A manufacturing city in the middle of the Bay
Hayward was incorporated in 1876. With 162,954 residents as of 2020, it is the sixth-largest city in the Bay Area and the third-largest in Alameda County, spread across about 64.13 square miles. The economy has a large number of manufacturing companies, both corporate headquarters and plants, including some high-tech companies, and Hayward is considered part of northern Silicon Valley.
Named plants include Annabelle Candy, Columbus Salame, the Shasta soft-drink company and a PepsiCo production and distribution center. Southland Mall is the largest shopping center in Hayward.
A long food-production tradition
Hayward's food-and-beverage identity goes back a long way. The Hunt Brothers cannery opened in Hayward in 1895, founded by William and Joseph Hunt, fruit packers originally from Sebastopol. They initially packed local cherries, peaches and apricots and then added tomatoes, which became the mainstay of the business. The cannery is a former business now, but the habit of producing and distributing food in the city continues.
That history matters for today's small firms in a practical way. Food production and distribution is a business of perishable inventory, strict schedules, refrigeration and trucks. Each of those is a place where cash is needed quickly:
- A refrigeration compressor failing during a production week.
- A delivery van out of service while orders are waiting.
- A big retailer order that needs ingredients and packaging bought in advance.
- A temporary labor surge to fill a rush order.
Suppliers to the plants
Around the large plants sit pallet makers, labelers, box suppliers, sanitation crews, forklift services, maintenance contractors and short-haul truckers. They tend to bill large customers on terms set by the customer, which are usually longer than the supplier's own payment cycle. For illustration only, a packaging supplier buys $28,000 of film and cartons for a monthly standing order and is paid in 45 days, while paying its own vendors in 15. Every month the supplier is financing its customer for a month and a half.
A retail side also exists. Southland Mall tenants and independent merchants in Hayward's neighborhoods have to buy for holidays and promotions before sales arrive. A look at about three months of bank statements shows how each of these patterns plays out in real numbers.
Funding basics and next steps
We provide $25,000 to $5,000,000, with funds possible in as little as 24 hours. FICO 500+ is considered. We ask for about three months of business bank statements and do not require tax returns. The soft-pull application takes about five minutes, and sole proprietors can apply. See the Alameda County page and the Bay Area overview for regional context. Neighbors Fremont, Oakland, San Leandro and Union City apply the same way. Apply now.