WELCOME !

Thanks for dropping in for some hopefully great business info and on occasion some hopefully not too sarcastic comments on the state of Business Financing in Canada and what we are doing about it !

In 2004 I founded 7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL. At that time I had spent all my working life, at that time - Over 30 years in Commercial credit and lending and Canadian business financing. I believe the commercial lending landscape has drastically changed in Canada. I believe a void exists for business owners and finance managers for companies, large and small who want service, creativity, and alternatives.

Every day we strive to consistently deliver business financing that you feel meets the needs of your business. If you believe as we do that financing solutions and alternatives exist for your firm we want to talk to you. Our purpose is simple: we want to deliver the best business finance solutions for your company.



Friday, July 27, 2012

Secrets To Growth Finance in Canada . Get Rid Of Business Funding Challenges Once And For All!







Canadian Business Financing



Information on growth finance strategies and tools for successful business funding in Canada




Business funding in Canada. As a manager or business owner growth finance tends to be ' top of mind ' when it comes to your job of being able to identify both the type of funds you need as well as the timing around that challenge.

Growth and yes, even survival in Canada revolves around three key elements, profit, cash, and general cash flows. If you ultimately can't get positive closure on those three issues, simply speaking, your firm won't survive, and we read about those casualties in the Canadian business papers everyday. It's ironic, but even companies that are experiencing some serious challenges can quite often be in growth mode.

The fundamental concept around growth finance is simple - as you sell more you need to build up more inventories, receivables, and probably some measure of fixed assets.

In the case of inventory and A/R you simply need stock on hand and your customers of course want, and often demand credit terms. Some even want better credit terms!

It might not be obvious, but as you grow you automatically become eligible for growth finance - as you pay you obligations in the ordinary course of business and customers pay you , you are in effect getting some measure of business funding - generally though .. NOT ENOUGH!

As your payables increase you have the ability to manage them for greater cash flow - in effect you're stretching your payables or asking your valued suppliers for better / longer terms. However, if suppliers perceive you as unable to pay, or slow pay you might find they are unwilling to assist, and in fact taking the opposite tact of shortening payment terms.

Whether you think business is great ( cash flow, profits, sales ) , or if you're experiencing challenges in any of those areas you cannot lose the fact that you need some measure of supplier finance as well as external business funding .

Many firms that find themselves in a crisis look to a couple time tested tools to accelerate cash flow internally. They do that by monitoring and focusing on sales to inventory and sales to A/R relationships. Managing those two carefully typically can get any company back on track.

Business funding in Canada, for the majority, is done via or chartered banks. But many firms find they might no longer be in a position to either get any business credit, or, as common, the amount of credit they need.

So are there secrets and alternatives to other Canadian business financing alternatives? New capital and cash flow can come into your company from a variety of sources.

They include:

Receivable financing
Asset based lending
Sale leaseback / bridge loan strategies
Tax Credit Monetization
Unsecured cash flow loans

All of these are available from a variety of sources. The trick or challenge rather is determining which one you need, when, and from whom?


Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor who can assist you in determine solutions to growth finance.




7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

CANADIAN GROWTH FINANCE EXPERTISE








Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/growth_finance_business_funding_canada.html











Thursday, July 26, 2012

Can You Buy Your Competitor Via An Asset Based Lender ? Unique Acquisition Strategies!





Here’s A Great Asset Based Lending Strategy To Finance An Acquisition !

Information on how you can use an asset based lender to buy a competitor via a acquisition finance strategy .. that works!




Ever had the idea to buy a competitor? Even more so have you wondered how this acquisition could possibly be done? One method is to use the service of an asset based lender to complete such a deal.

Even more interesting ... we couldn’t help but catch an article in one of the two leading business dailies in Canada... it said... (To us it screamed!) ‘BUY A COMPANY FOR NO MONEY DOWN! ‘... and this was from one of Canada's leading investment advisors!

The concept here was simply all about ' assets ' and a formula derived from Ben Graham, who is acknowledged as being one of the most prudent and smartest investors ever. (Buffett is a student of Graham... so something there must be working!

The actual formula Graham used to derive this strategy was to take all the current assets of a company, deduct all liabilities, and get a number he called ' net working capital '. If you know a bit about your competitors financial statements you will know this formula is not always going to work ... but if it did... well you have got the makings of a deal!

There is of course one key assumption here which is that all the assets are worth what they say they are worth on the balance sheet. Naturally there has to be some factoring of what they are really worth but that new number can be financed by your asset based lender, allowing you potentially to complete a transaction .

In essence what you have done here is used a finance strategy to finance the collateral in the company.

There are of course many reasons you might wish to acquire a competitor - they include revenue growth, economies of scale, market domination, etc. In many cases you might be aware of a motivated seller, perhaps a firm who is in financial difficulty or who wishes to execute some sort of exit strategy for the owners.

In most cases an asset based lender will have to consider paying out the current lender, which well might be a Canadian chartered bank. Other issues that need to be addressed are the potential profitability of the new firm going forward. Issues that can also help you move the transaction forward are your ability to normalize earnings and assess need for further assets. Also a vendor take back is a great strategy at this time.

Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor who can assist you to by or acquire a competitor via an asset based lender acquisition strategy.



7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

CANADIAN ASSET BASED LENDING AND ACQUISITION FINANCING EXPERTISE



Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/asset_based_lender_buy_competitor_acquisition.html

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Growth Financing Challenges ? Don’t Trade Off Growing Due To A Cash Flow Problem !





Canadian Growth Finance Problems .. and Solutions!


Information on growth financing challenges in Canada . Don’t let a cash flow problem prohibit your company growth!





Growth financing in Canada. It's a harsh reality for many business owners that with new found revenue growth comes a cash flow problem. Knowing why that problem exists and what to do about it is what we're talking about today.

Cash flow goes higher and lower with growth. Simple as that. But why those changes ? That is the key question. It's because your working capital accounts change all the time, every day in fact. Those working capital accounts are receivables, inventory, and your payables on the other side of that balance sheet.

So if there is any one point you can take away here its that as your assets and payables increase your business cash flow goes.... DOWN! It therefore goes without saying (almost) that if your sales go up and your working capital assets such as inventories and A/R stay the same or decrease your working capital cash flows get ... Better!

It’s your ability to either finance, or turnover those working capital accounts that will ultimately make you successful in growth financing and solving any cash flow problem you have.

The big take away here, again, is that you have to watch your receivable and inventory growth. Not all companies have an inventory challenge, such as service Type Company, but pretty well all of us have A/R. One internal way you can address a cash flow and working capital challenge is to slow down payables. As we have pointed out in the past that is a very double edged sword given that you value your supplier and vendor relationships which can often be key to long term success.

Don't forget also that when your sales go down for whatever reason that also has, somewhat ironically a positive effect on your working capital. The trick here is to also reduce some of your expenses as much as you can.

It's also a good tip, over time, to monitor your levels of inventory and A/R in conjunction with sales going up and down. That's because it’s simply a great tool for predicting better or worse cash flow in the coming months based on history.

So is a cash flow problem necessarily a bad thing. Ironically, definitely not. It's all about the reason for that issue, which typically in a good environment is growth.

We've talked a lot about internal issue and knowing when and why a problem might exist. But a better questions form clients is of course ' what solutions exist?! '.

Here the key rule of thumb is to match the right type of financing with the actual problem. To put it even more clearly, finance shorter term working capital with short term cash flow solutions. In this case we're talking about some traditional and not so traditional solutions.

In Canada they included bank lines of credit, receivables financing, working capital facilities, non bank in nature that finance both A/R and inventory, as well as purchase order or supply chain financing. If you have a SRED claim you can even finance that for short term cash flow, as these loans don’t even carry monthly payments!

Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor for solutions to growth financing.



7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

CANADIAN GROWTH FINANCING SOLUTIONS





Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/growth_financing_cash_flow_problem.html



Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Don’t Overlook These 5 Leasing Finance Issues Around Lease Documents In Canada




Don’t Forget These Issues When Leasing Assets In Canada !


Information on leasing finance in Canada and the importance of address key issues within lease documents when financing equipment and other assets.




Leasing finance in Canada. Just how important is the issue of ' lease documents ' when it comes to equipment financing in Canada. When you speak to companies who have encountered what we can diplomatically term as ' issues ' in the past with their lease transactions you just might find that a lot of those issues revolve around key terms and obligations in your transaction.

Let's examine 5 of those key points, with a focus on protecting your rights in the transaction with a fair lease transaction - because at the end of the day also those same issues have to be fair and make sense to your lessor.

We would also point out that many of these issues can be negotiated and that’s important for the Canadian business owner and financial manager to know.

First of all it makes great sense to consider signing one master lease with your leasing company of choice. Why ? If only for the issue of saving time and money , as this type of document addresses once and for all , the terms of all future lease transactions . Larger transactions will tend to always have a ' master lease ' scenario in place anyway given the complexity of a larger transaction. It's not all that complicated, but many firms might want to have their lawyer look the document over once, as it identifies the rights an obligations of both parties and describes the financial terms of the deal.

Second issue today ... warranty. Make sure you understand your warranty rights on any asset you purchase. Many Canadian business owners/ managers confuse, mistakenly, the finance firm as their ' vendor ‘. That is not the case... they are financing the transaction for you, not providing a warranty. It gets very complicated, and somewhat ugly, when businesses withhold payment to their lessor for product defect issues.

In Canada there are two types of leases essentially when you enter into a lease contract - a capital lease ( lease to own ) and an operating lease ( lease to use) . Capital leases typically have what is known as a ' hell or high water ' clause in them which basically means that you agree to make your payments, no matter what!

The third issue to watch out for is the issues of liens and registrations against any asset you purchase. This typically is not a problem is your are purchasing from a legitimate vendor , but leasing finance in Canada also means you can finance used equipment - so its critical that you ensure that you and the lease company have clean title to the asset .

Fourth issue today - taxes. Lease payments in Canada will include the provincial and federal portions of tax due on the monthly payment amount. Don't forget to budget these into your cash flows. This issue brings out a positive advantage of leasing finance in that your taxes are in effect financed, unlike a loan type transaction.

Our final issue today is the issue of use and return requirements. Examine carefully your obligations around the type of condition you must return the asset in when your transaction calls for an asset return to the lessor. And make sure the location and costs involved around that make sense to you the lessee. If you are entering into an operating lease and have the right therefore to extend the transaction or purchase the asset it just makes sense to maintain the asset properly.

Bottom line; don’t forget the ' terms ' part of any leasing finance transaction in Canada. Issues not addressed now will be costly and time consuming later.
Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor on assistance with lease documents and issues that protect your firm and enhance the true value of leasing in Canada.




7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL
CANADIAN EQUIPMENT FINANCING EXPERTISE






Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/leasing_finance_lease_documents.html



Monday, July 23, 2012

5 Methods Of Canadian Business Financing In Canada . Which Finance Companies Are For You?





The Money Is Out There – Here’s How ! And Where!


Information on access to Canadian business financing . Which finance companies and loans and services best suit your firm today?





Canadian business financing... It works when you have business owners and financial managers in Canada that know how to be successful with the right type of finance for their company - as well as a lender or institution who wants to share that success with yourself .

For the business owner the reward is growth and profit, for the lender its repayment with a reasonable rate of interest commensurate with credit risk.

When we speak to clients about financing choices its all about ensuring you understand the alternatives. Let's examine 5 of those.

One of the newer methods, relatively speaking, that Canadian firms use to finance growth is the selling of their receivables as they generate sales. This form of financing goes under a number of names: receivable financing, invoice discounting, factoring, etc. By employing this method of finance they immediately generate typically 90% of any sale into direct cash, with the other ten per cent, less financing costs, coming to them when their client pays.

Although there is a strong perception in the Canadian marketplace that this type of financing is expensive. It becomes less expensive when business owners utilize that cash to sell more, take supplier discounts, and purchase more effectively with new found cash. In truth this method of financing, quite frankly, works best when you are partnering with the right finance firm and have the right type of facility in place.

An even lesser known method of Canadian business financing is what is known as purchase order or supply chain financing. This works best when you have legitimate orders from bona fide clients and have a need to be able to pay your supplier significantly in advance of your own firm receiving final payment from your client.

PO and SUPPLY CHAIN finance can really float you through a busy season or time of year.

Smaller firms and retail organizations have a real challenge in financing their firms. This is because they traditionally don’t have the assets that are sought after by banks and other finance firms when it comes to working capital and cash flow financing. So the solution here becomes bridge loans that are typically collateralized by inventory and cash flows. Typically you would supply 3 months of recent bank statements to show inflows and outflows of your business.


80% of all North American businesses employ equipment financing in that it allows you to have up to date assets that won’t become obsolete during the time you need them for production, operations, etc.

Almost anything can be leased and financed, and all credit qualities are eligible based on the creative structuring offered by lessors in Canada.
As a business owner your choice becomes whether you enter into a capital lease or an operating lease, depending on the ultimate disposal of the asset at the end of the lease term.

That method of financing, i.e. lease finance brings us nicely into # 4 in our list of 5 methods of business finance. Here the concept is customer financing - i.e. offering a finance program for your clients when you have a product that can in fact be financed. Setting up a program with a qualified partner allows you to sell more, generate cash flow on the sale immediately, and be perceived by your client as a full service vendor that truly adds vale to their operations.

Finally, don't forget the government SBL loan, which is, bar none, the best available financing for new or established firms with fewer than 5 Million dollars of revenue. Great rates, terms and structures, and a solid solution for financing equipment and leaseholds.

Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor on putting together a package or financing request that properly positions your firm for financing success.


7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

CANADIAN BUSINESS FINANCING EXPERTISE






Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/canadian_business_financing_finance_companies.html


Sunday, July 22, 2012

Accessing Business Lending In Canada . Making The Right Financial Decisions When Financing A Business





Canadian Business Financing



Information on business lending in Canada . Financing A business comes down to why, how and where!




Financing a business in Canada. Decisions, decisions... decisions! It seems you always have unanswered questions - what type of business lending is best for my firm, what types of finances are available? ... who can we talk to .. and on it goes.

In fact the word ' debt ' keeps coming up when it comes to accessing financial solutions for your company... how much seems to ring a bell.

One of the things that business owners and financial managers often don't think about is the concept of ' fixed costs '. Those costs will always stay the same, no matter if your sales revenues and cash flows go up... or down. When times are great those costs stay the same and your company rises above the tide when it comes to profits, etc. However, if sales and cash flows decline your fixed costs unfortunately don’t fall in tandem.

It's all about leverage, and that becomes the double edged sword in business. That leverage that we associate with fixed costs and debt is risky but at the same time provides greater returns if your company is successful and growing.

We actually break leverage down into two different types - operating and financial. Financial is of course relating back to that debt and the amount we're willing to take on. Operating leverage on the other hand revolves around the amount of fixed costs you undertake.

No mater which type of leverage you’re talking about it always comes back to that balance act of how much is appropriate.

If you are not a public company it becomes a financial decision you make as to taking on debt ... unlike the public company you’re not in a position to go to the shareholders and ask for more equity . At the end of the day most Canadian business owners and financial managers borrow somewhere down the middle - by that we mean they don’t take on onerous debt, , yet they do take on some form and amount of debt .

One of the main decisions that business owners make around accessing business lending is the idea of making more return than the actual rates they are paying for debt. That becomes a challenge is your rates to finance are particularly high, which no doubt relates to your overall credit quality as perceived by lenders when financing a business in Canada. Your lenders, as we have pointed out in the past, DON'T share in the upside - they only want to cover off their risk and return. And if they have sufficient collateral or confidence in your cash flow all the better.

Canadian business owners benefit from leverage by accessing the right amount and type of financing. That includes equipment finances, term loans, bridge loans; asset based lending facilities, securitization facilities, etc. Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor on business lending in Canada, as it pertains to your firms needs.




7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

CANADIAN BUSINESS FINANCING EXPERTISE




Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.webpage66.com/business_lending_financing_a_business_canada.html

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Business Credit Squeeze ? Rerum Cognoscere Causas ? Better Yet … Solutions !





Canadian Business Financing - Unsqueezing the Squeeze!


Information on business credit and financing solutions in Canada.
Causes and finance remedies for Canadian companies.




Business credit and financing solutions in Canada. We saw a headline that screamed out of a U.S. publication indicating that small and medium sized businesses in the U.S. were in a ' CREDIT SQUEEZE'. And that got us to thinking ... Rerum Cognoscere Causas? Which is simply Latin for ' knowing the cause!

So we're in Canada ... is there a credit squeeze here for the SME (small and medium sized enterprises) sector... and if so, how can your company eliminate the squeeze?!

When it comes to business financing it’s about daily operating cash flows as well as growth financing. How you manage or solicit solutions to those two challenges ultimately will affect the long term success of your business. And without good solutions and information the short term can be quite painful might we add!

As a company in the SME sector in Canada you're vulnerable at a lot of levels... the economy, the crazy things your competitors do and the fact that these days almost any global issues can almost be biting your firm also! So access to working capital and business credit financing is critical.

Many clients we speak to are immediately always focusing on outside external cash flow financing solutions. The reality is that a lot of their problems can be fixed by a focus on cash from their own operations. And the last thing most owners want to do is to focus on equity financing, which at its simplest just reduces your ownership and long term equity potential.

So how do Canadian business owners and financial managers address those internal solutions? We recognize it's easier said than done but it's done by focusing on your collections and payment terms, maximizing solutions around electronic payments and business credit cards, and managing payables and supplier relations.

But getting back to external solutions now, how then can the owner address business credit financing solutions in a manner that makes sense? You do that by identifying which of the three (or perhaps all three) types of financing you need from external sources.

What are those three types of financing? They are:

Fixed financing
Working capital financing
Growth financing


In Canada numerous external solutions exist for all those three types of financing you need to be successful. Those solutions include : Canadian chartered banks, receiving financing facilities, working capital solutions via non bank asset based lines of credit, leasing and sale leaseback solutions, and even tax credit monetization and securitization when those two apply to your firms condition. And remember, under all of those solutions you are not giving up equity.

Don't also forge the government Small business loan program which is a great program for business capital for asset and leaseholds up to a maximum of $ 350,000.00.

So, are we in a credit squeeze in Canada in the SME sector? We'll let the economists and business pundits argue out that one as they always do... instead focus on internal and external solutons that make sense for you, the Canadian business owner and financial manager.

Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor on eliminating that credit squeeze!

7 PARK AVENUE FINANCIAL

BUSINESS CREDIT AND FINANCING SOLUTIONS EXPERTISE






Stan Prokop - founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial –

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Originating business financing for Canadian companies , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing . In business 7 years - has completed in excess of 80 Million $$ of financing for Canadian corporations . Core competancies include receivables financing, asset based lending, working capital, equipment finance, franchise finance and tax credit financing.
Info re: Canadian business financing & contact details :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/business_credit_financing_solutions.html