Sonny's voice has Qredits!


One of the consequences of the crisis was a drastic drop in the number of large corporate parties.


Trouble threatened for singer and composer Sonny Griffin because of this. But with a microloan from Qredits, he was able to make great new promotional materials. Sure enough, his agenda was full again.

Sonny is a versatile musician; he sings, plays guitar, and writes songs. He performs these, along with covers, alone, in a trio or with a band. Until eighteen months ago, his agenda was completely booked up months in advance. And then suddenly there was the credit crisis. Sonny: "About half of my income I received from corporate events. That market almost completely collapsed. In 2008 I had about sixty corporate events; in 2009 there were only ten."

Early in 2009 he decided to actively seek new jobs. But he was not accustomed to having to do this. Take along a few business cards to an event and it was sufficient to book new events for years in advance. He also lacked a website for the commercial cover work. Sonny: "I had just never needed it. But now I do.

In the meantime, I became a father as well, and so I now require more security. For example, there was never much work in February and August. In a good year that doesn’t matter, but in a bad year, and then with two small children, I just can’t afford that. What I needed was professional promotional materials. Films, photographs, printed materials." To be able to produce them, he initially considered a personal loan. That didn’t work; the bank found the desired amount too high and the outcome too uncertain. Surfing the internet for other funding possibilities, Sonny happened upon information on microfinance. "Exactly what I was looking for."

Surprised

To be eligible for a business loan from Qredits, Sonny had to write an action plan. It turned out well, he says: "On the Qredits’ site is a starter’s checklist. I'm not a starter, but it gave me a lot of helpful information." Sonny sent his plan in through the website and within one week he got his first response. Two weeks later he had a visit from a Qredits’ advisor, who informed him that he had a good plan, and that the requested amount would be transferred. Sonny knew that it was a good plan, too. Yet he was somewhat surprised by the quick and positive decision. "If I couldn’t have gotten a microcredit, I would have tried to borrow from family. But this is by far the best solution. Just a business deal. And lots of support."

Not very fat

Sonny borrowed 16,000 Euros from Qredits and immediately rented a studio and a team of professionals to produce a series of fantastic films and photos, plus a good website. Viewable on YouTube, the movies quickly delivered many new events, mainly in the private events sector: weddings and other private celebrations. Sonny will shortly proceed in approaching artist agencies. "That's not so easy. The agencies are also suffering from the crisis: lots of supply, little demand for artists. I don’t think that these will be very lucrative years. But for the long run I am very optimistic. As soon as the market for corporate events rebounds, I can profit from it. I have, after all, a great new website and very good photo and video material. It's all going to pay off, you'll see.

“This is by far the best solution."

 

Sonny's voice has Qredits! - Qredits, Microkrediet in Nederland