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Building Bridges Newsletter
Supporting businesses by lending good money to good businesses!
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 After experiencing record rainfall last month, I believe everyone living in the South is ready for a little warm sunshine and a place at the beach to get away and replenish! Although business nationwide was down last month because of the weather, many of those companies whose work was on hold are now back in full swing completing that delayed work! Blessings to those folks still recovering both personally and workwise, and we all pray for a speedy bounce back! For all fathers, we wish you a Happy Father's Day on June 21st! Spend time with your family and enjoy your special day! Welcome to sunny June! Lisa Hultz |
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American Made: Clarence Birdseye (1886-1956)
 Inventor and businessman Clarence Birdseye was born in Brooklyn, New York on December 9, 1886. From a young age, he was interested in botany and zoology. He enrolled at Amherst College with the goal of becoming a biologist. Unable to afford his tuition, he dropped out of school in 1910 and took a job as a government field naturalist for the U.S. Biological Survey while supplementing his income with fur trading.
 In 1912, Birdseye set out on a five-year fur-trading expedition on the Canadian peninsula of Labrador. During his time in the Arctic, he observed that Eskimos froze food in the winter because of the challenges of procuring fresh food. He was fascinated by their quick freezing process, which entailed using the elements (ice, wind and cold temperatures) to instantly freeze freshly caught fish. Birdseye noticed that when the fish was frozen quickly, it retained its freshness until it was thawed. Only small ice crystals formed on the fish, and its cell walls remained intact. With his scientific mind, he wondered how the quick freezing process might work on fresh vegetables and other foods.
When Birdseye returned to the United States, he invented the "Quick Freeze Machine" based on the principles he had learned from the Eskimos. The machine worked on fish, fruit and vegetables. In 1924, Birdseye started a frozen-food company, the General Seafood Corporation, with the help of wealthy investors.
 In 1929, the Postum Company bought the General Seafood Corporation and the new General Foods Corporation was born. General Foods kept the Birdseye trademark, but inserted a space between the two syllables to create the brand "Birds Eye." Hired as a consultant at General Foods, Birdseye served as president of Birds Eye Frosted Foods from 1930 to 1934, and Birdseye Electric Company from 1935 to 1938. During the early 1930s, General Foods released Birdseye's frozen vegetables, fruit, meat and fish onto the market, revolutionizing the way Americans cooked and ate.
Over the course of his lifetime, Birdseye patented more than 300 inventions, including grocery store freezer display cases that he could charge proprietors to lease. In the late 1930s, he mastered a process for dehydrating food, which he patented in 1946. In the 1940s, he enabled Birds Eye to distribute their products all over the country via refrigerated boxcars.
By the time Clarence Birdseye died on October 7, 1956, in New York, frozen food had become a billion dollar industry.
(Source: www.biography.com)
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This Month in History
June 6, 1944: D-Day, the largest amphibious landing in history, began in the early-morning hours as Allied forces landed in Normandy on the northern coast of France. Operation Overlord took months of planning and involved 1,527,000 soldiers in 47 Allied divisions along with 4,400 ships and landing craft, and 11,000 aircraft. The Germans had about 60 divisions spread along France and the Low Countries. American forces landed on two western beaches, Utah and Omaha, while British and Canadian troops landed farther east on Gold, Juno and Sword beaches. By the end of the day 150,000 Allied soldiers and their accompanying vehicles had landed with 15,000 killed and wounded.
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Did You Know?
 In the advent of new technology, some age old professions are inevitably going to become redundant. One of which was the profession of the "knocker-up." The "knocker-up" was tasked with waking up clients by banging on their window or door. They commonly used a long stick, usually made from bamboo, to reach windows that were higher up. Other notable tools included a pea-shooter. They would remain outside until they were sure that their client was awake, from whom they earned a few pence. The profession was most popular during the 19th century, especially in large industrial cities. Knocker-ups all but vanished in the 1920s when alarm clocks became more affordable and reliable.
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National Sewing Machine Day
 One of our long-time subscribers shared the following with us in honor of National Sewing Machine Day on June 13th:
"Advice from a Singer Sewing Manual from 1949: Prepare yourself mentally for sewing. Think about what you are going to do . . . never approach sewing with a sigh or lackadaisically. Good results are difficult when indifference predominates. Never try to sew with a sink full of dirty dishes or beds unmade. When there are urgent housekeeping chores, do these first so your mind is free to enjoy your sewing . . . When you sew, make yourself as attractive as possible. Put on a clean dress. Keep a little bag full of French chalk near your sewing machine to dust your fingers at intervals. Have your hair in order, powder and lipstick put on . . . (if) you are constantly fearful that a visitor will drop in or your husband will come home and you will not look neatly put together, you will not enjoy your sewing as you should . . . "
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June Business Book Pick
 Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. Hardcover, 309 pages; published by Little, Brown and Company, Nov. 18, 2008; ISBN-10: 0316017922, SBN-13: 978-0316017923.
In this book, Malcolm Gladwell takes readers on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers" -- the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different?
His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.
Brilliant and entertaining, Outliers is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.
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Thoughtful Thoughts
 You are responsible for your life. If you're sitting around waiting on somebody to save you, to fix you, to even help you, you are wasting your time. Only you have the power to move your life forward.
- Oprah Winfrey
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June Humor
Reaching the end of a job interview, the human resources person asked a young engineer fresh out of MIT, "And what starting salary were you looking for?" The engineer said, "In the neighborhood of $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."
The Interviewer said, "Well, what would you say to a package of 5-weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company-matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every 2 years -- say, a red Corvette?"
The engineer sat up straight and said, "Wow! Are you kidding?" Ant the interviewer replied, "Yeah, but you started it."
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June 2: National Bubba Day;June 6: D-Day, WWII; June 13: National Sewing Machine Day; June 14: Flag Day; June 15: Smile Power Day; June 21: Father's Day; First day of summer (Summer Solstice).
FAQ: Is factoring invoices expensive?
Factoring is often misunder- stood as being an expensive financing method. Actually, that's not true. Yes, when you compare the fee factors charge versus the interest rate banks charge, factoring appears to cost more. But factors provide services banks do not. They typically perform a significant portion of the accounting work for clients; provide collection services and credit checks; and generate financial reports to let you know where you stand.
If you would like to find out more about our services for your business and/or apply for an account with Mazon Associates, please phone us at 972-554-6967 (toll-free 800-442-2740 or visit our website at
$$$ Refer And Earn $$$ |
Business contacts, friends, family and acquaintances -- you just never know when someone you know might need Mazon's accounts receivable factoring services! Visit our referral page for more information.
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About Our Clients
Our clients are traditionally businesses that are manufac- turers, distributors and service companies in the following areas: advertising / marketing / apparel / design / courier & delivery services / equipment repair & maintenance / environmental services / graphic design / signage & printing / staffing & employ- ment services / security services / catering & food services / legal services / light construction / telecommuni- cations / transportation services. Our clients may include start-up, early-stage growth and high-growth businesses; under-capitalized businesses with historical operating losses; businesses with cash flow problems having a cash flow need; businesses with tax liens or turnaround situations; businesses who may not currently meet a bank's credit criteria. Our clients have delivered services or products to other businesses and have business-to-business invoices that can be independently verified. Most of our clients have come to us through referrals from current and former clients. We rely heavily on word-of- mouth marketing to bring in new clients -- and we offer a lucrative referral program. Our clients are located in any of the 50 states in the U.S.A. Our clients are not companies with a majority of consumer receivables such as retail businesses, progress billings, third party pay medical receivables and certain construction-related businesses.
For more information about becoming a client, please contact us by telephone 972-554-6967 or toll-free 1-800-442-2740, or visit our website:
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