Jason Palmer and Michael Kay could be described as the dream team, a pair of lifelong friends and business partners who have embarked on several ventures together. The dynamic duo has had great success along the way.  

When they first opened Two Guys Beverage and Tobacco in Vidalia, GA, they brought with them an excellent track record of owning/operating several well-run businesses and extensive experience in the food and beverage industry. The business, a retail store that offers a full line of beer, wine, liquor and tobacco products, experienced steady growth, and they created 10 area jobs. 

A year and a half later, they decided an expansion was in order. Jason and Michael set their sights on Waycross, GA. They soon discovered they had all the ingredients for a successful business model, except for one; financing. 

While planning their expansion, the pair met with Charles Gillis, SVP at Mount Vernon Bank. He could only provide a portion of the financing, so he brought the duo to the Small Business Assistance Corporation. In partnership with Mount Vernon Bank, SBAC was able to provide State Small Business Credit Initiative funds to assist Jason and Michael in obtaining the new space and completing renovations for their business. 

Jason Palmer recounts his experience with the SBAC. "Without the assistance from SSBCI program, our efforts to expand our business would not have been possible. We were very impressed with the efforts of SBAC to make this program straight forward and simple to use. The process was much faster and easier than we anticipated."  

Jason and Michael have since added a third store in Statesboro, GA, duplicating the successful business model and creating area jobs with each location.