Financial Aggregation Without Aggravation

Restaurant financing stories can be the stuff of legends. We’ve all heard tales of aspiring restaurateurs borrowing from every mom, dad and Uncle Harry or maxing out multiple credit cards. In recent years, this form of aggregation has been supplemented with an alternative method as new avenues of financing have opened their doors to restaurants looking to open theirs … and keep them open.

When Hurricane Irene hit hard in the summer of 2011, Mark Verespy, owner of The Killarney, an Irish pub in Ludlow, VT, turned to Bizfi for financial help to keep his restaurant operating.

“The funds helped keep the business alive after Hurricane Irene and provided peace of mind,” said Verespy. He has used Bizfi’s services multiple times for repairs and expansions and has plans to return to the well in the future.  

“There are less hoops to jump through than traditional financing routes. We have a very old business that requires a lot of necessary repairs. It’s good to know they’ll be there and it’s not going to take seven weeks to get the funding.”

Founded in 2005, the fintech company’s business model combines aggregation, funding and a participation marketplace for small businesses on one platform. For restaurants, Bizfi can provide equipment financing, invoice financing, lines of credit, medium term financing, short-term financing, franchise financing and long-term loans from more than 45 partners.

The New York Restaurant Association (NYSRA)  recently selected Bizfi as the exclusive financial provider for its members, who will be able to access the Bizfi marketplace directly through the association’s website.

“Small businesses in the country have a real and viable go-to resource to help build a brand,” says founder Stephen Sheinbaum. “We understand cash flow issues pertinent to restaurants and other small businesses. We know how busy restaurant owners are and we walk them through the process to populate the application.”

On average, he says, the process takes 10 to 12 minutes and requires 12 pieces of information such as demographics and general financial data. Financing options can then be available in a matter of days. Bizfi is the only funding platform that allows a business owner to go directly to contract online. With its family of companies, Bizfi has provided in excess of $1.5 billion in financing to more than 28,000 small businesses in the the United States. Lending partners include OnDeck, Funding Circle, Kabbage, IMCA Capital, Bluevine, and SmartBiz. Bizfi also participates in funding on the platform.