Evan Lachman was 22 and a senior at UC Santa Barbara when he approached Hebrew Free Loan about an interest-free business loan to help grow his small business, a solo entrepreneurship called GoodDay Puzzles.
The year before, the Covid lockdown interrupted his junior semester abroad in Oslo, bringing him back early to study remotely from his family’s home in Walnut Creek. Evan was majoring in economics and had always wanted to start a business of his own. The pandemic gave him the time to explore business ideas, and savings from his summer job gave him a bit of seed money.
Evan had witnessed both his grandfather and grandmother become progressively more diminished by Alzheimer’s, which had a profound impact on him. That experience inspired him to found GoodDay Puzzles, whose mission is to develop products that support graceful aging. He started with simple jigsaw puzzles designed to stimulate and engage the mind, especially for people with dementia.
Evan found a manufacturer in China, taught himself about Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), and used his savings to order some initial inventory. With FBA, his puzzles were shipped to an Amazon warehouse in the U.S. and forwarded to customers when the puzzles were purchased.
Evan’s advertising was effective, and interest in GoodDay Puzzles grew quickly. He didn’t have enough funds to keep up with the demand. Evan needed more inventory to avoid Amazon reducing the visibility of his business, which would throttle his company’s growth. That’s when he turned to Hebrew Free Loan. His sister, who had received our student loans for grad school, suggested we might be able to help.
“I couldn’t believe Hebrew Free Loan approved me for a loan of $20K, even though I was still in college and had never started a business before. It was a huge boost to my confidence! The loan gave me the funds I needed to meet the demand for my first puzzle and launch my second product. Knowing the loan was interest-free helped me feel comfortable taking on debt.”
After graduating from UC Santa Barbara in 2021, Evan parlayed his economics degree and entrepreneurial experience into a job as an analyst with Deloitte. GoodDay Puzzles remained a side project for him until last year, when he sold the company to a buyer who can better scale it. Letting go wasn’t easy, but he continues to make charitable donations to support Alzheimer’s research. He reminds himself that one of his primary goals in starting the business was to have a meaningful learning experience. That goal was certainly fulfilled!
Evan is now working for Dr. Squatch, a Southern California–based company that sells natural personal care products for men. He’s excited by his role as a manager of retention and merchandising strategy, and he looks forward to a long career in which he can explore the full range of his diverse skills, experiences, and interests.
