Your partners can be the best asset for starting a new project.

No man or woman is an island, and neither is a company. Every business has a slew of suppliers for everything from pencils to raw materials. It may even be the case that you have as close a relationship with your suppliers as you do with your customers. In short, they likely know how your business is doing. They should know, because in a sense, they are one of your business partners who will prosper if you do.

Depending on how long they have been supplying you, they may know more about your company than your bank does. If that’s the case, then you also may find it easy to wholly, or partially, finance a new project by asking your supplier for credit. That is to say, you would ask to be billed long after your received the things you purchased from that company. Typically, suppliers don’t charge an interest rate, but instead offer discounts for speedy payment. It may make sense to start small and ratchet up how much credit you request. It’s worth a try and might be easier than the bank.