Volusia County-based Company Selected to Participate in State’s GrowFL Economic Gardening Program

HOLLY HILL, Fla. – Mediatech, a manufacturer of all-wood workstations, podiums, desks and presentation control systems, has been accepted into GrowFL, a state-funded program that provides free technical assistance to small businesses.

Founder and Chief Technology Officer Lou Gallo started the Holly Hill-based company in 1990 to sell products to the federal government through contracts with large defense contractors.

Today, with 24 employees in Holly Hill, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio and Texas, Mediatech designs, manufactures and integrates advanced presentation systems primarily for higher education, as well as governmental agencies.

Gallo said the affiliation with GrowFL should help accelerate his company’s growth tremendously.

“It will give our company the infrastructure and professional support it needs to reach the next level,” he said.

A part of the Florida Economic Gardening Institute, GrowFL was created in 2009 by the Florida Legislature and is based at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. When selecting businesses to participate, the institute looks for ones that have potential, according to Dr. Tom O’Neal, executive director of the Florida Economic Gardening Institute.

“Mediatech has shown that it has the potential to grow and be successful, but just needs a little assistance,” said O’Neal, who also is associate vice president for the University of Central Florida’s Office of Research and Commercialization.

GrowFL will support Mediatech through a number of services, including access to market research and technology, strategy analysis, CEO roundtables and forums, database research and website optimization.

For more information about Mediatech, visit www.gomediatech.com

About Mediatech:
Founded in 1990 by Lou Gallo, Mediatech develops integrated all-wood workstations, podiums, desks and advanced presentation control systems for colleges and university classrooms, as well as for the federal government.

About the Florida Economic Gardening Institute:
The Florida Economic Gardening Institute was created by the 2009 Florida Legislature as the Economic Gardening Technical Assistance Program to stimulate investment in Florida’s economy by providing technical assistance for expanding businesses in the state. Qualified companies must be engaged in the following sectors to receive no-cost technical assistance: Manufacturing; Finance & Insurance Services; Wholesale Trade; Information Industries; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; Management Services; and, Administrative & Support Services. Additional information is available at www.GrowFL.com.

Mercantile Capital Corporation closed on commercial loans totaling $5.8 Million in June

Mercantile Capital Corporation closed on commercial loans totaling $5.8 Million in June

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - Mercantile Capital Corporation, which specializes in U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 loans for small business owners who want to acquire or develop their own facilities, closed on four commercial property loans valued at more than $5.8 million in June.

Geof Longstaff, chairman of Mercantile Capital Corporation, said the firm’s largest loan in June was for $4.2 million and will fund the acquisition and renovation of the Old Mill Crab House in Ocean City, Md.

Longstaff said he expects to close on some 15 loans during the third quarter of this year and more than 20 loans during the fourth quarter.

For more information, contact:

Geof Longstaff, Chairman, Mercantile Capital Corporation 407-786-5040

Chris Hurn, Chief Executive Officer, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040

Shannon Marks, President/COO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040

Larry Vershel, Larry Vershel Communications 407-644-4142

Expansion of SBA’s latest initiative could have dramatic impact on Small Businesses, National Economy, says Chris Hurn

Expansion of SBA’s latest initiative could have dramatic impact on Small Businesses, National Economy, says Chris Hurn

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - The U.S. Small Business Administration’s helpful decision recently to extend its SBA-504 lending program ---which helps small business owners who want to acquire or develop their own facilities---doesn’t go far enough, says Chris Hurn, chief executive officer of Mercantile Capital Corporation in Altamonte Springs.

Hurn’s analysis, which he published at www.504Experts.com, is getting some major media traction, including a lengthy interview in the New York Times.

The most recent SBA initiative---announced last February and put into effect recently---extends the SBA’s 504 lending program to include refinancing.

Hurn gives the SBA credit for extending the 504 loan program. But the SBA initiative requires businesses to use new funds for expansion purposes only.

“That’s the kink,” Hurn said. “How many small businesses are in an expansion mode in this economy?” he asked.

Billions of dollars worth of potential small business loans go unfunded every year, Hurn said.

“That money needs to be in the marketplace to have any positive effect on small business growth. The $255 million,” Hurn said.

The numbers back Hurn’s proposition: SBA 504 loans are down 41.5 percent this fiscal year and the total dollar amount funded has dropped 42.5 percent from last year.

“The SBA is moving in the right direction, but the positive impact on small business growth in the U.S. would be explosive if SBA would lift its restriction to small business expansion and open the door to true refinancing,” Hurn added.

For more information, contact:
Chris Hurn, Chief Executive Officer Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Shannon Marks, President, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Larry Vershel, Larry Vershel Communications 407-644-4142

U.S. Economic Stimulus Program Contains Promising Elements,But Not Enough, Lender Says

U.S. Economic Stimulus Program Contains Promising Elements,But Not Enough, Lender Says

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - The U.S. Economic Stimulus program has many good elements that will help small businesses but some miss the point, according to Christopher Hurn, chief executive officer of one of the nation’s leading providers of U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 loans for small business owners.

Hurn, CEO of Mercantile Capital Corporation based in Altamonte Springs and a popular speaker at banking conferences and seminars who posts his own blog at http://www.504blog.com/, said the U.S. Economic Stimulus program deserves kudos for promising to buy up to $15 billion worth of guaranteed SBA loans.

Hurn said the stimulus package also eliminates all SBA fees on both SBA 504 loans and the agency’s SBA 7(a) loan program at a cost of $245 million.

In addition, the administration has announced it will waive capital gains taxes for small business owners who hold or have held their shares for a minimum of five years.
“Those are positive signs for small business owners,” Hurn said.

“The Treasury buys in the secondary market will add liquidity to the banking environment and thaw out the secondary market and commercial lending---small business lending,” Hurn explained.

But, Hurn cautioned, temporarily eliminating fees on SBA loans won’t have much effect on economic stimulation or job growth.

“Fee elimination, even on a temporary basis, doesn’t impact small business owners that much because these aren’t out-of-pocket fees. These fees are actually financed in the loans, so even though it sounds good rhetorically, I don’t know that it’s going to have much of a stimulative effect,” Hurn said.

Hurn said the stimulus program fails in some other regards as well.

“We haven’t addressed any taxation at all,” he said. “There are no new higher tax credits for 2009, which I think would help grow the job base if properly incentivized. There is no mention of a payroll tax holiday for 2009. That would put more dollars in employees’ and employers’ pockets, and these are the kinds of elements that would have an immediate effect and jump start the economy,” Hurn said.

For more information, please contact
Chris Hurn, CEO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Geof Longstaff, Chairman, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Shannon D. Marks, COO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142

University of Central Florida Business Incubator Hosts Round Table for Entrepreneurs, Small Business Principals

University of Central Florida Business Incubator Hosts Round Table for Entrepreneurs, Small Business Principals

WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. - The University of Central Florida Business Incubator in Winter Springs is hosting the Entrepreneur Round Table to help entrepreneurs and small business owners learn how to respond to startup and organizational challenges with sustainable solutions.

Esther Vargas-Davis, site manager at the UCF Business Incubator in Winter Springs, said the Entrepreneur Round Table is a collaborative effort organized by Chad Eaves, president of Eaves Consulting in Oviedo.

The Entrepreneur Round Table is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28, admission is free and open to small business owners and entrepreneurs in the Winter Springs and Oviedo areas. The Round Table, which will include dinner, will be held at the Incubator’s offices at 1511 E. S.R. 434, off Hwy. 417 in Winter Springs.

“The Entrepreneur Round Table is a chance for small business entrepreneurs to engage in dialogue about their experience as small business owners, discuss challenges they are facing and gain new perspectives on developing sustainable solutions,” said Vargas-Davis. “It’s an open forum, and participants collaborate in developing solutions,” she said.

“Through the Entrepreneur Round Table, we bring together businesses that are just beginning with ones that have been operating for over ten years in different industries,” said Eaves. “This Round Table provides an open forum with diverse perspectives and experiences that support peer mentoring, targeted troubleshooting, and ultimately helps foster the entrepreneurial spirit in Oviedo and Winter Springs.

“By connecting as small businesses owners and leaders, we can help our community grow competitively and strategically,” Eaves added. “This has been a great partnering effort between Eaves Consulting, the UCF Business Incubation Program, the City of Winter Springs, the Oviedo-Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Seminole Community College SBDC.”

The Entrepreneur Round Table meets monthly every last Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Winter Springs Incubator. See http://entrepreneurroundtable.ning.com/ for more information.

The UCF Business Incubation Program in Winter Springs is a partnership between UCF, Seminole County Government, the City of Winter Springs and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council.

For more information, contact:
Esther Vargas-Davis, Site Manager, UCF Incubator-Seminole County, 407-278-4881
Tom O’Neal, Ph.D., Executive Director, UCF Business Incubation Program, 407-882-1102
Chad Eaves, President, Eaves Consulting, Inc., 321-244-1788
Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142

About the UCF Incubation Program:
Since its founding in 1999, the UCF Incubation Program has helped more than 100 emerging companies (including nearly 70 current clients) create over $500 million in annual revenue and more than 900 new jobs with an average salary of $59,000. With five facilities across the Greater Orlando community, the Incubation Program is a collaboration in economic development between the University of Central Florida, Orange County, the City of Orlando, Seminole County, the City of Winter Springs, and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council. For more information, please visit http://www.incubator.ucf.edu/.