Small Business Loan program

The Mountainland Small Business Loan Program supports small businesses, expands economic opportunity, and creates permanent, long-term jobs within the region by providing gap and start-up financing to small businesses.

See below for program requirements and application instructions.

SUCCESS STORIES

“It feels good to know that someone else has an interest and stake in my business,” says Carmen Geddes of TenSisters Handicraft. Geddes has worked with the MAG Small Business Loan Program to develop and expand her business for the past several years. In that time, TenSisters Handicraft has gone from a side business to a full-time venture which has become the Geddes family’s primary income. The loan program has been integral to their success.

As part of the application process, the MAG Small Business Loan Program partners with the Business Resource Center (BRC) at Utah Valley University. Business counseling is provided free of charge to business owners to grow their business knowledge and increase the likelihood of success. Geddes worked with the BRC for a year and a half and found the experience to be extremely helpful. “Shawn with the BRC helped me evaluate every angle of my business and make plans to move forward with it,” said Geddes. “The loan program has helped me look a little bit further down the road instead of just one day at a time,“ she added.

To learn more about Ten Sisters Handcraft visit https://www.tensisters.com/

Located in beautiful Heber City, Zipline Utah draws adventure seekers year round. Founded in 2016, the business features zipline courses and rope course elements, including the longest zipline over water in the world! Jon Johnson, founder of Zipline Utah, loves the adventure and creativity of building ziplines for community use. After facing struggles with financing his unique venture, Johnson turned to the MAG Small Business Loan Program. “What the loan program really gave me was peace of mind,” said Johnson. He was able to finance many of his startup costs with funds borrowed through the loan program.

In partnership with the MAG loan program and the UVU Business Resource Center (BRC), Johnson received regular mentoring to help keep him moving in the right direction during his first year in business. Discussing his experience with the BRC, Johnson said, “As a new business owner, having mentors and counseling available to me was very helpful and kept me on track.”

Johnson has been working with the MAG Small Business Loan Program for the last five years. “The most rewarding part of my experience is going from a 9-5 job that was pretty mundane to being able to have an idea and carry that out to an actual working business,” said Johnson.

To learn more about Zipline Utah, visit https://www.ziplineutah.com/

Claudia McMullin is passionate about dogs. Her business, Hugo Coffee Roasters, donates 10% of every bag of coffee sold to animal rescue organizations. “I didn’t have any idea how much it would cost to start a coffee business,” said McMullin. Through the MAG Small Business Loan Program, grants, and self funding, McMullin has been able to grow a thriving coffee business in just six years. As of March 2021, $27,885 dollars have been donated to animal rescue organizations and 458 rescue dogs have been adopted through Hugo Coffee Roasters’ sales.

Hugo Coffee Roasters was started in 2015 with a mission to become the go-to coffee for animal lovers nationwide. “When starting the business I didn’t have the track record to acquire traditional business loans so the MAG loan was perfect!” said McMullin. Through the program McMullin was able to start and expand her business throughout the Park City area.

“I couldn’t be more appreciative of everything MAG and the loan program have done for my business and for their support, stated McMullin. “I would not be where I am without this program,” said McMullin.

To learn more about Hugo Coffee Roasters, visit https://hugo.coffee/

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

TO QUALIFY FOR A LOAN, BUSINESSES MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:

• The business must have 100 or fewer employees
• The business must be located in Utah, Wasatch or Summit County

• The request must fall within $10,000-$100,000

LOAN REQUIREMENTS

ELIGIBLE USES OF CAPITAL:

• Purchase of machinery/equipment or other fixed assets.
• Working capital (including inventory, accounts receivable, operating expenses, and labor).

• Refinancing of existing debt.
• Company relocation to another jurisdiction without job growth.

• The SBLP should work as a catalyst to stimulate the investment of private sector dollars. The borrower should make every effort to obtain private sector funding.

• Interest rates will not exceed 5 points above the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate (fixed over the loan term).
• Loan terms of 6 months to 5 years will be available.
• Loans will range from $10,000-$100,000.

• $27 Credit Report Fee (unless you provide a recent copy including your credit score).
• Origination and recording fees are 1.5% of the loan amount and are financed into the loan. These fees are used to defray administrative and monitoring expenses.

• A borrower must agree to create and/or retain one job for every $35,000 (approx.) borrowed.
• 51% of jobs created should be filled by or made available to low- or moderate-income individuals.

RESOURCES