EASTERN UNION REWRITES CORPORATE CRISIS RULEBOOK WITH BOLD COVID-19 BUSINESS PIVOT DESIGNED TO HELP STRUGGLING BUSINESS OWNERS
A commercial real estate brokerage founded by a former rabbinical student from Lakewood, New Jersey, has been unexpectedly thrust into the national spotlight. Ira Zlotowitz, and his company of nearly seventy brokers, has been publicly hailed for assisting small business owners in obtaining SBA-PPP loan grants designed to help businesses float during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response to the avalanche of media coverage — ranging from headline stories in Yahoo Finance, to The Chicago Daily Herald, to MarketWatch — Ira Zlotowitz, the CEO of Eastern Union, plays down his role and credits the people-first underpinnings that grew Eastern Union from a fledgling brokerage to a regional powerhouse.
“Our goal has always been to create out-of-the-box solutions for clients during every phase of the business cycle,” he says. “We saw an opportunity with the loan program and decided to pivot by jumping in headfirst. Although this method of funding was not in Eastern Union’s traditional comfort zone, it quickly proved to be the right move. We are providing clients with a financial lifeline they otherwise would have never considered.”
The company created a strategic partnership with Cross River Bank and Kabbage — the top leaders in the lending and technology marketplaces — to quickly learn the SBA-PPP loan application processing guidelines. Within hours of the loan program revealed by President Trump, Eastern Union’s brokerage and underwriting teams were deployed to process applications and help clients navigate the complexities.
“We initially struggled with this decision, because it’s not entirely in the commercial real estate realm,” admits Zlotowitz. “But it became obvious that everybody was hurting and looking for a real solution. I was raised by my parents to be there for others in times of need. So we took the plunge for our clients by embracing the loan program and getting these forgivable loans for our clients.”
The company anticipates the second phase of SBA funding will be released this Wednesday. The main priority for those who did not apply for funding yet — or for those denied, in a holding paradigm, or waiting for confirmation — is to apply again and get a loan application into the system by visiting Eastern Unions information portal at www.sba-ppp.com.
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