Another CU launches branch with Goodwill.The $405 million generations Federal Credit Union, headquartered in San Antonio San Antonio (săn ăntō`nēō, əntōn`), city (1990 pop. 935,933), seat of Bexar co., S central Tex., at the source of the San Antonio River; inc. 1837. , has found a strong market niche in a marketing and outreach Outreach is an effort by an organization or group to connect its ideas or practices to the efforts of other organizations, groups, specific audiences or the general public. effort with its local Goodwill Industries. About 18 months ago, the credit union opened up a branch in the Goodwill store on Fredericksburg Fredericksburg. 1 Town (1990 pop. 6,934), Gillespie co., S central Texas, in the Texas Hill Country near the Pedernales River; inc. 1928. Located in an agricultural (cattle, peaches, wine, lavender) and quarrying (granite, sand, gravel) region, the city Road in San Antonio, a sprawling facility in an old airline hanger. Since then, the CU has welcomed 450 new members from people who used the store, a marked increase from the CU's projections when they opened the branch. "We were very conservative in our projections when we first got started with this," explained Eve Hernandez, vice president of marketing for the CU. "We had projected only ten new members per month, so of course we are thrilled thrill v. thrilled, thrill·ing, thrills v.tr. 1. To cause to feel a sudden intense sensation; excite greatly. 2. To give great pleasure to; delight. See Synonyms at enrapture. with what we have seen so far." The credit union offers a payday loan A payday loan or paycheck advance is a small, short-term loan that is intended to cover a borrower's expenses until his or her next payday. Typical loans are between $100 and $1500, on a two-week term and have interest rates in the range of 390 percent to 900 percent alternative product, called MoneyExpress, which resembles a payday loan but caps its interest rate at 18% and offers repayment periods of between six and nine months. In addition, the loans are tailored to allow the member to more easily borrow just what they need from the program and not more. "Our alternative payday loan is designed to end the payday loan cycle by providing members the temporary cash flow they need with an affordable payment and interest rate over a longer period of time. While we offer a very nontraditional Adj. 1. nontraditional - not conforming to or in accord with tradition; "nontraditional designs"; "nontraditional practices" untraditional traditional - consisting of or derived from tradition; "traditional history"; "traditional morality" payday loan product, we are often able to restructure a member's debt to change behavior and end the payday loan cycle," the credit union said. Other generations members also take advantage of a product called OptionCheck. OptionCheck is an alternative for individuals who are unable to open traditional checking accounts due to records in ChexSystems. OptionCheck provides education on how to manage checking accounts, shows members the steps they need to make restitution In the context of Criminal Law, state programs under which an offender is required, as a condition of his or her sentence, to repay money or donate services to the victim or society; with respect to maritime law, the restoration of articles lost by jettison, done when the on old checks, and moves them to traditional checking accounts when they have satisfied the education and restitution requirements. Hernandez reported that generations is so pleased with the impacts it has had through the branch that it plans to open five more in Goodwill stores in the San Antonio area. --dmorrison@cutimes.com |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion