to £300,000+ with flexible finance options. HP, lease, or an unsecured loan for fixed works, compare rates from 40+ lenders.

Can you finance a shop fit out?

Yes, shop fit outs 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 £300,000, and most deals are written over 12–60 months with a deposit of around 10–20%. Decisions typically take 24 hours – 5 days. Used machines are financeable too, usually with a shorter term.

200+ UK lenders
2-minute application
No credit check to apply
FCA-regulated brokers

Typical Cost

£15k – £300k

Approval Speed

24 hours – 5 days

Fixtures fast, fixed works slower

Rates From

5.8% APR

What would a shop fit out cost per month?

£60,000
10%
60 months
9%
£0

Your estimate

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

Pre-filled with a typical shop fit out price. Indicative only, not a quote.

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Finance options

Hire Purchase (HP)

Rate
From 6.3% APR
Term
12–60 months
Deposit
10–20%
Ownership
Yours at the end
Best for
Hard fixtures with resale value, such as racking, tills and shelving units

Finance Lease

Rate
From 5.8% APR
Term
12–60 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return or buy (balloon payment)
Best for
Tax efficient; claim 100% of payments against profit

Operating Lease

Rate
From 6.6% APR
Term
24–48 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return at end
Best for
Refresh the look of a store on a lease cycle. Off balance sheet.

Representative example

On a purchase price of £60,000: a 10% deposit of £6,000, then 48 monthly payments of £1,266 at 5.9% APR representative (fixed). Total amount payable £66,768, 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
Slatwall & Gondola Fixture Package £15,000 – £40,000 Retail Fixtures
Point of Sale & Counter Fit-Out £8,000 – £20,000 Till Point
Shopfront & Signage Package £10,000 – £30,000 Exterior
Full Store Fit-Out £60,000 – £200,000 Complete Store

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Tax benefits

How a shop fit-out is taxed depends on what it is made of. Moveable fixtures such as shelving, racking, tills and freestanding display units are treated as plant and machinery and generally qualify for Annual Investment Allowance, letting the cost be deducted from taxable profits. Items fixed to the building itself, including partitioning, flooring, ceilings and bespoke joinery, are treated as part of the property rather than as plant, and follow a different set of capital allowances rules. A specialist accountant should confirm the split for your specific project before you claim.

Market context

A shop fit-out is the hardest thing to finance in retail because it is really two different types of asset bundled into one project, and lenders judge them very differently. Hard assets with a resale market, such as racking, tills, freestanding fixtures and vehicle-style plant, can usually be financed as asset finance because a lender can repossess and resell them if a deal fails. Soft assets fixed to the building, such as partitioning, flooring, decoration and bespoke joinery, generally cannot be financed as asset finance at all because they have no value once removed from the property; these usually need an unsecured business loan instead. Understanding this split before applying is the single most useful thing a retailer can do when planning fit-out finance, since it determines which lender and which product a given invoice line will actually qualify for. If the retailer is a tenant rather than the freeholder, landlord consent for the works and the dilapidations clause in the lease also affect what a lender is willing to fund, since the lender wants assurance the fit-out will not have to be stripped out at the landlord's request before the finance term ends.

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 is a shop fit-out harder to finance than other equipment?
Because a typical fit-out mixes hard assets with resale value, such as racking, tills and freestanding fixtures, with soft assets fixed to the building, such as partitioning, flooring and decoration. Lenders can finance the hard assets as asset finance because they can be recovered and resold if needed. Soft assets usually cannot be financed this way at all, since they have no value once separated from the property, so they typically need an unsecured loan instead, often run alongside the asset finance agreement for the hard fixtures.
Can I finance the whole fit-out on one agreement?
Not usually as pure asset finance. Most brokers will split a fit-out quote into the fixtures and equipment that qualify for asset finance and the fixed building works that need an unsecured loan, then run both in parallel so they complete around the same time. Some lenders offer a blended facility that packages both, but the underlying split between hard and soft assets still applies to how the deal is priced and secured.
I'm a tenant, not the freeholder. Does that affect my finance?
Yes. Lenders will usually want to see written landlord consent for the works, particularly anything fixed to the building, and will check the lease's dilapidations clause to understand whether you could be required to strip the fit-out out before your finance term ends. A short lease remaining relative to the finance term is one of the most common reasons a fit-out application is scaled back or declined, so it is worth checking your lease length before applying.
What deposit do I need for a shop fit-out?
For hire purchase on the hard fixtures, most lenders ask for a 10 to 20% deposit. Finance leases are often available with no deposit. Unsecured loans covering soft, fixed works are assessed more on the business's trading history and affordability than on a fixed deposit percentage, and terms are usually shorter, typically 12 to 60 months, than asset finance on equipment with a longer useful life.
How quickly can I get shop fit-out finance?
Straightforward applications for the hard fixture element are often approved within 24 to 48 hours. The unsecured element for fixed works generally takes a little longer, as lenders review trading history, the lease, and landlord consent, typically 3 to 5 working days. Running both applications at the same time, rather than one after the other, is the fastest route to a single completion date.

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