Hammer Collections weathers first-year storm

After generating nearly $429,500 in Year 1, Najem and Dawley have big expansion plans for their debt-collection agency, which they moved to Springfield from the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The duo has been leasing 3,000 square feet of space at 3322 S. Campbell Ave., Ste. BB, in Sheids Plaza, but they plan to vacate that space within 16 months after buying seven acres in December near the southeast corner of Battlefield Street and West Bypass.

Once they secure nearly $900,000 in financing, Najem and Dawley, who plan to marry in July, will start building an 8,700-square-foot building on the property.

“I think we always were confident that we would be successful,” said Najem, adding that she is grateful for Springfield’s strong business community. She said Hammer Collections has been more successful in Springfield than it would have been most other places.

Applying pressure

Businesses come to Hammer Collections when they’re unsuccessful in collecting business-to-business debt on their own. Debt, in these cases, can range from several hundred dollars to more than $1 million, Najem said.

Hammer Collections and other agencies collect information on debtors in order to get them to pay. There are 7,000 agencies in the $100 billion collections industry nationwide, according to Najem.

“It’s not always about taking this information and throwing it in somebody’s face and jumping up and down like a gorilla,” Najem said. “That’s not what we do to get the account paid. We get that information to open up alternative avenues to communicate with the debtor, to remove crutches that the debtor uses to not pay the bill, and then, of course, to be able to find out what laws and regulations may be in our favor to apply pressure.”

Hammer Collections recovers an estimated 65 percent of the debt that businesses are owed, Najem said. Most money that Hammer Collections receives from debtors arrives within the first 15 days of an account being opened.

To date, Hammer Collections has recovered more than $1 million in business debt for its clients using on-staff field collectors and high-tech data collection and transmittal systems, according to Najem.

“I can run a wealth of information on not only the (debtor) company, but the principal of the company,” said Najem, who has 14 years of experience in collections. “In three minutes time, I could have 15 reports, (and) I’ll know if you’re the president of your children’s swim club and when they’re going to meet again in case we can’t communicate about getting this account paid over the phone.”

Big plans

Najem and Dawley had planned to open Hammer Collections in Slidell, La., before Hurricane Katrina hit the Golf Coast in 2005. They decided to relocate to Springfield, where Dawley’s brother, electrician Rob Dawley of Complete Remodeling & Home Repair, lives.

They started last year with two employees and 10 clients and now have 15 employees and 639 clients, including those in Canada, Europe and Israel. Without disclosing client names, Najem said the company has 72 clients in Missouri and 21 in Springfield. If all goes as planned, in three years, Hammer Collections will have at least 50 employees and generate $320,000 monthly in revenues.

Najem and Dawley have expressed interest in leasing about 2,500 square feet of their new building to shops or restaurants, though they will need to reduce that amount because of the type of loan they’re seeking.

Hammer Collections applied in April for a U.S. Small Business Administration 504 loan through Liberty Bank and Rural Missouri Inc., a community development company. Under SBA 504 regulations, Najem and Dawley can only lease 20 percent of their new space, which would equate to less than 2,000 square feet

“The program is designed to help a small business obtain property, equipment and so on for its own operations,” said Steve Aduddle, SBA Springfield branch manager. “It is not designed, primarily, for an investor who wants to build a strip mall or buy another building and lease it out as a noninvolved investor.”

Brad McKenzie of McKenzie Architectural Services PC was hired as the project’s architect, and Lee Engineering and Associates LLC was hired to do civil engineering.

Najem and Dawley are planning to build 160 parking spaces, and they plan to dedicate 90 of those spaces for people using Ozark Greenways’ South Creek trail, which runs through their property.

“It’s an opportunity for us to do something for the community,” Najem said. “We’re good people, and we’re here for the long haul.”