Fabpro Technologies was featured on an M&T Bank commercial that promotes their commitment to helping small businesses obtain financing.
One of the challenges that limited the growth of Fabpro was that owner and CEO Antoine Hutchinson didn’t own the 44,000 square foot Halethorpe, MD facility where Fabpro is headquartered. Instead, the building was leased from a private owner, which meant that necessary upgrades were a risky investment which ultimately benefited the landlord. Additionally, without the guarantee of a fixed monthly cost, long term expansion was under constant outside pressures, which in some cases might even mean needing to find a new place to operate.
So Hutchinson realized that the best the best way to ensure the future of Fabpro was to buy the building from the landlord. But for a growing company which was making regular investments in new machinery, new hires, and marketing for new sales, this was a difficult proposition. The owner wanted $2.2M for the building, and that was going to be a daunting task.
Enter M&T Bank! When other lenders looked at the business and didn’t believe a loan for the building was feasible, M&T Bank representatives took a different perspective… One which looked at the importance of small businesses that are well-run and empower the community by hiring from it. They realized that Fabpro was not unlike M&T, in that supporting the community was woven into the fabric of their business model.
This approval in 2021 led to Hutchinson purchasing the building and led Fabpro to a new level of growth, wherein more of the facility could be upgraded and utilized for production, generating more revenue each year than was generated the prior year.
Amazingly, this commercial was aired during the Superbowl LVIII on Feb 11, 2024 and during the Grammys on Feb 4, 2024, raising the profile of Fabpro and reinforcing M&T’s reputation as a national bank with a community feel.
