Two Lee County small businesses receive PPP loans

Reporter: Breana Ross Writer: Jack Lowenstein
Published: Updated:
Credit: WINK News.

More money is going to small businesses. President Donald Trump signed a $484 billion bill to help employers and hospitals. This includes adding money to the Paycheck Protection Plan.

Small businesses in Cape Coral and Fort Myers said they’ve both already received their money, and it’s keeping them afloat.

Clinton Strand’s screen printing and marketing awareness company in Cape Coral is under some pressure because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“The day that they shut down the parks in Lee County, we lost a little over $29,000 in orders that day,” Strand said. “Then, they’ve been canceling and postponing ever since.”

But Strand says law enforcement in need of merchandise and the fact he received his PPP loan from Achieva Credit Union has helped him continue to run his business.

“We initially laid off one person to try to see what the structure was going to look like and how many people we were going to be able to keep,” Strand said. “Since the PPP came through, we were able to bring him back.”

And Strand is not the only one seeing the benefits of an approved PPP loan.

“It’s just a relief also knowing that they’ll still have a job and be able to get paid even though we’re a lot slower than we were a few weeks ago,” said Michael Peters, the owner of Java House in downtown Fort Myers. “So it’s nice.”

Peters says the money he received from Sanibel Captiva Community Bank allowed him to keep a full staff.

“It’s a relief knowing that the money is there in case I need it for payroll or rent or electric bill,” Peters said. “So that, if there is a struggle during this time, I’ll be able to make it until this is all over.”

Achieva has advice for other business owners planning to apply.

“Collect all those documents,” said Jennifer Galley, the COO of Achieva. “Fill out every field. Double check your work before you submit those applications, and that should definitely streamline and give you a better chance of getting that all the way through in a timely manner.”

Galley also said Achieva is accommodating everyone, including non-members. She told us people should continue to apply through the weekend. Banks are expecting the additional funding to be available as soon as Monday.

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