Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I I I N O. V I I B A N K I N G / F I N A N C E / I N S U R A N C E C aribou native Taylor Nadeau was in his mid-20s, working a routine 9-to-5. "I was kind of getting annoyed with it," he says. "I thought there had to be more out of life as far as working." He had an idea to start an automo- tive detailing business. "It's really fulfilling to see a car come in dirty and leave looking brand- new," he says. He consulted the website of Caribou's Northern Maine Development Com- mission and spoke with commercial loan officer Josh Nadeau (no relation), whose work includes helping microenterprises. Josh helped Taylor get a $24,000 micro- loan through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program, or RMAP, to pay for equipment and other start-up costs. Taylor launched TGN Detailing in May 2018. e small business thrived, with one to two employees handling about 500 cars per year and further plans for cosmetic services like vinyl wraps. In 2020, Josh proactively contacted Taylor and walked him through the Paycheck Protection Program. "You can call a credit card company and you have to go through a bunch of people," Taylor observes. "What's nice about this organization is — it's the neighbor, the handshake, knowing I have a problem and not having a middle man. It's the one-on-one connection and the willingness to help." An easy loan Willingness to help is a big part of the story around the Rural Microentrepre- neur Assistance Program, considered key for launching and expanding small businesses in rural areas. "We have clients come to us and say, 'I went to the bank and I asked for $25,000 and they wanted 20% down. And I don't have 20% down but I could use this money,'" says Josh Nadeau. "For us, $25,000 is an easy loan. RMAP fits a niche that a lot of other funding doesn't." Congress created RMAP in 2008 to provide loan capital and grants to nonprofit organizations, community- based financial institutions, and local economic development councils. e organizations provide technical ser- vices and fixed-interest microloans up to $50,000 with a 10-year maximum term to rural microentrepreneurs, those with 10 or fewer employees. In NMDC's service region of Aroostook and Washington counties, "Microenterprise activity has been quite active, even through the heart of the pandemic," says Nadeau. P H O T O / F R E D F I E L D Taylor Nadeau, foreground, owner/operator of TGN Detailing has a big smile now that his car, truck, boat and bike detailing business is off the ground. TGN is in Connor Township in Aroostook County. Northern Maine Development Commission loan officer Josh Nadeau, background, made a microloan possible. F O C U S A P R I L 4 , 2 0 2 2 18 S M A L L LOA N S Microloans are fueling a range of small businesses BIG IMPACT W I T H A B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r

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