We recently had the opportunity to sit down with Andrew Del Bucchia, the Vice President – Leasing here at Stride, to discuss Canada’s current economic state and its effect on business owners across the nation. Keep reading to learn more about the value of equipment financing during times like this, what trends he’s seeing across Canada, the importance of flexible solutions, and a real-world example of the impact that Stride Capital has made despite the ups and downs.

Why is equipment financing particularly valuable in today’s economic climate? How can equipment financing help Canadian businesses preserve cash flow and provide working capital through economic uncertainty?

The start of 2025 has been an interesting time for Canadian business owners. With uncertainty around US tariffs and the Canadian federal election, we have seen our clients be more selective in their approach to purchasing equipment. This is where Stride Capital can assist business owners with equipment leases that are tailored to their specific needs, both current and future. We offer flexible payment schedules that match our customers’ revenues, including skip payments during slower seasons and semi-annual and annual payments for our Agriculture customers. 

What trends are you seeing in Canadian businesses seeking out equipment financing partners in Canada? Are there certain industries or certain types of businesses that are utilizing equipment leasing more?

Over the past 12 months or so we have seen an uptick in customers looking to preserve cash flow and consolidate their debt. Since the acquisition of Stride Capital by Servus Credit Union, Stride has become the go-to equipment financing company in Canada for Sale Leasebacks, which provide both cash flow savings and, in some cases, an injection of cash onto the balance sheet. You can read more about how a Stride Capital Sale Leaseback can assist your business in preserving cash and freeing up equity in your equipment here. While Sale Leasebacks have been popular across most industries, we have recently seen an increase in requests from Agriculture, Forestry, and Manufacturing businesses.

What kind of flexibility can clients expect when financing equipment?

One area that Stride excels in is our industry-leading payout and Trade Up policies. As you get further into your lease with Stride, the ability to pay out the lease becomes less and less cumbersome, with 6 months interest in the second year of the lease and only 3 months after year 3. Most competitors will charge the full amount of interest owed, or balance of payments, regardless of how long you have been paying them back. With our Trade Up option, customers can switch assets from season to season with almost no interest charges at all. This is great for our construction equipment financing customers who tend to change their equipment from season to season or year to year, depending on the work programs they have lined up.

How are lenders like Stride Capital adapting to the economic conditions in Canada?

No different than our customers, Stride is more diligent in who we are working with and what types of leasing we can provide in certain spaces. Throughout our 9 years in business, we have navigated Stride Capital through an Energy downturn in Alberta, Covid shutdowns, rapid interest rate increases, and now federal political uncertainty and US tariff issues. Part of our success has been due to our ability to stay flexible through the highs and the lows. During the boom times in Transportation in 2021 and 2022, Stride remained diligent and didn’t chase the market like some of our competitors. This has allowed us to provide certainty for both our end user clients and our vendor and broker partners. With Stride Capital, they know what they are going to get because we believe consistency is the key for our partners.

What advice would you give business owners that are hesitant to invest in the equipment right now?

We look at customers who are hesitant and are right there with them and will work to make sure they are comfortable with making a purchase before we extend credit for an equipment lease. We have a seasoned group of Account Managers that offer equipment financing across Canada, and we expect them to work directly with clients to put them in the best position to succeed. Whether that is offering a 90-day approval where they can shop for the best price and make sure they have security in their work program or assisting them with cleaning up their balance sheet to boost cash flow. Our Account Managers want their customers to be successful and therefore focus on building long-standing relationships, not just getting the deal. We have some customers that our Account Managers have been working with for 15-20+ years across several different leasing companies—a true testament to their desire to make sure our customers are set up for success.

Can you provide an example of a Stride Capital client that has utilized equipment financing to grow their business despite the economic downturn?

We have an Energy client in Alberta that started their service business in the early 2010’s when Oil & Gas was in a bull market. The client was younger and had the expertise to operate their equipment, but didn’t yet have the experience to run the back end of a business. When the O&G markets went into a bear market in 2015/2016, Stride was there to walk them through the process of conserving cash and completed a Sale Leaseback to help consolidate debt and make their monthly payments affordable. As the market picked up and their financials began to improve, Stride was there to help them expand, grow, and take advantage of the market share left by competitors who didn’t have the same level of support from their lender.