The Challenge
For years, a Georgia food grower enjoyed a strong relationship with his local banker. However, consolidation in the banking industry led to organizational changes, and the bank closed the local branch.
Simultaneously, the grower’s industry began to evolve. In the past, they exclusively produced raw ingredients, however, the industry’s new demand for snackable proteins caught their attention.
The grower recognized this market opportunity and wanted to add a production line that made ready-to-eat, snack-size products. They knew the business needed to evolve, but because of the large equipment purchases, they needed to explore financing options.
Our Solution
The grower reached out to their contact at First American and explained that they wanted to expand operations into the on-trend and fast-growing packaged snacks market. This would require installation of an entire new production and packaging line.
First American offered a fixed five-year Fair Market Value (FMV) lease to cover the new equipment purchase and installation, while keeping the entire project off the grower’s balance sheet to avoid debt covenant restrictions.
Business Impact
The new financing allowed him to shift the entire business into a share of the market they were previously unable to reach. This transition has been so successful, they are considering expanding yet again into more, snack-focused product lines.