PPP Loans Are Keeping Small Businesses Alive And Workers Employed

In A Recent Survey Of Small Businesses, 88% Have Received A PPP Loan

“88% of the [1,447] small businesses surveyed [by Babson College and David Binder Research for Goldman Sachs] say they’ve been approved and received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans from the federal government.” (“Axios Sneak Peek,” Axios, 5/31/2020)

• “74% of loan recipients have been able to maintain 75-100% of payroll.” (“Axios Sneak Peek,” Axios, 5/31/2020)

Small Business Owners: ‘Getting A PPP Loan Was Essential To Our Existence. It’s Kept Us Alive,’ ‘[My Employees] Were Able To Come To Work And Pay Their Bills,’ ‘The Money Kept Those Workers Off The Unemployment Rolls’

OKLAHOMA: “Just one week after A&J Transportation got its paycheck loan, its entire staff of truckers was out of work because producers shut down their wells as oil prices plunged in April. ‘We lived through the 2014 oil crash, the 2008 economic crash. This one is worse,’ said Dana Sanford, the office manager for the family-run business, which worked exclusively on oil fields. ‘We’ve never had zero oil work for this amount of time, ever.’ The loan arrived right as the work disappeared, so A&J used it to keep paying all its 72 employees, even though most had nothing to do but stay home. The money kept those workers off the unemployment rolls, Ms. Sanford said.” (The New York Times, 5/31/2020)

MINNESOTA: “When Minnesota closed its schools on March 18, business plunged at Arubah Emotional Health Services, which works extensively with children and families. ‘We lost about 40 percent of our clientele,’ said Anissa Keyes, the group’s founder and president. “But then, the pandemic caused a different, larger population to need support.’ Because medical reimbursements typically have at least a month’s delay, Arubah’s cash-flow nadir came in mid-April. ‘There was 37 cents in my business account,’ Ms. Keyes recalled. ‘It was right after payroll. The next day, the loan deposited, and I could breathe again.’ … The loan ‘was perfectly timed and gave us the perfect boost to sustain us,’ she said.” (The New York Times, 5/31/2020)

NEVADA: “As the shutdown began and large retail customers began canceling orders, [Joe Dutra, president and CEO of Kimmie Candy, a candy manufacturer based in Reno, Nev.] watched his cash flow plummet. He was seeking $350,000 to keep his business running. His financial consultant, Steve Trollope, suggested applying for the PPP through a smaller bank Dutra had worked with before — River Valley Community Bank in California…. Kimmie Candy received a PPP loan through River Valley in the first round and is using the money to keep about 20 people employed…. ‘We would have maybe been able to survive a month without that PPP loan, and then we would have had to probably shut down,’ said Dutra of Kimmie Candy. ‘We would’ve been dead in the water.’” (“Small Banks And Small Businesses Turned Out To Be A Good Combination When It Came To PPP Loans,” USA Today, 6/02/2020)

OREGON: “Darren Marshall, chief executive at Smith Teamaker in Portland, Ore. … was confronted with having to cut pay by 30% for 60 employees after the pandemic dented sales of the company’s artisanal teas, and he said Umpqua [Bank] quickly approved his application…. ‘Getting a PPP loan was essential to our existence. It’s kept us alive,’ said Marshall, 52, who received just under $1 million in funding that will help cover about two months of pay for his hourly employees.” (“Small Banks And Small Businesses Turned Out To Be A Good Combination When It Came To PPP Loans,” USA Today, 6/02/2020)

OHIO: “Jerricha Hoskins, founder and chief executive of Arcani Coil Care in Dayton, said the $8,000 PPP loan she obtained allowed her to pay overtime costs as her online hair care products business boomed during the shut down. She said she was able to keep up with demand by ordering thousands of plastic bottles before getting them became impossible and she hired six more people to round out her staff of about 20. ‘The ability to employ people during this pandemic when corporations are shutting down is amazing,’ said Hoskins, ‘A few of the girls that work for me they are in the hair industry, they are nail techs and hair stylists. They were able to come to work and pay their bills.’” (“Small Businesses Need Grit, Creativity And Cash To Survive Coronavirus,” Dayton Daily News, 5/31/2020)

OHIO: “Karen Gagnet, co-owner of Cocos in Dayton, kept the restaurant open with two full time and one part time employee, compared to the 22 she employed before the pandemic. Gagnet has now reopened the dining room and is gradually bringing back staff, using the PPP loan she obtained to pay bonuses to those who come back. She intends to continue curbside service as well and said the ability to adapt is critical for small businesses.” (“Small Businesses Need Grit, Creativity And Cash To Survive Coronavirus,” Dayton Daily News, 5/31/2020)

NORTH CAROLINA: “A Fayetteville chef, who missed out on the first round of the Paycheck Protection Program fund, is getting some relief the second time around. Chef Judith Cage, a local celebrity who’s made several appearances on the Food Network, had to furlough 80 employees and close down six restaurants in the Cumberland County area because of the pandemic. However, after qualifying for a portion of that $310 billion for small businesses nationwide, Chef Judy is planning to bring everyone back. ‘It touches my heart just knowing that I can bring folks back and gainfully employ people who need to work,’ Cage said…. About 25 employees are already in the process of re-training and preparing to work.” (“Fayetteville Chef Rehiring 80 Employees, Opening Back Up 6 Restaurants After Qualifying For Second Round Of PPP,” WTVD-TV, 5/21/2020)

• CHEF JUDITH CAGE: “Receiving the funds means that I can employ staff, I can keep the staff that I already have, and we’ll be good to go to open very soon.” (“Fayetteville Chef Rehiring 80 Employees, Opening Back Up 6 Restaurants After Qualifying For Second Round Of PPP,” WTVD-TV, 5/21/2020)

COLORADO: “Oakman Aerospace hasn’t furloughed anyone. In fact, the Colorado company is training two recent hires thanks in part to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a U.S. Small Business Administration initiative designed to limit the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. ‘We likened it to winning the Powerball,’ said Oakman Aerospace CEO Maureen O’Brien. That’s because Oakman Aerospace, one of the thousands of small businesses sharing more than half a trillion dollars in relief loans underwritten by the SBA, won’t have to repay the money if they meet the terms for loan forgiveness — namely, maintaining a steady payroll for the next two months…. For Oakman Aerospace, a firm with 27 employees and two interns, PPP money provides some breathing room. ‘It’s pennies from heaven as far as our business is concerned,’ O’Brien said.” (“Forgivable Loans In An Unforgiving Environment,” SpaceNews, 5/22/2020)

COLORADO & CALIFORNIA: “PPP funding allowed ExoTerra [Resources] and Stella Exploration to bring back employees furloughed when the pandemic halted work. ExoTerra of Littleton, Colorado, has 29 employees. Stellar Exploration of San Luis Obispo, California, has 11 employees. PPP funding means ‘we can continue working on projects for our customers, even with inevitable inefficiencies and productivity loss from the current conditions, and thus protect our current staff employment,’ Stellar Exploration President Tomas Svitek, said by email. Satellite component supplier Space Micro was surprised by the speed of its PPP loan. The San Diego company with 85 employees found the money in its bank account three days after learning its loan was approved.” (“Forgivable Loans In An Unforgiving Environment,” SpaceNews, 5/22/2020)

‘[F]ederal Rescue Loans During The Shutdown Have Given Smaller, Relationship-Driven Banks An Unexpected Opportunity To Showcase Their Strengths’: ‘We Go To Church With These People And We Go To School With These People And When They Call They Get Us’

“[F]ederal rescue loans during the shutdown have given smaller, relationship-driven banks an unexpected opportunity to showcase their strengths — especially their ability to quickly respond to customer needs. Banks with less than $10 billion in assets issued about 60% of loans in the first round of the PPP, according to the Small Business Administration.” (“Small Banks And Small Businesses Turned Out To Be A Good Combination When It Came To PPP Loans,” USA Today, 6/02/2020)

NEVADA: “James York and Jay Blood, the cofounders of Valley Bank of Nevada, said they were fielding calls nonstop to update customers on the status of loans. Bank employees worked weekends and late nights to process mountains of paperwork. ‘We go to church with these people and we go to school with these people and when they call they get us,’ Blood said…. Six employees handled loan processing for 145 clients across both rounds, according to a statement by Valley Bank. The total -- about $36 million -- represented about 38 percent of the bank’s normal annual loan volume. More than a third of those loans went to new clients…. York said[,] ‘Our clients are talking to their friends, saying, “Hey my bank can do it!”‘” (“Small Banks And Small Businesses Turned Out To Be A Good Combination When It Came To PPP Loans,” USA Today, 6/02/2020)

NORTH CAROLINA: “[C]ommunity banks have certainly picked up customers during PPP. ’We had a huge influx of new customers coming to us from the bigger banks, especially in round one,’ said Jim Engel, president and CEO of Aquesta Bank in Charlotte, N.C…. Aquesta Bank funded its first loan on the first day of round one and employees worked extra hours to ensure that applications went through, Engel said. The bank ended up being the biggest lender in the state over both rounds with under $5 billion in assets, according to reporting by the American Banker.” (“Small Banks And Small Businesses Turned Out To Be A Good Combination When It Came To PPP Loans,” USA Today, 6/02/2020)

NEW YORK: “Mark R. Lavarnway, CEO of Watertown Savings Bank, said the financial institution processed more applications to local small businesses than any other in the area for the federal Paycheck Protection Program, also known as PPP. In April, the Watertown Savings Bank processed 595 loans for $60 million to Jefferson County small businesses, keeping about 8,000 employees on the payroll at the time when the local economy was shut down because of the pandemic and businesses were struggling to survive. ‘For a small bank, we knocked it out of the ballpark,’ he said…. In 13 days, the bank processed 300 loans to businesses in the county and another 100 during the remainder of April, he said. Retired employees were brought in and the bank reallocated staff that would normally be waiting on customers to get the PPP applications out the door. ‘We worked very hard and got out an incredible number of loans,’ Mr. Lavarnway said.” (“Watertown Savings Bank Steps Up During Federal Payroll Loan Program,” NNY360, 5/23/2020)

NEW YORK: “Ridgewood Savings Bank, which has seven branches in the Bronx, has arranged for $11.6 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to help over 200 small business customers. A total of 30 loans will go to businesses in the Bronx. On average, businesses received approximately $58,000 each to help them keep paying employees and cover a portion of overhead expenses. Ridgewood is still making funds available to additional eligible business customers and community businesses that can apply to receive this assistance.” (“Ridgewood Savings Bank Gives 30 Paycheck Protection Program Loans To Bronx Businesses,” BronxTimes, 5/20/2020)

MINNESOTA: “Since the Paycheck Protection Program’s (PPP) launch in early April, [First National Bank of Moose Lake] has approved $8,163,000 in desperately needed liquidity for 69 businesses disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. FNBML provided PPP loans to its existing customers with the average loan size of $118,000. The bank’s PPP loans to current and new customers of FNBML preserved about 948 jobs at businesses in the bank’s market area. The staff of FNBML worked – sometimes around the clock – during April and May to help customers secure aid. ‘At FNBML, our employees were willing to make sacrifices to help our customers,’ said Larry Peterson, President & CEO of FNBML. ‘I could not be prouder of what our team accomplished in support of our local economy. Their effort clearly demonstrates that each one of them cares for our community. Each PPP loan represents jobs preserved in this time of crisis.’” (First National Bank of Moose Lake, Press Release, 5/21/2020)