SMFA Celebrates 30 Years

We are at an enormously exciting point in the history of the Southern Maine Finance Agency. Reaching our 30th year as an organization is clearly a significant milestone, and we have many achievements to be proud of. SMFA has succeeded in bringing focus and expertise to a narrow, niche market – providing gap financing to commercial enterprises. These businesses range from very small startups to established businesses seeking to grow and expand. We work with a variety of sources of funds, and a network of local banks. With these unique relationships, and many loan options to offer clients, we can…

Shaker Pond Ice Cream

Shaker Pond Ice Cream, owned by Ryan Whitten and David Swett, has been serving up delicious treats since 2008. What started as an ice cream stand in Alfred, Maine, has now grown to include a retail location in Sanford and a production facility in the same town. Their wholesale business began in 2011, and they continue to expand their offerings to this day. When asked about how they got started in the ice cream business, Ryan and David explain, "Both of us used to work at another ice cream company and decided to go at it on our own." They…

T & D Wood Energy

T&D Wood Energy, founded by Tony Wood and his father in 2018, manufactures premium wood pellets for the heating market in the Northeast. The company sells to all New England states, and in each of the three heating seasons, they have sold out of all their product and needed to make more. The owners had been working on developing a wood pellet plant for almost 11 years before they got close to building a facility. When the company was ready to close financing on its current plant, Coastal Enterprises brought Southern Maine Finance Agency (SMFA) into the relationship. "Working with…

Lucky Pigeon Brewing

Lucky Pigeon Brewing, founded by Kathleen Pigeon and three other owners in August 2021, is a brewery that specializes in gluten-free beer. They developed gluten-free beer as Kathleen became gluten intolerant and wanted to find a way to continue to enjoy good beer. What was out there was boring, not very good, and offered few options. "We settled in Biddeford because we kept hearing about the revitalization of the downtown area," says Kathleen. "The energy here is tangible. You can tell there is something special happening in this town." "We had a business plan developed and went to a couple…

Possum Hollow Farm Soaps

Organic and environmentally responsive soaps and skincare. When Robin and Jim Bedford started making soap as part of their family business, they determined to make it the best they could utilizing natural ingredients and being environmentally conscious. When their son Derek and Jennifer were married, soaps were the wedding favors. Derek and then Jennifer joined the business sometime after, determined to further develop the soap business. The business began in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania and the name Possum Hollow Farm Soap came about because there was a possum hollow behind the family farmhouse. While in Pennsylvania, Derek and Jennifer…

Blueprints Early Learning Center

Building Foundations of Love When you open the door into Blueprints Early Learning Center in Lebanon, it is clearly a place where love abounds. Some children are busy with projects, others listening intently to a story read by one of the teachers and more are just waking up from naps. The infant room for little ones has two teachers and while some babies sleep, others are awake and being cuddled and fed. It is evident that the children are enjoying every minute and the staff provides a circle of calm and caring that make this the town’s number one full-service…

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