El Jalapeno II Mexican Restaurant in Youngstown, Ohio

Victor Alacazar needed a loan because he wanted to remodel and paint his dining room El Jalapeno II, a Mexican restaurant in Youngstown, Ohio. However, because he had been rejected for funding from banks in the past, he was reluctant to go back to them again.

Born in Mexico, he grew up in Modesto, California. Later, his parents went back to Mexico, where he lived until he was a teenager. When some of my friends opened up restaurants in places across the U.S. and he decided to help them out. Alacazar has now been in the restaurant business for more than a decade.

"It was hard to keep up with the bills and taxes and then be able to invest in remodeling. I couldn't get a loan. The bank couldn't help me, and I thought about closing," said Victor Alacazar 34, owner of two Mexican restaurants: El Jalapeno in Niles, Ohio and El Jalapeno 2 in Youngstown. "A friend in merchant services saw potential in my business and encouraged me to keep pursuing funding through Biz2Credit"

"My credit wasn't good; I made mistakes when I was younger, and at the time I had too little history, so I couldn't get money. I was scared to go back to the bank," said Alacazar, who borrowed $20,000 from a cash advance company though Biz2Credit and paid it back in less than 8 months as a portion of his credit card receipts.

With help from Rony Thomas, Senior Funding Specialist at Biz2Credit, Alacazar was able to borrow $20,000 just four days after submitting all the required paperwork. With the infusion of cash, he took walls down, painted and bought margarita machines.

"It helped. People see all that. It definitely helps increase sales," said Alacazar. "Now, I've built some credit. It was definitely worth it. I'm very happy. The loan from Biz2Credit helped very much."

Now, the entrepreneur has a goal of buying a building that houses his other restaurant, El Jalapeno, in Niles, Ohio. The restaurant serves burritos, fajitas and other Mexican entrees in a casual setting with a bar & outdoor seating.

"If everything comes out good, I will probably try to buy the building in Austintown, too," the restaurateur said. "My advice for other immigrant entrepreneurs is: Don't be afraid to try."

El Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant	El Jalapeno II Mexican Restaurant
5125 Youngstown Warren Rd	4626 Mahoning Ave.
Niles, OH 44446	Youngstown, OH 44515
(330) 544-6500	(330) 799-6500
Hours: 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.	Hours: 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.