Virginia Fitness Entrepreneur Rebuilds Her Business with Help of Local CDFI
Client: Kimberley Kruse, owner of KK Fitness
Client Location: Arlington, VA
CDFI: Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC)
CDFI Service Area: MD, VA, DC
Financing and technical assistance, with support from the Grow with Google Small Business Fund and Google.org Grant Program
Based in Arlington, VA, small business KK Fitness provides quality personal training, triathlon coaching, health and wellness coaching, and more. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 65 percent of the business’s revenue came from operating a fitness facility for a corporation. However, when the partnership ended in April 2020 due to the pandemic, so did KK Fitness’s primary revenue stream. KK Fitness owner Kimberley Kruse successfully obtained a PPP loan a from her bank in 2020 as a first-time applicant, but things did not go as smoothly the second time around – leading her to Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC).
After applying to her bank as a second-draw PPP applicant in January 2021, she did not receive an update on her application for months. Finally in May 2021 her bank told her there was an error with her application, after they were no longer deploying PPP loans. Following a tip from a friend who informed her that CDFIs were still accepting PPP applications, Kimberley researched online and found LEDC. LEDC helped Kimberley through the PPP application process and approved her in a matter of two weeks, allowing her to continue helping her community stay active, healthy, and enjoying activities they are passionate about.
“The PPP loan is just that bridge that I need to have more time to rebuild my business,” Kimberley shared. “I had to take a pay cut, and I couldn’t afford to take another pay cut. This [PPP loan] affords me to be able to pay myself for a few months and cover the rent while my business is starting to come back. It’s the bridge from closing to not closing.”