Harvest Pizzeria sharing this week’s proceeds with ECDI

Harvest Pizzeria owner Chris Crader, grateful for the help he received in 2012 to open his first restaurant, is dedicating a portion of his proceeds this week to the organization that lent him its money and expertise.

“I don’t think we’d be where we are without ECDI,” he said of the Economic and Community Development Institute, a Columbus-based nonprofit that’s the nation’s biggest Small Business Administration microlender. “I’m very grateful for their partnership.”

More:ECDI named largest microlender in the U.S. by the Small Business Administration

Crader said he wants to help the agency help others like him. During Small Business Week, which ends Saturday, he’ll donate part of his income from takeout pizzas to ECDI.

ECDI has lent more than $177 million since its founding in 2004, according to its most recent annual report, and the organization has offered its educational services to more than 32,000 entrepreneurs.

Crader and his wife turned to the agency after their loan requests for Harvest Pizzeria were turned down by commercial banks. They received a $75,000 loan through federal programs that offer small-business loans for women and U.S. military veterans. They also received business-coaching services through ECDI.

Today, Harvest Pizzeria has restaurants in Bexley, the Brewery District, Clintonville, Dublin and Granville.

rvitale@dispatch.com

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