Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with CIBC organized a Speaker Series on Funding for start-ups and small businesses as a part of ICCC-CIBC series for Canadian small businesses, Tuesday, March 25 in Mississauga.

The program witnessed enthusiastic participation from members, stakeholders and guests. It was well received and attended by close to 100 guest. Dharma P. Jain, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce’s Treasurer and Director anchored the program and delivered the welcome remarks.

Naval Bajaj, ICCC’s President also spoke on the occasion.

Rajeev Misra, General Manager, Brampton, Vaughan/Etobicoke, CIBC; and Mike Marshall, Senior Director, Small Business Banking, CIBC; were the main presenters for the evening. The program's objective was to provide an opportunity for start-ups and small businesses  the funding opportunities available through the Canada Small Business Financing Loan (CSBFL) and other modes of financing.

Misra and Marshall started with various kinds of business ownership and then covered CSBFL program, eligibility criteria, requirements and exclusion, if any, and also discussed the key determinants that lenders and underwriters examine while approving a deal.

“It is indeed heartening to note that our Chamber’s programs continue to attract such a large audience. This is because we at the Chamber continuously strive to remain relevant to our core constituency – the small business owner. This relevance is reflected in our general programming, and is most definitely the case today,” Mr. Jain said.

Misra and Marshall then discussed the advantages offered and the challenges posed by different forms of ownership such as sole proprietorship, partnership and corporation, and the role of different advisors in launching of a business, the significance of people, product, place, price and promotion in business.

After a general discussion, the presenters then explained the method of operations of the Canada Small Business Financing Loan. Briefly, Misra and Marshall elucidated that up to 90 percent of the loan obtained under the CSBFL may be used for purchasing or improving land and buildings used for commercial purposes, purchasing new or existing renovations to premises occupied by the business as a tenant, purchasing or improving new or used equipment (including commercial vehicles).

They also informed the participants that the maximum loan amount a borrower can access under this program is $500,000, of which $350,000 can be used to finance the purchase or improvement of equipment and the purchase of leasehold improvements. All, for-profit small businesses or start-ups operating in Canada, with gross annual revenues of $5 million or less are eligible for the loan.

The presentation then moved on to discussing the significance of a business plan. The eight critical factors in a business plan included performance advantage, market readiness, uniqueness, first customers, distribution, market size, personal qualities and the financial plan.

The presenters then discussed the role of a banker in the process. This part formed a bulk of the presentation. In addition to the process, the presenters also identified the key parameters of lending criteria.

Tony Chawla, ICCC’s Infrastructure Director, introduced the speakers.  Jagdish Bajaj, Vice President -Events and Director gave vote of thanks.