Cincinnati Interstate Battery Franchisee, Showing Business Leadership Characteristics, Awarded $15,000
Rodney Swope was close to signing a major business customer with 30 stores around Cincinnati. The problem? To effectively serve the customer, the Interstate All Battery Center® franchisee would have to hire several new employees and lease an additional delivery vehicle – and incur a significant amount of debt.
Thanks to an award from a local business organization, from showing business leadership characteristics, the path to growing market share just became easier.
The African-American Chamber of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky and The Business Backer, a business loan underwriter, recently honored Swope with two awards, one of which came with a $15,000 interest-free loan.
“We wanted to see how we could help local businesses hire more employees and increase revenue,” said Christopher Young, Business Development Manager at The Business Backer. “Rodney’s proposal got our attention.”
For its Local Business Stimulus Challenge, The Business Backer asked applicants for a one-page plan of how they would use the money to make the biggest impact on the local economy in the shortest amount of time. Swope’s entry detailed his plans for a new vehicle and four new part-time employees. The judges appreciated his attention to detail.
“What stood out the most is that he seemed to be very strategic and calculated about how he could use these funds,” Young said. “A lot of companies would jump and want to take it right now. He’s not going to take receipt of the funds until he has things in place. We felt strongly about Rodney’s business leadership skills and his outlook on his organization.”
Swope became an All Battery® strategic partner in 2009 and has steadily grown his business. In addition to the Business Backer award, Swope’s store was named Emerging Business of the Year by the African-American Chamber.
“We’re really thrilled to have been recognized and to have the opportunity to create jobs in Cincinnati,” Swope said. “Now, our next step is to sell more batteries. We’re working on a couple of large accounts, and having extra staff and an extra vehicle will help us serve their businesses better.”
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