Quality Bottles
Scaling a Sustainable Packaging Business with Support from Let’s Do Business Finance
Quality Bottles is a fast-growing supplier of high-quality amber glass bottles and glass jars tailor-made for the essential oils, holistic health, natural wellness, and cosmetic industries. Operating from their warehouse in Manningtree, Essex, the business has quickly built a reputation for reliability, sustainable packaging choices, and excellent customer service.
Behind the company’s rapid rise is founder Rowland, an industry veteran who ventured out on his own after decades in the packaging sector. But scaling a product-heavy business is not simple and for Quality Bottles, access to the right finance became the turning point in unlocking the growth Rowland envisioned.
This is the story of how Let’s Do Business Finance, supported by the Growth Guarantee Scheme from the British Business Bank, enabled Quality Bottles to move from a promising startup to a thriving, job-creating local business.
A Founder with Deep Industry Roots
Rowland’s business venture began in 2018 when he started Quality Source Ltd, an ecommerce business, selling lithium batteries and electronics for leisure and lifestyle products. That business gave him invaluable experience in running a company, but his passion remained firmly in packaging.
Whilst Quality Source ran in the background, Rowland managed a packaging company elsewhere. In 2025, after feeling that the company's culture no longer aligned with his values, he took the leap to go out on his own. Taking over the online packaging business CBD Bottles, he rebranded it as Quality Bottles and changed the model from third-party fulfilment to stock-holding distributor.
“I felt like there was a growth opportunity within packaging. There are very few regulations compared with other industries, and I knew the market was there.”
His vision was simple: good quality products at a fair price, with an eco-conscious approach to packaging.
Rowland’s years of experience in the packaging industry gave him a deep understanding of the diverse markets that rely on high-quality containers and the specific pressures those businesses face. He recognised early on that makers in sectors such as aromatherapy, homeopathy, natural wellness, candle making, cosmetics, distilleries, food and supplements, as well as specialist industries like glue and ceramic coating, all need packaging that is eco-friendly, cost-effective, and shipped quickly. Many of his customers are highly eco-conscious (some even returned plastic packing materials to avoid contributing waste) so offering sustainable, recyclable, and compostable packaging became central to his approach. Rowland also understood that these small manufacturers value fast, personal service; the ability to call and speak to someone knowledgeable; and reliable that offer same-day dispatch. This insight into both the expectations and values of his customer base shaped Quality Bottles into a supplier that could genuinely meet the practical and ethical needs of a wide range of industries.
Building a Business from the Ground Up
From day one, Rowland chose independence over private equity or external ownership:
“I've set this up on my own using my own funds. I wanted to keep the business effectively family owned.”
But self-funding a stock-heavy business comes with challenges. Glass bottles and jars are low-cost, high-weight items, meaning profitability comes through volume, pallets, and containers. Stock also takes up to four months to arrive from production to warehouse, placing huge pressure on cash flow.
Despite early success with orders increasing 10-fold in recent months from its early days, the business needed significant working capital to keep up with demand.
The Challenge: A Strong Business with Limited Ability to Secure Finance
When Rowland began seeking finance to grow Quality Bottles, the timing couldn’t have been worse.
COVID-19 had hit his previous business hard, leaving historical accounts that didn’t reflect the new venture’s strength.
“Because of that, we were a business which on paper had no assets and historical losses. Trying to get loans against that was virtually impossible.”
Banks were hesitant. And without funding, Quality Bottles couldn’t secure the stock levels needed to keep up with its explosive growth.
A Local Support Network Leading to Let’s Do Business Finance
Seeking help, Rowland contacted Colbea, who introduced him to Robert Laurie at Business Support Programme Backing Essex Business. From there, Robert connected him with Anthony Harrison at Let’s Do Business Finance.
Let’s Do Business Finance (LDBF) is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and Responsible Finance provider offering tailored financial support to small and growing businesses across the South East and East of England.
Anthony took a different approach when accessing the business’s viability for finance, visiting the warehouse, understanding the model, and looking past historical figures to the potential of the business, this was the turning point.
The Growth Guarantee Scheme: Unlocking Finance for Growing SMEs
The funding provided by Let’s Do Business Finance was made possible through the Growth Guarantee Scheme (GGS) from the British Business Bank.
What is the Growth Guarantee Scheme?
The GGS helps small and medium-sized businesses access finance by providing lenders with a government-backed guarantee. This allows responsible lenders—like Let’s Do Business Finance—to offer facilities to businesses that have strong potential but may struggle to meet traditional lending criteria, often due to:
● lack of assets to secure against
● thin credit history
● temporary downturns (such as post-COVID trading)
For companies like Quality Bottles, the scheme helps unlock working capital, support investment, and accelerate growth without requiring founders to risk personal assets.
“The Growth Guarantee Scheme has let us grow quicker than we would have done without it.”
The Impact: Rapid Growth, More Stock, and a Larger Warehouse
The loan enabled Quality Bottles to:
● Place multiple large stock orders, reducing the risk of running out of high-demand lines.
● Replace expensive short-term borrowing, improving cash flow stability.
● Install four-tier warehouse racking, expanding storage capacity from around 100 pallets to over 260, effectively more than doubling usable warehouse space.
This transformation allowed the business to keep pace with rising demand. In the last 90 days alone, Quality Bottles has fulfilled over 1,000 orders, with 400 in the most recent month.
Looking Ahead
Quality Bottles is now employing two full-time staff and two part-time staff, creating valuable opportunities in a local area that has faced economic challenges. The business is also committed to operating sustainably, using recyclable and compostable packaging wherever possible. For Rowland, the mission goes beyond profit, it's about building a responsible, community-minded business that contributes positively to its surroundings.
Rowland’s next target is ambitious but firmly within reach:
“I want to be doing a million turnover by May 2025 or on target to do that each month.”
With strong customer demand, expanded warehouse infrastructure, and a solid pipeline of stock, Quality Bottles is well-positioned for continued growth and long-term success.
For Quality Bottles, the finance secured through Let’s Do Business Finance, enabled by the Growth Guarantee Scheme, has been transformational.
“The finance we had from Let’s Do Business Finance has been instrumental in enabling our growth.”
It allowed Rowland to invest in stock, infrastructure, and people—turning a self-funded venture into a thriving, scalable, and sustainable business with a bright future.
Quality Bottles is now not only meeting the growing demand for high-quality, food-safe, eco-friendly glass packaging it is strengthening the local economy and helping hundreds of small brands bring their products to life.
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