When husband-and-wife team Chris and Rachel Kuenzli decided to expand Therapy OPS – an occupational, physical, and speech therapy clinic – it was four years old, and expansion plans had been in the works for some time. The duo spent six months pursuing a business loan with another bank.
“After six months, the bank wasn’t committing to us, and we started to get the sense that they weren’t actually going forward with the project,” said Chris.
Once the couple’s first financing opportunity stalled, they connected with a lender at 21st Century Bank.
We exist to invest in entrepreneurs and help them grow. When Chris and Rachel approached the bank, they had a sound philosophy and a solid plan. It was easy for us to jump on board and help with a small business loan.
With some strategic choices, 21st Century Bank secured a Small Business Administration (SBA) 7(a) loan for the Kuenzli’s within a few weeks – giving them the opportunity to expand their location by building a new gymnasium, and offices. The SBA loan provided them with the funds needed to hire more therapists to join their 12-person team.
In 2019, construction wrapped up on the expansion, and Therapy OPS celebrated its five years by hosting a grand re-opening and birthday party – and 21st Century Bank is joined in!
It’s Therapy OPS’ mission to provide high-quality, family-focused interventions to help those in the community reach their highest potential in an effective, efficient, and compassionate manner. Between Rachel’s experience as a Speech-Language Pathologist and Chris’s background in finance, the pair is poised for further success for their Inver Grove Heights clinic.
“Chris and I both had a passion for doing something different than the outpatient clinics in the area,” said Rachel. “We strive to look at each family and person individually and see how we can help them.”
