PBFC Guides Our Industry to the Pot of Gold

If you are an establishment owner, a booth/suite renter or self-employed professional, we will help you secure government relief funds through our unprecedented online portal, so please read this full article.

As most of you are aware, the Professional Beauty Federation of California has been standing tall in defense of our beloved industry throughout the Covid pandemic.  We have fought against 3 prolonged and unjustifiable lockdowns by filing two successive lawsuits against Governor Newsom, coordinating statewide grassroots demonstrations, and initiating an #OpenSalonsNow social and mainstream media blitz. And more recently we’ve focused on securing badly needed financial relief to our struggling behind-the-chair professionals and establishment owners.

On this latter front, we led all industry associations with the first ever, industry-specific online application process for the federal government’s 100% forgivable PPP loans.  We partnered with three lenders approved by Small Business Administration (SBA) to tailor and streamline the application process specifically for our industry professionals, most of whom lack access to lending institutions and therefore had nobody guiding them to this badly needed financial relief.

We went live with our online portal (www.federationplans.com/ppp) even before then-President Trump signed the PPP legislation into law, positioning our applicants at the front of the line for when the SBA eventually implemented the CARES Act and began accepting applications.

We closely monitored Congressional and SBA deliberations over the past year, which allowed us to announce in advance the likelihood that the application deadline would be extended from the end of April to May 31, as well as predicting that SBA would allow first-time PPP recipients to apply for a second draw within 4 weeks of receiving their first draw.  We will also provide assistance to all of our successfully funded professionals in applying for forgiveness (but more on that later, as there is promising movement within SBA to streamline that process).

We had to be way ahead of the curve, because we have been marginalized, disrespected and left behind by our elected and regulatory officials throughout this pandemic.  We knew our licensed professionals could not long survive without someone standing up for them, demanding respect and equal access to the same relief as all other industry sectors and so-called “essential” businesses.

So here is the latest information about PPP which may come as welcomed news to you:

For those who have received only one PPP, you are entitled to a second draw.  But the PPP money set aside by Congress is quickly vanishing (less than $68B is left of the original $284B at the time of this writing), so get your application in long before the May 31 deadline.

And for those of you who have never applied for PPP, do so immediately.  If you get funded in time, you may be eligible to apply for a second draw before the May 31 deadline, essentially doubling your money (all of which is 100% forgivable — but, again, more about forgiveness in a later column).

Go to our online portal to start your PPP application as soon as possible: PPP Application

Our primary lender partner, Adesso Capitol, has also established a Call Center to help answer questions of our professionals and salon owners during the application process: 1(888) 600-7380

We have done everything within our limited means to defend, promote and sustain our beloved industry throughout this difficult year.  Please follow our social media pages — Instagram (@ProBeautyFederation) and Facebook (@PBFCalifornia) — for more regular updates.