Business Expansion Coaching

DESCRIPTION

So, do you know how to expand a business? Some businesses are lucky enough to experience growth and expansion year after year. Fast growth can create its own set of challenges. These businesses can find themselves constantly trying to play catch-up. The key concern for these businesses is burnout.

When

December 2018

Who

Brian Cairns, Shannon Olivares

Eli's Story

"The business is going great, but I wish my life was. I find that I'm spending so much time working that I don’t have time for everything else. It’s not as fun as it used to be. I’m resent being so tied to the business, and I’m wondering if I should do something else. But my family needs the income so I can’t. I really feel stuck”

Seaside Chiropractic Clinic was growing rapidly. After several successful years in their new location, they found themselves at capacity. Dr. Ocean had seen this coming, but he was just too busy to take time away until the issue became obvious.

This is probably the most common problem we see. It easy to get overwhelmed with all the ‘business stuff’ because most professionals aren’t educated in business management. That means it’s easy to get caught off guard by everything that needs to be done to run a company well.

How We Helped Eli

Problem: Should I Expand?

Luckily, Dr. Ocean came to us early enough to intervene before things got out of hand. Dr. Ocean, like most small business owners, did have enough time to plan. He was so busy doing that didn’t allow time for planning. Who could blame him? He was working 50-60 hrs. a week. Unfortunately, this becomes a trap. You either burn-out, stop growing, and/or start shrinking. The one thing you don’t normally do is keep growing. Therefore, we had to ask the question, should I expand?

Solution: 3 Questions

Is demand consistently high and expected to be for the foreseeable future? Yes. Chiropractic services are one of the fastest-growing alternative health care options in the United States. Chiropractic supply in New York was vastly lower than demand. Is the business is profitable? Yes, but it was showing some wear and tear. Running at capacity meant they became less efficient. Can you expand the business with minimal disruption to your current business? No one could take time away to focus on expansion, but that’s where we came in to help manage this process.

Problem: How Much? By When?

Eli passed the tests with flying colors, so the next step was to determine which type of funding we would pursue. We made out a budget of all the things that he needed in a new office: equipment, facilities, people. The only real challenge was that Dr. Ocean waited a bit too long, and he was a risk of damaging his business because patients were starting complain about wait times and getting appointment. He needed to act quickly.

Solution: Commercial Loan

With this information, we knew that a commercial loan from a major bank was the way to go. He had enough collateral, credit history, etc. to make him attractive to commercial bankers. The SBA process would have taken too long, and thus, it wasn’t pursued. By going the commercial route, we need to have the location selected before seeking capital since we knew the bank needed that information to support approving the loan. Luckily there was commercial space within the same neighborhood in Manhattan that we could easily convert quickly.

Problem: Why not SBA?

This isn't as much of a problem than it is a missed opportunity. Commercial loans from a large bank are great, but SBA backed loans are even better. In general, they offer lower rates and longer term. Ultimately, that means lower monthly payments, and that's what usually impacts the business the most.

Solution: Needed Fast Approval

We filed the application and received approval within 30 days of submission. Like we said, good credit history, a clear business plan, a tight and well-explained and justified use of funds, and a location where there was proven demand, made this an easy sell.

We acquired the space. Made the renovations. Purchased the equipment. Recruited the staff. Dr. Ocean oversaw and approved everything, and within a short amount of time, the new office was ready to go. Dr. Ocean has continued to grow, and he started the process early so the SBA route was an option for his next expansion.