Matt Carter is hoping that tapping into the resources of Kiva Zip, a nonprofit micro-loan Internet site, will help stabilize his chocolate confectionary business in Port Orchard.

Carter, who owns and operates Carter’s Chocolates located inside the Port Orchard Public Market on Bay Street, has turned to Kiva Zip in an effort to restructure his business’s finances. He said his business is seasonal, and summer is when he brings in peak revenue earnings. Carter said the chocolate business has a steady, sometimes overwhelming flow of customers who come out to the waterfront on sunny, warm days in the summer. But in rainy, dreary winter months, business lags.

That’s why restructuring his business debts has become a top priority to keep his outlet afloat. A more reasonable payment plan, he said, will work wonders in helping to increase Carter’s cash flow.

Like many small business people, Carter found himself caught in a financial bind due to a series of missteps — some of his own making, others created through bad luck and the nature of seasonal fluctuations. But topping the list of mistakes was obtaining a credit line from a bank without reading the fine print of the agreement.

“I was so stupid,” Carter said while making a batch of ice cream at his other location at Westbay Shopping Center. It’s where he prepares confections in a commercial kitchen.

A credit line obtained from a bank, whose name he wouldn’t disclose, had some hidden conditions that sent his business on a downward spiral.

He accepts responsibility for overlooking the added conditions for his credit line, but says he shares it with the unnamed bank.

“Banks do a good job of laying a trap for small businesses,” Carter said.

His $25,000 bank credit line was used partly to move the business from its former South Kitsap Mall location to its current space at the Public Market.

A significant portion also was used to buy used baking and display equipment.

But while working seven days a week to get the business on its feet, he twice neglected to make two monthly bank payments on time. Without notice, Carter said, his loan’s interest rate shot up to 29 percent.

Since then, he said it’s been a struggle to keep his business afloat. “I haven’t been able to refinance that debt and some other obligations into a restructured loan,” Carter said.

“Those late payments did a number on my credit score and severely reduced my cash flow.”

His $20,000 in debt, combined with hefty interest charges, soon increased in spite of making monthly payments. Carter said the debt load also has prevented him from hiring help.

Despite the financial pressures, he’s managed to pay down the bank loan to $5,000. That, and some leftover debts, are what he has left to pay off.

Because of his bad experience with commercial banks, Carter has turned to Kiva Zip for a $10,000 loan.

He has six days (as of April 1) to seek out at least 18 online investors. As of early this week, 13 local investors have signed up.

When he reaches that goal, his Kiva posting will go “live” to the website’s broad audience of investors.

“The businesses on the site receive investor contributions that are altruistic in nature,” he said. “While investors don’t receive interest for their investment, the loan amount is returned to them after being paid off over time.”

Kiva Zip is a great tool for thousands of small businesses around the world, Carter said. Kiva Zip’s loan requirements are different from those of a traditional bank.

According to Kiva Zip’s website, “Rather than assessing your credit history and financial statements, Kiva Zip uses your character and trust network as a measure of creditworthiness.”

The no-interest loans can be paid off over a specified period. For the investor, while they eventually get their money repaid, they also know that they’ve financially helped a small business reach for success.

For more information about Kiva Zip and the Carter’s Chocolates campaign, access this link: http://tinyurl.com/gq575vj.