Topps Tiles, the UK’s number one tile specialist, has tapped bank payments company GoCardless to power the payments behind Trade Pay, its newly launched trade credit scheme which gives traders the ability to regularly pay on credit in Topps Tiles stores.
Thanks to GoCardless, traders can now pay their monthly instalments through Direct Debit, with the funds automatically collected on the day they’re due. This provides an easy, effortless way to stay on track with repayments and free up lines of credit to keep growing their business.
The Trade Pay launch is a significant strategic move for Topps Tiles, accelerating its push into the trade market. The retailer knew that lines of credit were important to these customers and had previously offered its trade credit scheme through a third-party finance provider. The arrangement was convenient but costly, with fees charged per transaction.
In a bid to further improve its customer service whilst improving its margins, Topps Tiles tried to bring its lines of credit in-house — but managing them directly led to hours of manual admin for the finance team, including time spent chasing late payments.
GoCardless emerged as a top payment partner when Topps Tiles began to look for technology to streamline its payments. By making the Direct Debit mandate creation and payment process entirely digital, Topps Tiles will reduce the days it takes to receive payments, in addition to eliminating manual work and making processes more efficient for its support office.
Customers will benefit from a better experience, gaining peace of mind and saving time with instant Direct Debit setup.
Neil Williams, head of PMO and development from Topps Group, said: “After successfully moving our Trade credit service to an internal scheme we wanted to make it as easy as possible for our customers to manage and pay for their account, and GoCardless seemed the perfect partner to add a direct debit facility to our TradePay credit scheme”
Pat Phelan, managing director of UK & Ireland and chief customer officer at GoCardless, said: “We’re proud to power the payments behind Trade Pay, enabling Topps Tiles to bring lines of credit in-house in a way that protects their margins without overburdening their teams with manual admin. By using our bank payments platform, Topps Tiles can quickly scale in the trade market, safe in the knowledge that they’ll be paid on time by happy customers through a seamless payment experience.”
