Senator Charles E. Schumer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 9, 2012

WITH HELP FROM SCHUMER, ONEIDA CO.’S NIRVANA WATER SECURES FED LOAN THAT WILL PUMP 60 JOBS INTO ONEIDA COUNTY – SMALL BUSINESS ADMIN. WILL HELP FINANCE NEW EQUIPMENT THAT WILL NEARLY DOUBLE PRODUCTION AT NIRVANA WATER

Approved SBA Loan of $4.3 Million Will Allow The Company To Control Their Entire Bottling Operation, Manufacture Bottles From Scratch; Nirvana To Pump Savings Into Future Growth Plans

Schumer Assisted Company With SBA Application For Loan That Will Jump Start Production And Nearly Double Company’s Annual Output To 20 Million Cases

Schumer: This Loan Will Get Jobs & Water Flowing

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that the Small Business Administration has approved Nirvana Water’s request for an SBA loan for $4.3 million to help expand their business and create 60 jobs in rural Oneida County. The company, a producer of bottled water, sought the loan in order to add new equipment to their operation which would allow them to complete more bottling and packaging operations in Oneida County rather than contracting these services elsewhere. Moving these operations inside the Boonville facility will allow the company to expand their production to 20 million cases of bottled water each year, while adding dozens of new jobs.

“This SBA loan will open up the flood gates to more water and more jobs,” said Schumer. “Upstate New York is thirsty for jobs, and Nirvana Water may just have the answer. I pushed for the Small Business Administration loan, because I’m confident in the company’s plans to bring new equipment into this Oneida County business to help it grow. With this kick-start, Nirvana Water will immediately begin adding jobs to Central New York at a time when we could really use them.”

Nirvana, which has been growing in Oneida County since 1998, sought the SBA loan in concert with their own private investment and loans. Schumer helped to bring Nirvana together with the New York Business Development Corporation (NYBDC), an organization that is a complement to conventional banking. Through Schumer's outreach, NYBDC helped Nirvana secure a federally-guaranteed long-term loan for new equipment.

The expansion plan, part of a Nirvana strategy that is putting the focus on their own brand through in-house manufacturing, will allow the company to take various outsourced production methods like the aspects of bottle manufacturing, along with the filling and packaging of them and bring them exclusively to the Boonville plant. Nirvana estimates that these business decisions will make them more competitive, save them millions of dollars a year in overhead costs while adding more local jobs to their plant. This SBA loan will now allow Nirvana to meet the demand for its brand that it currently cannot keep up with—meaning more revenues flowing into the company and the local economy. The SBA loan should also allow Nirvana to pump out an additional 8 million cases of their water a year.

“Nirvana is a tested brand, consumer approved,” said Mozafar Rafizadeh, Nirvana’s Chief Executive Officer. “Senator Schumer took notice of our growth, offering to devote special attention to us as we looked to expand. He helped us cut through red tape, working to ensure our water will flow onto more and more shelves across the Northeast and beyond.”

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