Business owners work tirelessly to combine their passions, inspirations and ideas to bring something new to their communities, and many times their impact creates a ripple effect. For Oneida Franco and Enrique (Rick) Diaz, that ripple extends far beyond their New York City community, all the way back to their ties in the Dominican Republic.
Oneida and Rick worked in financial services for many years before recognizing the growing need for accounting, consulting and bookkeeping services in their community. “I noticed that many small business owners were completely unaware of the available accounting resources and that their lack of knowledge about these resources prevented their businesses from growing effectively,” says Oneida.
Using their passion, entrepreneurial spirit, and desire to achieve financial freedom for themselves and others, Oneida and Rick launched Franco Blueprint, Inc. in 2016. Since opening their business, Oneida and Rick have made it their mission to “assist and empower entrepreneurs in creating healthy financial foundations for their businesses, by educating [their clients] on essential accounting operations.”
From their Brooklyn-based office, Oneida and Rick work with clients in a variety of different industries ranging from non-profits to tech, to fashion design and law. As an expert in construction and real estate development accounting, Rick has also provided his services to general contractors and real estate developers across the nation, including major real estate developers with over $2 billion in new development projects.
After a period of rapid growth in late 2017, Oneida and Rick decided to apply for a loan through JP Morgan Chase to help finance their growing business needs, but did not meet the necessary criteria to qualify for a loan. Fortunately, they were referred to Pursuit by their Chase representative, who connected them with Assistant Vice President, Paola Garcia.
“Paola has been an extreme help. She was amazing and clearly explained to us all the benefits that Pursuit adds on for small business owners,” says Oneida. “I’m actually going to work to promote her services to other small businesses and new clients we are working with because I think it’s great that Pursuit not only lends money, they actually help their clients by providing them with additional business resources.”
Shortly after connecting with Paola, Oneida and Rick were approved for a SmartLoan™ for $50,000. With this additional funding, they plan to expand their marketing budget, rent a larger office and potentially hire new employees to help take on their business’s increasing demand. By the end of the year, Oneida and Rick hope to sign up 20 new clients, hire at least one new accountant, and roll out Rick’s cloud-based accounting systems package that’s targeted toward small real-estate developers and general contractors.
As the business grows, Oneida and Rick aim to use their success to promote their passion projects in the U.S. and the Dominican Republic. These projects include their teen money management and internship program, which educates young adults on financial matters like budgeting and managing their paychecks and deductions; Fundación Generaciones Sanas, a Dominican Republic-based organization that helps uplift children in underdeveloped areas; and Franco Blueprint DR, an upcoming branch of their company that will work to support entrepreneurs in the Dominican Republic.
Pursuit is happy to have been a part of Oneida and Rick’s success story and is excited to see how Franco Blueprint, Inc., as well as their many passion projects, helps empower and uplift the members of their communities.
