VT Salumi Purchases Historic Barre Building
By Danny Monahan
Small Business Administration Vermont District Office
The Small Business Administration approved more 504 loans in Vermont during fiscal year 2021 than in any other year the past decade. The agency’s fiscal year is from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.
This past fiscal year Vermont small businesses obtained 44 SBA 504 loans worth $27,512,000. In 2019, Vermont small businesses only obtained 18 SBA 504 loans worth $10.1 million. The 504 Loan Program provides long-term, fixed rate financing of up to $5 million for the purchase or improvement of land, buildings, and major equipment, to facilitate the creation or retention of jobs, and to support local economic development.
One of the small businesses that received a 504 loan this past year is Vermont Salumi, an Italian cured meat and sausage maker based in Barre. Occupying the old Homer Fitts department store on Main Street since 2019, Vermont Salumi is purchasing the building and property it is currently leasing this year with a 504 loan.
“I did not see myself here 10 years ago nor did I have some magical moment when I first saw this place thinking to myself ‘this is it.’ It had lots of space for aging and room for a grocery store up front. But now that I have been here a couple of years, I love the place,” said Peter Colman, owner and founder of Vermont Salumi.
Vermont Salumi has been in business since 2011. It started out in a small room next to Colman’s apartment. Eventually he managed to save $20,000 and renovated a small place and began selling at farmers market. Things started to pick up a bit when he started selling retail, which eventually led him locate his business in Barre. Today he distributes throughout New England and even has accounts as south as Alabama.
“I think people of Barre are excited this historic building has been repurposed. One of the most satisfying aspects of this is the effect it has had on the downtown. People are happy to see a vibrant downtown and business coming to Barre. I get to be a part of it,” said Colman.
A 504 loan is available through a Certified Development Company. CDCs are SBA's community-based partners who regulate non-profits and promote economic development within their communities. CDCs are certified and regulated by SBA. The four CDCs that service Vermont are Granite State Economic Development Corporation, New England Certified CDC, Bay Colony Development Corporation and Vermont 504 Corporation.
“You freak out a little bit because it is so much money and the size of the building is so big. Going from so small to something so much bigger is pretty overwhelming. But we have had good hefty growth and it’s been very exciting. This is how you pay for these big loans,” said Colman.
One of the primary reasons the 504 Loan Program had such great success in Vermont and across the U.S. in 2021 is because of several changes made in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, such as all 504 loans approved from Feb. 1 to Sept. 30, borrowers received three months of payments, which included principal and interest (capped at $9,000 per month), and most fees associated with the 504 Loan Program were eliminated. In addition, 504 Loan Program rates are near all-time lows.
“The rates are bonkers and the program is amazing. An agency that takes a chance with small business is crucial for a business like mine. If you are a small business looking to expand to a new facility, you should look at the 504 Loan Program,” said Colman.