North Shore Bank recently opened its North Shore Bank Leasing LLC division. The new service, based at 10923 W. Mitchell St. in West Allis, focuses on vehicle and equipment leasing to the bank’s commercial clients, said Chuck Storniolo, general manager of the leasing company.
"The bank has thousands of business customers who are always relying on the bank for financial help," he said. "And one way to improve their cash flow is with leasing. Being a bank, with all of the customers we service, this is just another service to the customer."
The bank received numerous requests from commercial customers to provide leasing services.
"(The bank) was getting inquiries about leasing, and it was referring customers to other companies that lease equipment," Storniolo said.
North Shore Bank Leasing can lease cars, trucks, sport utility vehicles, cargo vans and other vehicles from any manufacturer. It also leases equipment for commercial businesses, ranging from medical devices for physician offices to printing equipment to fork lifts to ovens and refrigeration equipment for restaurants to electrical equipment such as HVAC systems.
In the coming months, Storniolo and his leasing team will begin teaching North Shore Bank’s commercial lenders about leasing. Commercial lenders will help steer potential clients to the leasing company when appropriate, Storniolo said.
"For businesses, there are some leasing advantages," he said. "They don’t have to show (vehicles or equipment) as assets on their books. And we are the only (bank) in the market that leases vehicles directly to consumers and businesses."
North Shore Bank Leasing now has three employees – Storniolo, a leasing specialist and an equipment specialist. The division is likely to hire two additional employees by the end of the year, he said.
It also houses several of the bank’s employees who specialize in selling vehicles whose leases have run out.
"We sell 40 to 60 vehicles a month here," Storniolo said.
North Shore Bank Leasing also will likely need to move within the next few years to accommodate its growth, Stornolio said.
"We feel that we’ll grow sooner rather than later," he said. "There are people that have needs, and they have them today."
