Headlines

Stimulus Loans Could Be a $350B Payroll Lifeline for Small Businesses

In many cases the loans are forgivable.

Published

6 years ago

March 29, 2020

INSTORE Staff

The stimulus bill signed into law by President Donald Trump last week includes $350 billion in loans for small businesses.

The loan provisions, known as the Paycheck Protection Program, are part of an overall relief package worth $2 trillion, Inc. notes. The goal is to provide individuals and businesses an economic lifeline during the COVID-19 crisis.

The loans are meant to cover up to 10 weeks of payroll expenses, up to a maximum of $10 million. The money could be available within two weeks.

Inc. notes that the loans “can be converted into forgivable grants so long as the company doesn’t lay off employees.”

More details of the program are available here.

For more information on getting through these times, check out our COVID-19 Resource Center.

Read more at Inc.

Honoring a Legacy: How Smith & Son Jewelers Exceeded Every Goal With Wilkerson

When Andrew Smith decided to close the Springfield, Massachusetts location of Smith & Son Jewelers, the decision came down to family. His father was retiring after 72 years in the business, and Andrew wanted to spend more time with his children and soon-to-arrive grandchildren. For this fourth-generation jeweler whose great-grandfather founded the company in 1918, closing the 107-year-old Springfield location required the right partner. Smith chose Wilkerson, and the experience exceeded expectations from start to finish. "Everything they told me was 100% true," Smith says. "The ease and use of all their tools was wonderful." The consultants' knowledge and expertise proved invaluable. Smith and his father set their own financial goal, but Wilkerson proposed three more ambitious targets. "We thought we would never make it," Smith explains. "We were dead wrong. We hit our first goal, second goal and third goal. It was amazing." Smith's recommendation is emphatic: "I would never be able to do what they did by myself."