LDI Growth Partners

04/25/2022

This article, while long, does a good job of explaining some of the dangers.

The real world horrors I have helped business owners work themselves out of in the last 10 years would make your toes curl.

While I am admittedly biased, factoring is a safer and healthier financing product for cash strapped businesses.

Merchant cash advances are not inherently bad, but as the industry has boomed over the last decade since the Great Recession, it has become the playground of nefarious funders. Grant Phillips gives a detailed history of the growth of the MCA market and why (and how) regulations must put it in check.

02/18/2022

A new client, of less than 60 days, started crying this morning when we were talking about how to get payroll funded today. He said:

"I have been in business for more than 30 years. I have never had anyone who was so calmly in my corner and just wanted to help me. I cannot begin to tell you how much this means to me. Thank you so much."

Being calm in the face of entrepreneurial calamities, helping clients find solutions and reminding them to breathe...

This is why we do what we do.

09/21/2021

Not just young professionals. We all need to fail better because failure is often where we learn the next great lesson.

The last line is the gem.
..failure is inevitable, complacency is a choice.

Young professionals. We need to fail better. We need to become comfortable with the idea of stumbling over obstacles. We need to stop feeling paralyzed by the anticipation of failure. Failure is not a source of shame. It is a badge of honor. It is progression. Let me explain.

07/27/2021

There were a lot of moratoriums in 2020. Where there were no moratoriums, there were slow downs. There is not a sector of our lives or the economy that has not been affected.

As we are just over the halfway point in 2021, many of those moratoriums have been lifted and in many sectors, the world is speeding up.

It looks like one of those moratorium/slowdowns coming to an end is with the IRS. No, it doesn't mean you will be getting your refund faster. It means that starting next month, filing liens will be moved up the priority list.

This will impact credit matrices across the spectrum.

As credit scores and various risk models take the influx of tax liens into account, more lines of credit/loans and funding sources will be pulled/termed out.

This will further impact those same credit matrices.

It is a vicious circle.

If your business is dependent on being able to access cash through a traditional credit product, today is the day to start putting a back up plan in place.

Factoring might be a great back up plan. The only way to know is to ask.

07/15/2021

Most entrepreneurs and business owners use their own money in their businesses.

This decision by WF will absolutely impact the cash management and cash flow of many businesses.

Who do you know whose business will be negatively impacted if the owner loses a personal line of credit?

Those folks could be candidates for factoring.

Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf has been forced to make hard decisions during the pandemic, offloading assets and deposits and stepping back from some products.

04/01/2021

“We are hearing from our trade association members that, in 2021, lenders hope to resume more normal origination activities,” MacDonald says. “While volumes may never reach pre-pandemic levels in the short term, there is acknowledgement that continuing to provide credit to small businesses is paramount to the recovery and health of the U.S. economy.” (last paragraph)

I believe the key phrase here is "resume more normal origination activities". Often times in traditional bank lending, it is normal to require 2-5 years of profitability...as reflected on tax returns.

Many businesses owners were happy to simply survive 2020 and know it was large in part because of PPP and EIDL money. Now, as tax returns are filed and losses are showing up, these same business owners run the risk of losing their access to capital because their profitability clock is starting over.

In factoring, specifically, the business does not have to show profit on its tax return. We simply need to understand why there are losses. 2020 is about the best reason there is.

Who do you know who needs a cash flow secret weapon? Who do you know who provides essential products and services and they are are not sure their bank is able to help them navigate the post-COVID landscape?

Let's talk.

Daniel J. Rose from the Small Business Financial Exchange provides an in-depth look at small business credit in 2020 and outlines how originations, deliniquinces and utilization shifted throughout such a challenging year.

03/31/2021

Work/life blending is one of my favorite topics...

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03/03/2021

From a fellow factor in Arizona. Thank you, Robyn.

PPP money literally saved lives and businesses in 2020.

What now?

Most banks will not talk to you about traditional lines of credit unless you are showing 3+ years of profitability on your taxes.

2020 starts that clock over again for many businesses.

We had to innovate to get through 2020. We have to keep thinking outside the box as the business community rebuilds.

Factoring could well be that outside the box solution you need.

Many businesses, with a sigh of relief, are receiving their 2nd PPP loan this month. For these businesses, which showed a 25% decline in revenue versus 2019, PPP loans were a lifesaver.

02/26/2021

There are a LOT of non-traditional, non-bank financing options for your business.

Don't give up because the bank turns you down.

Nearly a year into the COVID-19 pandemic that has strained California’s economy and public health system, small businesses across the state continue to experience significant financial setbacks. A new survey of California small business owners reveals that their struggles are being exacerbated by ...

02/23/2021

There is nothing particularly new or earth shattering in this article. It is, however, a good reminder that we are only as good as the people on our team. And, while how we build and manage teams is a little different in a COVID-world, the need for those teams is even more critical.

I have worked from home for almost 16 years - since way before it was cool. In the early days of COVID, I would tell people that nothing in my world had really changed...sitting at my computer, working in my pajamas was just another day at the office.

Except is was different. Back to back Zoom meetings, day in and day out was not the same as back to back coffee meetings with clients, colleagues and networking partners.

Virtual happy hour WAS different than having friends sit around the table visiting (and drinking my wine).

Speaking to groups of 15-50 WAS different when they were inhabiting a little box on my computer screen and I was inhabiting a little box on theirs.

I did not realize the toll it was taking on me - physically and mentally, until Fall. Since then, I have been taking steps - big and small steps - to find new ways to connect with the people on my teams - personally and professionally.

We have to find ways to connect with people. One of the things that makes us...us...is our ability to connect.

Take care of your people first by asking them what they need. Find ways to bring connectivity into focus. Recognize that your team - your people - are the greatest asset you have, in your business and in your life.

We will get through this. We will.

COVID will pass. It will.

COVID-19 has placed an extreme emphasis on physical well-being, but the pandemic has also caused a mental health crisis. How can managers assist their team members during this unprecedented time?

02/16/2021

While this article is written for lenders and finance folks, the recommendations are spot on for anyone who received money from the CARES Act.

#4 is my favorite of the recommendations.

If you received ANY funds from the CARES Act, make sure you can back up where every single dime was spent AND that you were eligible to receive the money to begin with. There are entire industries (like finance) that were not allowed to participate.

Remember - guidance for the administration of the CARES Act did not come out until AFTER people started receiving money. Make sure you have a team around you who can help you sort through all of the questions that come up.

Do not put yourself or your business in the cross-hairs because you can't show where the money went or that you should have gotten it at all.

Source: abladvisor.com, Date: 2/10/2021 5:00:00 AM, Article: Setting the Stage … Forensic accountants and many in the financial advisory world are intimately familiar with the “Fraud Triangle” developed by criminologist Donald R. Cressey and promoted by the Association of Certified Fraud Exami...