Columbia Credit opened its doors Dec. 4 and is ready to make an impact in Marion County.
Doug Duncan is a part owner, along with four investors based out of Baton Rouge whom after getting into the finance business decided to branch out on their own 20 years ago. Duncan was approached by the investors, believed in their model and decided to partner with the group after 18 years of banking with other companies.
“They said we have a better model, so they came up with this business plan we use here, which is kind of like the old school business loans,” Duncan said. “It’s personal loans and you get to know the people, and it’s more of a family deal. We want to get to know your family and be a part of your family, not like big corporations where we’re just here to make big dollars and drive out loans. We want to make sure we’re doing the best thing for the customer. They’ve opened up several companies across Mississippi and Louisiana.”
Duncan added that Columbia Credit’s employees, Katarina Powell, Lory Miller and himself, aim to build a personal relationship with each customer and create a family environment. The new company is designed to help everyday people.
“We give out loans for lawn mowers, 4-wheelers, boats and small loans for auto repairs, Christmas gifts and things like that. It’s personal loans anywhere from $500 on up. Just about anything you need, we’ll help you with that,” Duncan said. “I want to reach out to the people in Columbia that need help. This is my hometown. Right now in the United States — and Marion County is no different — about 80 percent of the people can’t go to a bank or a credit union and get a loan. The criteria at the banks have changed with credit bureaus. People have bumps in the road in life, and we offer second-chance financing. My goal here is to help the folks here in Marion County and give back to where I’m from.”
Columbia Credit, located at 1111 U.S. 98, Suite B, wanted to find a location that was easy to access yet private and settled on the building that was formerly Columbia Computers, next to the Win Job Center.
“We wanted to find a place that was convenient for everybody. Of course, the (U.S.) 98 Bypass is the area we targeted, but we also wanted something that was kind of private,” Duncan said. “We offer customers an opportunity to come in and not be in a big shopping center where everybody knows their business. This offers that privacy, and we take care of business in a private manner. That’s important in finance I think. People don’t want everybody knowing their business and in small towns that’s pretty relevant.”
Columbia Credit wants future customers to know that it’s there for its customer, through good times and bad.
“You’re not just an application and you’re not just a loan. You’re somebody who is special to us. Part of our business model is we feed our customers every Friday; there’s a lunch here for them. We want to be open. We want people to know it’s personal to us, and we want to get to know you. That’s important to us.”
Duncan said he enjoys getting to know the customers and their families, along with being able to help them become successful financially.
“If you have some bumps in the road, we want to help you get back on track to where you can go to a bank and get a loan with a good interest rate. We want you to be able to go back to a bank. That’s a joy for us to see a customer come in who has had a rough time, whether they lost their job or had some family issues, and we’re able to get them back on track.”
Columbia Credit plans to be very active in the community and give back to Marion County.
“We’re hometown lenders,” Duncan said. “It’s going to be personal, fun and friendly, not like your typical finance company by any means.”
Columbia Credit is open 8:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and can reached by phone at (601) 633-0866 or by email at tdjcduncan@yahoo.com.
Pictured Above: From left, Doug Duncan, Katarina Powell and Lory Miller make up the team who is ready to serve Marion County at Columbia Credit. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
