Accolade comes as new capital program blows past $10 million in funding delivered

Boulevard (www.joinblvd.com), provider of the client experience platform purpose-built for appointment-based, self-care businesses, today announced that Boulevard Capital has been named a finalist for LendTech of the Year in the 2024 US FinTech Awards. The prestigious awards program, produced by FinTech Intel, celebrates the achievements and successes of the brightest innovators and leaders in the burgeoning financial technology industry. Launched earlier this year, Boulevard Capital has already surpassed $10 million in funding delivered, with self-care businesses nationwide leveraging this innovative financial offering to fuel growth investments ranging from additional marketing and increased headcount to new equipment and location expansion.

For this year’s US FinTech Awards, an independent panel of judges comprised of experienced and highly respected professionals from across the fintech and financial services sector reviewed and scored hundreds of submissions spanning all corners of the industry. The winners will be announced in an exclusive ceremony in New York City next month.

“Boulevard is creating new opportunities for the underserved and overlooked entrepreneurs of the self-care industry to grow their businesses,” said Matt Danna, co-founder and CEO, Boulevard. “With Boulevard Capital, we’ve made funding more equitable and accessible for self-care business owners so they can continue investing in their thriving businesses without the headache of traditional loan products that are usually unavailable to them anyway. We’re grateful to the 2024 US FinTech Awards judges for recognizing the impact Boulevard Capital has on such a diverse and critical business community.”

A game-changer for the self-care industry, Boulevard Capital gives Boulevard-powered hair salons, beauty salons, salon & spas, nail salons, barbershops, and medical spas access to vital growth funding without navigating the challenges and inevitable roadblocks of traditional lending. Based on demonstrated business performance rather than credit history, Boulevard Capital gives self-care business owners the fast, flexible funding they need to reinvest in their businesses and drive continued growth without the fear and headache of personal guarantees.

“Boulevard Capital accelerated our business growth and helped us launch our second location,” said Brooke Hill, co-founder and CEO, Swella. “As a small business owner, the weight can be heavy in securing the financial means to launch a retail space. Often, traditional lenders want a personal guarantee, which is not founder-friendly. Boulevard could see our performance and lend us the capital we needed without needing a personal guarantee or a lengthy application and approval process. We love that we can borrow and forget it with seamless automatic payments based on our revenue.”

Though they are healthy, profitable, and growing, the brick-and-mortar small businesses that permeate the self-care industry often operate with low margins that severely limit their investment in growth. Nor do they have the time and bandwidth to grapple with the piles of tedious paperwork, harmful credit checks, and months of waiting that accompany traditional business loan applications. But with Boulevard Capital, doors that were once closed have swung wide open.

“I needed capital to increase my inventory and do some remodeling for my growing business,” said Courtney Donegan, owner, Skin Med Spa and Skincare. “Boulevard Capital made it so easy and fast to get the funding I needed without the hassle of a bunch of back-and-forth paperwork, enabling me to stay on task with running my small business.”

Fast, flexible funding for an underserved community

According to a Small Business Credit Survey conducted by the 12 Federal Reserve Banks¹, Black- and Latino-owned firms are less than half as likely as white-owned firms to be approved for financing. This is especially impactful for the self-care industry, where, according to a recent Annual Business Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau, 48 percent of all personal care businesses are minority-owned, compared to just 20 percent in other industries². Additionally, 57 percent of those same businesses are female-owned, compared to just 22 percent across other industries.

With Boulevard Capital, customers are pre-qualified based on the financial performance of their business. The rich sales and cashflow data captured by its platform gives Boulevard a real-time, holistic, and unbiased understanding of a business’s health, enabling it to create individually tailored offers that align with the specific needs of that business. Once approved, businesses can accept as much or as little of the offer amount as they need, with funds landing directly in their bank accounts in as little as 24 hours.

Funding secured through Boulevard Capital carries no compounding interest or late fees, and requires no personal guarantees. Businesses only pay a transparent, one-time capital fee based on the total offer amount. The balance is paid automatically through a fixed percentage of daily sales so that customers can reliably predict their cash flow throughout the process.

About Boulevard

Boulevard offers the first and only client experience platform purpose-built for appointment-based, self-care businesses. Boulevard empowers business owners and professionals alike to deliver personable, enjoyable experiences to their clients through online appointment scheduling, messaging, marketing, and payments that are simple, elegant, and reliable. Founded in 2016, Boulevard has earned the trust of thousands of salons, spas, barbershops, and medspas across the nation by delivering the world-class technology and genuine, human, personable service they deserve. To learn more, visit joinblvd.com.

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¹ https://www.newyorkfed.org/medialibrary/FedSmallBusiness/files/2021/sbcs-report-on-firms-owned-by-people-of-color

² https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2023/annual-business-survey-employer-business-characteristics.html

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