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The oven is off and they fridge and freezers are gone, what does the future ...

11.10.11

Darin Culbert is a well-practiced brick oven baker, as the third generation proprietor of Culbert's Bakery. Though an estimated 50 to 60 thousand dollars worth of supplies were lost in the fridge and freezer units, the bakery kitchen itself was not damaged in the storm.

Culbert's Bakery is perhaps one of the most cherished establishments in Goderich's downtown core. Known far and wide for its signature delight, the cream puff, the bakery has been operating within the heart of the community for 134 years.

All this was of little consequence to the unforgiving and destructive winds of the August 21 tornado, which tore apart the community and ravaged its landscape. The bakery's original clay brick oven operated almost uninterrupted at 48 West Street until the winds put an abrupt stop to its gas and power feed and crumpled major buildings surrounding the cozy kitchen.

Culbert's is counted among the very lucky of the West Street block between Waterloo Street and Courthouse Square. Owner, operator and baker Darin Culbert says damage was limited to mostly cosmetics, including windows and display cabinets that shattered at the force of the 300 kilometre an hour winds. Some of the mainstays of any bakery worth its weight in rolls were damaged beyond repair, including the immense refrigeration and freezer units housed in the former horse stable area at the back end of the building, which also lost one of its outer walls.

Source: Goderich Signal-Star

Obtaining Business Loans From Neighbors

07.10.11

In January 2010, Ben Slayton and his wife, Erin Cinelli, tapped personal savings and borrowed money from their parents to buy a butcher shop in Wales, Maine. After using more of their own funds and a small loan from the state to pay for improvements, including a $20,000 energy-efficient freezer and a $28,000 poultry-processing space in the back of the shop, they struck out when they applied for bank credit to get additional equipment.

Last spring the couple, who employ four workers and are projecting $400,000 in 2011 revenue, stumbled onto No Small Potatoes , an investment club comprised of 18 individuals in Maine who each contribute $5,000 to a pool that supports local, sustainable agriculture. After vetting the application and visiting the shop, the group loaned them $5,000 at 5 percent interest, with a three-year repayment schedule. Slayton, 36, says the investment helped him land further credit from other sources. “That loan from No Small Potatoes told us that people in our community think we’re a smart outfit and they were willing to put their money behind us. It was the first time that someone told [us] we were doing good work.”

Source: BusinessWeek