With nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in assets held by The Westchester Bank, one would expect the president and CEO of the three-year-old bank to have something hanging on the walls of his office ”“ a diploma or an award, perhaps.
But “sparse” is the word that best describes John M. Tolomer”™s office at the bank”™s Yonkers headquarters. In explanation, Tolomer, standing outside the entrance to the bank, says, “The business is out here,” gesturing toward Central Park Avenue.
In June 2008, the bank”™s offices consisted of two double-wide trailers parked on the current site of its headquarters at 2001 Central Park Ave. As of June 30, 2011, deposits at the bank”™s two branches exceeded $196 million and its collective assets exceeded $240 million, increases of 29 percent and 30 percent, respectively, from the previous year.
“I think our marketing has worked,” Tolomer said.
Earlier this spring, the bank completed a private stock offering that raised nearly $27 million in new capital, which allowed the bank to increase its lending limit to more than $6 million, Tolomer said, calling the fundraising efforts “a real community story.”
“That $27 million came from people who were interested in investing in a local bank.”
Community banks have flourished across Westchester over the past several years, which Tolomer largely attributed to their local nature and accessibility.
“What has resonated in this downturn, this economy, is that people want to have someone to speak with. Customers want to understand how the bank can help them. They want that reassurance. A smaller bank is built to do that.”
He said that when a business applies for a loan from The Westchester Bank, representatives of the bank are able to sit down with the client and learn the ins and outs of their business, adding that decisions on loan applications are made locally. In contrast, Tolomer said that similar decision-making processes at larger banks are often made at corporate locations far from the actual business that”™s seeking a loan.
“We make those decisions here in Westchester. A larger institution doesn”™t always have that luxury.”
Despite launching in the height of the recession, Tolomer said that the bank benefitted from having a clean slate in the eyes of customers and businesses.
“I think the one advantage we had with the timing of our opening is that we didn”™t have any legacy issues.”
While the larger banks were coping with the repercussions of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy filing in September 2008, Tolomer said that The Westchester Bank was winning over clients.
“The bigger banks have had some difficulties. They were ”“ during the meltdown ”“ more internally focused. That gave our bank the opportunity to win business.”
In addition to its Yonkers headquarters, the bank has a branch on Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains that opened in November 2009. Since that opening, the branch has received more than $71 million in new deposits, giving the bank an important presence in an area of major growth, Tolomer said.
“The expansion and being able to have more than one location has been important. We knew that those were great sites and the proof is in the pudding. The visual impact of seeing our sign in another community ”¦ helps the brand.”
The bank is actively seeking a location for a third Westchester branch, Tolomer said. “We believe that adding a third branch will certainly augment our growth.”
The bank”™s model of “business banking made personal” has helped it to attract a number of new business clients, he said. The bank has more than 2,600 clients, with roughly 60 percent of those being businesses and the rest consumers.
While Westchester County fared better than the rest of the Hudson Valley during the recession, he said he thought business owners are now “looking for a sign” from the economy before they make the decisions to expand and hire.
“The economy is weak. Small to medium-sized business owners are reticent to expand their businesses. They lack the confidence.”
Despite reports that small businesses have had difficulty securing loans, Tolomer said that there has been competition among banks to do business with the more viable companies. However, he said that owners looking for a boost from the national economy shouldn”™t hold their collective breath.
“I think we”™re near the bottom, (but) I think any significant improvement will come post-election,” he said, predicting that the stagnant economy would continue in the near term, partially as a result of the “great uncertainty with the deficit (and) the tax situation.”
