Kingswood Comes Through For Local Brewery
“Less than 2 years into business and we needed to buy more equipment to grow. Kingswood Leasing came through with a deal that no one else could match. A year later we needed working capital to take advantage of a contract that otherwise would have hindered our cash flow. Now Kingswood has helped us get a small business loan and line of credit, which is enabling our next phase of growth at the brewery. Every time I have a financial need, Kingswood has come through.” – Mike Nadeau, Founder & CFO, Garrison City Beerworks
Garrison City Beerworks (GCB) entered the scene at the end of 2013 with the mission to become NH’s premier craft brewery. Fortunately for us, they took up residence just a couple blocks from our own primary office in Dover, NH. Founder Mike Nadeau didn’t need our help to get started, but after his initial investment to get going, he realized that much more would be needed to be as successful as he wanted to be. In 2015 Mike came to us to make a big investment in a canning system that would significantly increase the brewery’s ability to distribute the premium craft beer that they make. In addition to the canning system, Garrison City would need a lot of cans to take advantage of this new piece of equipment. The challenge for us was how to get this brewery that was less than 2 years old the full amount of money that they needed in order to accomplish the full order of equipment and cans.
The Equipment Loan
Garrison City qualified for the best start-up rates available in the marketplace, and had several options of how to finance the canning system. The ‘soft costs’ of the project, however, including the large inventory of cans, exceeded the normal 25% allowance of the transaction. In this case the shipping, installation, accessories and inventory was a whopping 55% of the total transaction we were attempting to finance. We could have separated the transactions, but that would have cost Garrison City Beerworks more in total. And we have great relationships with our banks, some of which we have been doing business with for 26 years. So we leveraged our experience and great relationships to earn an exception on this deal that would typically be unheard of. The bank would finance the full amount for our neighbors down the block. We made every attempt to do what was best for our client, and our funding source rewarded us and our client with everything they needed to get the job done.
Working Capital Loan
About a year later, Mike came to us looking for a line of credit. His primary need at the time was to secure a yearlong hops contract that would set up the next years’ worth of craft beer production. True business lines of credit have been harder to secure for businesses since the economic recession of 2008, and at that time Garrison City Beerworks did not have enough time in business to earn what was reserved for more established companies. But that didn’t mean that Garrison City didn’t have other options for working capital. Small business loans are one of the industry’s most popular products and any company with more than 6 months’ time in business can secure a short term unsecured business loan based on the strength of their monthly deposits. Fortunately for Garrison City, their monthly deposits exceeded the amount that they needed to secure the hops contract, and we secured for Mike a small business loan equal to what he needed. That loan helped smooth out GCB’s cash flow and set them up for sustained growth.
Term Loan & Line of Credit
Well into their third year in business and GCB is growing again. They have expanded their service and capacity and have sustained year over year growth every year in business. To take advantage of the opportunity before them, GCB needed the tools that other established businesses have at their disposal. We are so pleased to play our part in securing GCB a 5-year term loan and a true business line of credit, both of which were earned by Garrison City Beerworks for all their hard work and dedication. It truly is an honor to watch a business grow and succeed. And regarding Garrison City Beerworks, we can’t wait to watch what they do next!
Are you a Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce member?
Working with local businesses is an experience unlike any other, and we could not be more proud to serve Garrison City Beerworks. And as this experience with GCB shows, sometimes a hometown company can do things for you that no other company can. What could be better than that? How about a hometown discount?! From now on any Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce member will receive a discount on any contractual fees up to $250!
I am a Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce member! – I want a hometown discount!