TALLAHASSEE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Florida First Capital Finance Corporation/First Capital Finance (FFCFC/FCF) is proud to announce two of its customers have been selected as 2022 Small Business Persons of Year for Alabama and Florida by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
The Small Business Persons of the Year Awards recognizes an exemplary entrepreneur from each of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. On Thursday, April 7, SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced that Roland G. Brown of Brown Precision, Inc. won the award for Alabama and Dennis Chan of Blue Bamboo Canton Bistro won for Florida.
“I am delighted to recognize our National Small Business Week winners from across the country who have stepped up to build their businesses, create jobs, and power historic recovery over the past year,” said Administrator Guzman. “Entrepreneurs are innovators and creators at their core, delivering the products and services we depend on and making our neighborhoods, towns, and cities more vibrant places to live and work.”
Brown Precision, Inc. (BPI) is a family-owned company with over 40 years’ experience in precision machining for clients in the aerospace and medical industries. The company manufactures complex components ranging from aircraft and helicopter components to artificial human joints.
Since Mr. Brown joined the company in 1995, BPI has grown to nearly 180 employees and over $22 million in sales. In addition to its 53,803 square-foot facility in Huntsville, Alabama in 2016, BPI opened a new 30,000 square-foot manufacturing plant in Atmore, Alabama.
In 2021, BPI took advantage of the below-market, fixed interest rates provided by the SBA 504 Debt Refinancing Program and consolidated their mortgage and equipment loans through FCF Business Development Officers Angie Sweatman and Drew Tomlin.
Located in Jacksonville, Florida, Blue Bamboo Canton Bistro is the latest chapter in a family history that includes multiple restaurants. Chef Dennis’ food-centric upbringing ultimately led him to the Culinary Institute of America.
Following an internship at Blue Ginger in Boston, Chef Dennis returned to Jacksonville and launched Blue Bamboo in 2005. In 2019, after leasing the existing restaurant space for 14 years, Chef Dennis purchased and renovated his own 4,300 square-foot building plus a 2,700 square-foot expansion with the help of an SBA 504 loan through FFCFC Vice President and Business Development Officer Kristen Tackett. The project retained 16 staff positions and created 4 new jobs.
Licensed by the SBA in 1984, FFCFC is Florida's original statewide Certified Development Company promoting economic development and job creation through the SBA 504 Loan Program. In 2019, the SBA authorized FFCFC to provide 504 financing in Alabama, doing business as FCF, and by August of 2021, FCF continued its successful multi-state expansion into Georgia.
FFCFC/FCF celebrates Mr. Brown and Chef Chan and applauds their determination and resiliency. They will be formally recognized on May 5 during the National Small Business Week (NSBW) Virtual Summit Awards Ceremony.
For more information about SBA 504 loans in Alabama, Florida and Georgia, contact Florida First Capital by visiting www.504.LOAN, emailing info@ffcfc.com or calling 800.504.LOAN.
