California-based gut health brand BelliWelli has secured a flexible, asset-based credit facility from Assembled Brands, featuring no financial covenants, no annual fees, and immediate customer payment processing to fund its expansion into national retail accounts like CVS and Sam’s Club.
The Bottom Line
- Asset-Backed Expansion: The new financing structure includes Amazon FBA inventory, standard inventory, and wholesale receivables in the borrowing base to maximize capital availability.
- Operational Freedom: The facility operates without financial covenants or lockboxes, allowing BelliWelli’s finance team to direct cash flow based on business needs rather than quarterly tests.
- Rapid Execution: Assembled Brands took the financing process from initial term sheet to final closing in less than two months.
Financing Viral Growth and National Retail Expansion
BelliWelli has transformed its viral marketing presence—anchored by its “Hot Girls Have IBS” campaign—into serious national retail distribution. The California-based maker of dietary fiber supplements and gummies currently ranks as the No. 3 branded fiber product at Walmart and Target. To keep pace with rising demand and upcoming autumn retail launches at CVS and Sam’s Club, the brand needed a specialized lending partner. Assembled Brands stepped in to structure a facility that specifically recognizes these emerging asset classes.
“BelliWelli turned online buzz into national distribution in just a few years, and that’s what our financing model is designed for. A brand at this stage has real assets, but most banks aren’t ready to lend against them yet. We value those assets for what they’re worth today, and we moved quickly to build a flexible line that can scale with the company as it adds doors,” said Kunal Kohli, Managing Director at Assembled Brands.
Structuring the Borrowing Base Around Amazon FBA Inventory
The financing agreement introduces distinct structural efficiencies designed to optimize liquidity for omnichannel brands. By including Amazon FBA inventory directly into the borrowing base alongside traditional inventory and wholesale receivables, Assembled Brands allows a greater share of the company’s existing assets to support borrowing capacity. Furthermore, the inclusion of an accordion feature provides BelliWelli with a clear pathway to scale the credit line upward without triggering a costly refinancing process or renegotiating a completely new facility.
| Facility Feature | Traditional Bank Model | Assembled Brands Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Inventory Inclusion | Excludes or heavily discounts FBA stock | Includes Amazon FBA inventory in borrowing base |
| Financial Covenants | Mandatory quarterly test metrics | Zero financial covenants |
| Payment Processing | Multi-day processing delays with ongoing interest accrual | Immediate application to principal with no hidden float |
Eliminating Lockboxes and Float Charges
Beyond inventory valuation, the credit facility removes traditional friction points that typically drain working capital from growing consumer product companies. The agreement contains no lockbox requirement, meaning customer payments continue flowing directly into BelliWelli’s operating accounts. Standard commercial lenders often hold customer remittances for two to three days before applying them to the principal balance, allowing interest to accrue during the processing window. Assembled Brands applies incoming payments immediately, a mechanism expected to save BelliWelli tens of thousands of dollars annually in interest expense.
“Assembled Brands looked past the viral moment and saw the business underneath it, from our retail receivables to the customers who keep coming back. Now we can say yes to new accounts without waiting on the last payment to land, and keep up with rising demand,” explained Tyson Woeste, COO and Co-Founder of BelliWelli.
Removing Covenants for Strategic Agility
For BelliWelli’s internal finance team, the complete absence of financial covenants represents a critical operational shift. Traditional credit lines often force management to restrict inventory purchases or slow marketing expenditures to satisfy strict quarterly leverage or liquidity tests. By stripping out these constraints, the company can make inventory and distribution decisions driven purely by commercial opportunities across its direct-to-consumer channel, TikTok Shop, Amazon, and physical retail partners.
“What a finance team needs most from a lender is availability it can plan around. With no financial covenants, our decisions are driven by the business rather than a quarterly test, and the Assembled Brands team took us from term sheet to close in less than two months, with no surprises along the way,” noted Ben Wetzel, VP of Finance at BelliWelli.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
