CT'ssmallbusiness fund has distributed nearly $40 million in low-interest loans
Jul. 28—"We just wanted to make sure the program is doing what it was set out to do, which is give access to capital to entrepreneurs all across the state, but especially those who have a difficult time getting capital through more traditional methods," said Alexandra Daum, commissioner of the state's Department of Economic and Community Development at New Park Brewing in West Hartford on Friday.
Daum said that inside the brewery's new Green Room, its second event space double in size of the business' first event space, allowing them to host larger gatherings and attract national touring music acts.
TJ Orscher, the general manager at New Park Brewing, said the business has been growing its footprint since it opened to a line of eager beer-drinkers in 2017. The low-interest loan they received only helped them grow further.
"We're very grateful for the Connecticut Small Business Boost Fund," Orscher said. "It not only helps small businesses access low-interest loans...but they also offer assistance and advice throughout that loan process, which was very helpful to us. We received tremendous support from everyone involved. The use of this fund has empowered us to expand our distribution, which has allowed us to bring beer to our customers and other small businesses throughout the state — bars, restaurants, package stores."
New Park Brewing opened its first event space in December 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even so, private events have been a big part of the brewery, known for its New England IPAs and fruited sour beers. The new and bigger space furthers that even more, Orscher said.
"Aside from making great beer, private events have been a main focus of ours for the past couple of years," Orscher said. "We've done weddings, corporate events, baby showers and 80th birthday parties. The Boost fund has allowed us to expand our events into this room we're in now."
Orscher said the growth also allowed the brewery to hire three new full-time employees, giving them 10 full-time employees and 21 part-time employees in total.
The loans are fixed at a 4.5 percent interest rate and range in size from $5,000 to $500,000. The funding is available to small businesses and nonprofits in Connecticut that have fewer than 100 employees and annual revenues of less than $8 million.
Daum said the fund was also intended to help in distressed municipalities, which they've done by awarding 33 percent of loans to businesses in those areas of the state.
"It's harder to do business in those cities for a whole list of economic factors," Daum said. "We're thrilled that a third of our loans have gone to businesses in those communities where it's just that much more difficult to do business. We're giving that extra boost to make it a little bit easier."
Importantly, Daum said, over 50 percent of the loans distributed so far have been given to women or minority-owned businesses.
"That was a big goal of the program," Daum said. "We had it top of mind. Every month we get a report and the first thing we look at is...are we actually reaching diverse groups like we intended to and the answer is yes."
Money is also reaching a wide variety of industries and areas of the state, Daum said, with over 25 different industries receiving loans.
"We've got a great amount of diversity in those businesses," Daum said. "There's a lot of diversity in industries. It's going into a wide array of businesses. We've got great diversity geographically. There's been a loan given out in over 50 percent of Connecticut's municipalities, so we're covering half the state."
Gov. Ned Lamont, who took a tour of the brewing facility beforehand, said boosting small businesses is key to Connecticut's economic future.
"Our future is about economic growth and our economic growth is in and around small businesses just like New Park," Lamont said. "That's what we're trying to do. I want to make sure that everybody gets that opportunity to get up and go like you guys do."
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