LIFeSTYLE - Living Italian Food e Style
We celebrated our agreement over a bottle of wine and some cheese in our home a couple of weeks later.
People
Small town woman goes to Italy, finds love, and brings him – and a taste for the Old Country – back to live the American dream. The villain in this plot? Tight credit. After Sarah and Stefano Ferrari left Milan for her hometown of Bedford, they began importing top-quality Italian food to, in her words, “share what we learned over there, and share some of that culture with the community.” When they sought financing, bankers “were like, ‘Oh, yeah, that’s a nice idea, good luck.’”
Progress
In walked repeat customer David Kahley, who mentioned that he was President and CEO of The Progress Fund, a lender that specializes in small-town development. “We celebrated our agreement over a bottle of wine and some cheese in our home a couple of weeks later,” says Stefano. The Progress Fund loaned $45,000 for a new in store kitchen and dining area to show off their foods. When LIFeSTYLE wanted to expand again, The Progress Fund loaned $50,000.
Impact
LIFeSTYLE is becoming the place for a very special meal – the reservations-only, three-hour, make-new-friends-for-life kind. Even as they add another amenity to Bedford, they’re aiming to become an attraction in their own right, through their new website. “I want people to see our store, like our store,” says Stefano, “and then come to Bedford.” A happy ending, indeed.
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