Exciting times as finance business goes through rebrand

FOR almost a decade, Barossa Lending Services has been a trusted name among South Australian farmers and regional communities, known for its personal approach and deep understanding of rural finance.

The Barossa-based business has now entered a new chapter, becoming Farmscape Finance.

Farmscape Finance helps businesses with various financial and lending needs. Specialising in Agribusiness, this includes term lending, overdrafts, equipment finance, home lending and succession planning.

They act as brokers, working with a panel of lenders to find tailored financial solutions, manage the application process, and assist with ongoing loan management and business planning.

Farmscape Finance director Lachy Heinrich worked at BankSA for many years before making the change to become a broker, and said it was the best decision he had ever made.

Mr Heinrich said he had noticed more economic pressures on farmers in the past year due to the drought.

“Everyone’s financial circumstances are different, so everyone has different capacity to absorb lower yields or lower prices,” he said.

“We did have a busy first half of the year reviewing budgets with people and planning for the year ahead. In general people were looking at everything a lot more carefully.”

Farmers have had to tighten up their spending in some areas, and Mr Heinrich said helping them to focus on their long term future was a priority.

“Part of our role is to ensure that a business is viable long term and has flexible funding arrangements to support the variances of the seasons into the future,” he said.

Farmers face a growing number of challenges, from climate variability and rising land prices, to prices set in a global market.

According to Mr. Heinrich, long-term planning, “not just short-term borrowing, is essential for agricultural businesses to remain sustainable”.

“Farmers may need to borrow in the short term, but we need to ensure they can survive in the long term, and plan for other events such as retirement and succession,” he said.

He said the business was going through some big changes expanding and rebranding, with new partners Craig Clogg and Chris Brown joining the business.
“We are excited about the future of the business, and the opportunity to cover a larger portion of the state meant that we rebranded a few months ago.”

With fewer smaller farms surviving, with a requirement to get bigger in scale, access to land and capital remains important. Rising land prices, comparable to surging house prices, have made expansion costlier than ever.

He said if farmers don’t have access to sufficient acreage, they might need to work off farm or for a neighbour just to get by.

Mr. Heinrich stressed that succession planning was another critical issue often deferred. He said that these were big businesses now and year-to-year planning wasn’t enough and that they need to look ahead.

He also said stressed that having conversations with advisors and not putting them off was essential.

From a finance perspective, Mr Heinrich said Farmscape Finance offers distinct advantages over larger banks.

“We’re a small family owned business,” he said.

“Our clients know they’ll be dealing with the same people, which builds trust and consistency.

“That’s a big difference compared to banks.”

Their team’s industry experience means clients receive expert guidance, particularly when planning for the future.

They support clients with both business and home lending, which adds convenience.

Understanding lender expectations from the outset also makes the process smoother and less stressful.

As farmers navigate increasing uncertainty — particularly in times of drought — strong financial planning and support become even more crucial.

Farmscape Finance is located at Nuriootpa, and Minlaton.

If you wish to get in touch with Lachy or the rest of the team, visit the website (https://farmscapefinance.com.au/).