Providing a shot in the arm for existing local businesses — and for entrepreneurs who dream of going into business for the first time — Sault MP Terry Sheehan announced $1.5 million in FedNor funding for the Community Development Corporation of Sault Ste. Marie & Area (SSMCDC) at its Queen Street East office on Wednesday.
The funds go to the SSMCDC over a five-year period for loans to help small and medium-sized Sault and area businesses with operating costs and also provides business counselling to current business owners and entrepreneurs launching their first business venture.
“Small businesses are the lifeblood of any community. They really are. Depending on what statistics you look at, 80 per cent of the jobs related to any community are in small business,” Sheehan said at Wednesday’s funding announcement.
“It’s tough in the first three to five years for small businesses but for those that use business counselling, their success is continual,” Sheehan said, noting the importance of such counselling, like that offered by the SSMCDC, in addition to government funding.
The SSMCDC arranges loans ranging from as little as $1,000 for yard care businesses or hair salons and, in some cases, up to $300,000 for larger businesses.
“Our clients include hairdressers, the medical health industry, small manufacturers, restaurants and bars,” said Dan Friyia, SSMCDC executive director, speaking to SooToday.
Entrepreneurs can approach the SSMCDC with a business idea, apply for loans for new equipment or repairs to existing equipment or even the purchase of a building.
The success of businesses leads to job creation, Friyia said.
Friyia said that the $1.5 million in funding received by FedNor Wednesday, based on past experience, can provide business counselling for approximately 500 enterprises, loans for approximately 75 businesses and can mean 250 to 300 jobs being maintained or created.
Melissa Thompson, Whisky Barrel co-owner, was on hand for Wednesday’s funding announcement.
Thompson opened her business in 2018, having received loans through the SSMCDC for renovations, the addition of a patio and eventually the purchase of the pub building itself.
“Five years ago I said ‘I have this plan to open a pub on Gore Street.’ Gore Street wasn’t the most popular area although the city has done a marvelous job in improving the street. The CDC helped me launch that business by investing in our business for renovations at the start. We received a loan and renovated the whole front of the building. We eventually opened a patio and the CDC was there to support us again,” Thompson said.
“We probably couldn’t have jump started our business as early or as quickly or even at all without their help, back in 2018. We’ll be celebrating five years in November. We’ve created a base for 10 to 13 employees. We also wouldn’t have jobs without them as well,” Thompson told SooToday.
Thompson said she shares MP Sheehan’s views on the importance of small businesses to a community.
“They create an environment and a place that you don’t get at a big box store. It creates friendships and a story in our community. Without them you’re just a mark on the map,” Thompson told an audience gathered at the SSMCDC office.