How Lovet improved payment speed and cashflow planning with Instarem
This article covers:
The Company
Based in Singapore, Lovet has built a loyal customer base with its focus on stylish, functional women’s apparel—alongside curated selections for men, kids, and lifestyle accessories. As a small to mid-sized brand, the Lovet team strategically outsources manufacturing and logistics to stay lean, while keeping creative direction, branding, and customer experience firmly in-house.
But as the business expanded across borders, managing international payments and vendor relationships became increasingly complex and costly.
The Challenges
In the fashion retail world, cashflow can be unpredictable. Production requires upfront investment in inventory, marketing, and logistics—often well before sales revenue is realised. This timing gap between outgoing and incoming funds made financial planning difficult.
Lovet also faced growing external pressures.
“Geopolitical risks can disrupt our supply chain and affect inventory flow, especially for imported goods,” explained Shanell Chan, Finance Lead at Lovet.
“At the same time, inflation drives up costs and impacts consumer spending, so we’re constantly adjusting pricing and sourcing. And with retail being so seasonal, we have to plan our inventory and campaigns around peaks and dips in demand,” she added.
Key pain points included:
- Volatile exchange rates, affecting cost forecasting and profit margins
- Delayed international transfers, disrupting production and vendor relationships
- High fees and opaque processes, particularly when dealing with banks in different markets
- Seasonal demand spikes, requiring careful planning to avoid overstock or stockouts
On top of that, navigating banking regulations across supplier markets added operational strain to a small team.
The Solution
To streamline cross-border vendor payments and gain better control over FX exposure, the brand turned to Instarem. What stood out was the combination of competitive FX rates, fast transfer times, and a platform that didn’t require a finance degree to use.
“Since using Instarem, the payment process has become more systematic and streamlined. This has reduced manual work, improved cashflow visibility and contributed to greater overall efficiency in managing overseas transactions,” noted Shanell.
Onboarding was fast and frictionless. The intuitive interface and responsive support team helped the brand go live quickly and start simplifying overseas payments right away.
“Our experience working with the Instarem team has been smooth and straightforward. Communication has been clear, and we haven’t encountered any issues,” recalled Shanell.
The Results
Since switching to Instarem, the fashion brand has improved both cost-efficiency and payment reliability:
- Faster vendor payouts, improving production timelines
- Lower FX costs and transaction fees, preserving margins
- Streamlined payment process, reducing manual work
- Better cashflow visibility, allowing more confident inventory planning
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