Most spirits founders don't get into the business to spend their weeks comparing credit facilities. Andy Bardon, CEO of Wild Common, certainly didn't. He got into it to make additive-free tequila and small batch mezcal that bartenders actually want to pour. By the time Wild Common landed on craft cocktail menus across the country, the brand had a different kind of problem on its hands: demand was running ahead of the capital it took to keep inventory on shelves.That's a good problem. It's also the problem that quietly kills good brands.

Wild Common's fractional CFO Paul Ferguson (now full-time CFO) had been through the bank search before. He knew what it looked like: weeks of intro calls, half-fits, lenders who wanted a different stage of company, term sheets that wouldn't survive committee. Meanwhile, the production calendar doesn't care.When Paul brought the deal to Bridge, the goal was simple. Get Wild Common a credit partner that fit where the business was going, not where it had been. And do it without turning the CEO into a part-time loan officer.

Bridge started inside the underwriting reality for a fast-growing spirits brand: high inventory needs, seasonal cash conversion, a founder-led story that had to translate to a credit committee. We structured the request to hold up to that scrutiny before it ever hit a lender's desk. Then we ran the process.First National Bank of Omaha turned out to be the right fit. Not because they were on a list, but because their appetite, their pace, and their view of growth-stage CPG matched what Wild Common needed for the next few years, not just the next quarter.

"We're not just providing a line of credit. We're building a relationship with a brand that has a clear, sustainable growth plan."— Jeremy Ehardt, FNBO

Wild Common got the working capital it needed to keep up with demand. Inventory stayed on shelves. Andy stayed focused on the business. Paul didn't have to spend another quarter chasing introductions."I trusted Paul to make an efficient decision with as much information as possible. Bridge gave him that, and our business could keep up with demand. That was crucial. We didn't run out of inventory."— Andy Bardon, CEO, Wild Common

Growth-stage brands rarely lose because the capital doesn't exist. They lose time. They lose leverage. They lose the window where the order, the inventory, and the cash were supposed to line up.