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Last year Matt Gutchess and Mandy Zinger were chatting with friends about fishing on Oneida Lake and their troubles finding a live bait shop. "I kind of said half jokingly, we should open something,” said Gutchess.
In a few short months, that idea had snowballed into a full blown business plan. Matt and Mandy took it to banks in search of a business loan and got a lot of good responses to the idea, but not the timing. "We started actively seeking out financing last year in late summer,” said Gutchess. “August, September, and that was right as the financial world was coming unglued.”
The plan kept getting turned down by banks until Matt heard about “Patriot Express” loans for veterans that were backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Matt is an army veteran and Mandy was in the reserves.
"It opened the door that where a regular bank was looking for 20 to 25% down, we were able to come in because of the guarantee of the SBA and the Patriot Loan at about 10%,” said Gutchess.
The SBA says the program has been especially successful in upstate New York and that the Syracuse office has written more than half of the Patriot Express loans in New York State since it started two years ago. Bernard Paprocki from the SBA pointed out that small businesses are responsible for 70% of new job growth and veterans have an excellent background for small business success. "Folks that have been in the military have been exposed to discipline in their lives and their careers and that plays well as an entrepreneur,” said Paprocki.
With the funds backed by the SBA, Gutchess and Zinger opened “The River Rat” Bait and Tackle shop in Brewerton two months ago. They say business is already off to a fast start. "In a scary economy and scary world right now, this is a positive,” said Mandy Zinger.
The pair is already considering an expansion for hunting supplies and guns. With 200 fishing tournaments on Oneida Lake each year, they say the business in the area should grow quickly.
