Loan Rangers: Local commercial bankers on the art and science of lending
October 2025
You have the dream, the plans, the time and the energy.
But what about the money?
Traverse City has long been a commercial banking hub for all of northern Michigan. Thousands of folks work at regional offices of major corporate banks or at one of many smaller, local “community” banks throughout the area.
The TCBN connected with several familiar faces in the commercial lending world to see what’s going on in this fast-paced (and very competitive) market.
Michael Caruso, Nicolet Bank
Michael Caruso started with Comerica Bank in Detroit back in 1989, and he’s been banking in Traverse City for almost 12 years.
He speaks proudly about what it means to him to help businesses – and by extension, people – with his work.
“It’s the client experiences, no question about it. The client experiences are what keeps you going in this business,” he said. “Touring the plant. Seeing their excitement. Putting together packages for them that no one else really would put together the same way.”
Caruso says the “smartest” lenders are transactional real estate lenders. Bring in a big strip mall, pad the portfolio with a $2 million outstanding loan and wash your hands of it. Maybe talk to the client once a year. Move on to the next thing.
“The less smart lenders go into the relationship side, and I say less smart because it’s a tremendous amount more work,” he said. “But one of the critical factors for me throughout my whole 35-year career has been to not be a transactional lender. My clients are pretty intensive, they’re all relationship based. That’s the side I gravitated towards.”
And Caruso leans in. He knows that being connected at the hip with his clients is good for everyone. Anticipation and planning always pays off.
“I communicate with these people continuously,” he said. “Talk to them if they have a problem. Make sure we're ahead of the curve when they need to buy something or they're looking for the next project…we want to always prepare them for the next step.”
Caruso feels lucky to conduct business in and around Traverse City, where he received a warm welcome that never quite wore off.
“I was a new guy in the market when I came here, so I knocked on an awful lot of doors. And I was just extremely impressed with the friendliness of the people in this area,” he said. “People are happy to be here. They're smiling when they wake up in the morning.”
It’s also a market that has a lot to offer, especially if you know where to look.
“This market has a really good, almost hidden, base of manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors. They're all over the place, they're really, really nice companies to bank, and they’re really nice relationships,” he said. “We are interested in as many of those as we can possibly get on the books.”
Asked about trends, Caruso had plenty to say about interest rates and other matters. He also pointed to a note on the wall that reminds himself to talk to every single client about fraud protection.
“In my first 20 or 25 years of doing business, there was one case of fraud that I remember. And nowadays, we have a couple a month,” he said. “Somebody getting scammed, somebody called and said they were from someplace. It’s just constant, and it’s time consuming. Is Sam in distribution clicking on a link and letting someone in your back door?”
Lori VanAntwerp, West Shore Bank
Lori VanAntwerp has been in the game 30 years, the last three of which at West Shore Bank in Traverse City.
She says she loves finding solutions for her clients, of whom she has an immense amount of respect and admiration. It takes a lot of guts to open or expand a business, she said.
“I'm not a risk taker, which is probably why I'm a banker,” she said. “So to see people step out and follow their passion and make money and do good things for the community, I just love it.”
VanAntwerp, like some others on this list, do more than loans. Full-service commercial banking at West Shore means she’s ready to help with anything and everything.
“It's really fun to see how we can find some banking solutions, whether it be loans or making their life easier with treasury management, ACH, paying bills and paying their employees,” she said. “If we can make their lives easier in that area, then they can focus on what they're really passionate about.”
The Traverse City market is attractive for a few reasons, VanAntwerp said. It’s a bit more protected from downturns in real estate because it’s such an attractive locale, and its position as an attractive market continues to bring in smart people with fun business ideas.
“One of the things I love about commercial lending is I get to see various different industries and business models and types of collateral. Every deal is a little different and it’s really (enjoyable)," she said. "So having these people coming into the market with different ideas just adds to the fun of commercial lending.”
Over the decades, VanAntwerp has lent to far more women than men. It’s a trend that’s changing, and she’s loving it.
“I’m hoping to see more women in business and the continued trend of more women clients. Volunteering with Impact100 for the last eight years has introduced me to many strong, independent women in our community that are poised to do many great things in the years to come.”
Cory VanBrocklin, Honor Bank
Cory VanBrocklin broke into the business as a part-time teller at Empire National Bank in 1991. He rode a wave of buyouts and mergers for many years before coming to Honor Bank in 2021.
“Small-town community banking is really what I enjoyed, so Honor was just a really good fit for me,” he said.
VanBrocklin enjoys the assortment of businesses that come across his desk. It’s never the same day twice, especially in this market, and he considers himself a jack of all trades, master of none.
“In commercial, we're versed in just about everything, because there's not just one big industry up here that we can all lend to,” he said. “It might be a Pilates studio, or an Indian restaurant, or it might be a big, huge apartment complex, or a commercial development. The variety of deals is my favorite thing. You never know who’s going to call.”
It’s a bummer when some of those calls don’t really pan out, VanBrocklin says, but it happens.
“Unfortunately, a great idea doesn't always work into a deal,” he said. “Somebody can have a very great idea, but not have all the tools and plans they need to get financing for that particular project.”
In terms of trends, VanBrocklin pointed to many businesses changing hands in recent years.
“Business acquisition seems to be the most popular thing that I'm seeing right now. A lot of customers are getting out of their business,” he said. “And it doesn't matter what their age is, but they're taking advantage of other companies coming into the market (and looking to buy), or selling to a long-time employee. That seems to be happening a lot now.”
VanBrocklin said customers can put themselves in a much better position, acquisition or otherwise, if they stay on top of their books.
“Sometimes we look at the smaller deals in the area and they take more time than some of the larger deals do because of the quality of the financial statements that we're looking at,” he said. “I highly encourage any business owner to make sure that you have a good handle on your financial statements and you know what they mean and you know how they work.”
Like others at community banks, he’s proud to be there and will speak at great lengths about the benefits of being truly local.
“Another great thing about Honor is I sit on the same floor as the president, the CFO and the senior lender,” he said. “All decisions for us are made here locally. We're not looking to deal with somebody in a different state that's going to make a decision on a deal in northern Michigan. It also allows us to be responsive. If we need to hurry up and get a decision made, we can make it right here.”
Scott Ashurst, State Savings Bank
Scott Ashurst has been in commercial banking for 40 years, spending the last 11 at State Savings Bank in Traverse City.
He reflected on a recent transaction where he and a customer, both nearing retirement, spoke about their very long-standing business ties. It’s things like this that give Ashurst great satisfaction.
“It’s all about relationships,” he said. “I’ve got some people that I’ve leant money to for over 30 years. It’s been a lot of fun.”
Those relationships allow him to turn a rigid, dollars-and-cents business into something a little bit more.
“Some other institutions might have more of a formula-based type thing, predetermined formulas, that type of stuff, but that’s not really how we do business. It's more of a person-to-person thing for us,” he said. “Get to know the person and see what makes sense for both of us.”
Ashurst has enjoyed being a part of – and laments the gradual reduction of – truly local banks in the area.
“There’s fewer and fewer community banks, which is where I’ve worked my entire career here in Traverse City,” he said. “It’s local service that truly makes the difference. We live here, we work here and we make the decisions here.”
Customers gravitate to that, he believes, especially around here.
“I think there's a greater expectation of a local relationship in northwestern lower Michigan,” he said. “I think businesses here appreciate that service.”
And you’d better bring the best service possible when customers have as much choice as they do in northern Michigan.
“There's a lot of competition in town, and that's a challenge for sure,” he said. “You always have to earn the business, add how you differentiate yourself is service. That's what we pride ourselves on.”
Autumn Gillow, Fifth Third Bank
Autumn Gillow has been at Fifth Third Bank for about eight years, and in her role serves bigger fishes – think companies with sales of at least $30 million stretching up to $1 billion (believe it or not, a category referred to as “middle market” in banking).
“In northern Michigan, there's obviously only so many companies that are of that size, so I’m traveling a lot to see them,” she said. “My market is all of northern Michigan, basically Cadillac over to Alpena and up into the Upper Peninsula.”
The people Gillow works with are hands down her favorite part of the job, she said.
“I have the best clients in northern Michigan, and I work with some of the most talented bankers,” she said. “Commercial banking isn’t glamorous, but the people make it so much fun.”
Fifth-Third offers a “full suite” of banking services to these clients, so Gillow handles far more than loans.
“I have a handful of clients where I might have a one-off loan, but for the most part when we onboard a client, the client and I have the expectation that I’m going to be managing all of their banking needs.”
Competition for her services exists, but it helps that she’s the only one right here in the market.
“It's certainly competitive, but I don't think there are many people locally that are executing and providing this service,” she says. “I’m not certain of this, but I think that Fifth Third is the only middle market bank that has a presence in northern Michigan. At this point everyone else has those resources in the Grand Rapids and Detroit markets.”
Gillow is glad to see at least a bit more stability return in recent months.
“The last few years have been volatile, with higher interest rates, uncertain political environment, global issues with wars and tariffs – just a lot of macro noise in the market and that impacts business owners’ confidence in investment,” she said. “Things seem to be settling down, and we are seeing a strong uptick in commercial investment in the second half of the year.”
Finally, Gillow is a Traverse City native who is proud to serve others in her community.
“For the most part, if people are here, it’s because they’ve chosen to be here, and if I can in some small way help a family to be successful in their businesses and get to be in northern Michigan, that’s a win for sure.”
John Hyatt, Team One Credit Union
John Hyatt joined Team One Credit Union in 2014 to establish the company in the Traverse City market. He’s been in the business in one way or another since he graduated from Michigan State University in 2000, and he’s loved every minute.
“When you can help people achieve their dreams and goals, it’s amazing,” he said.
Ultimately, Hyatt sees commercial lending as a vital community service. He works with startups all the way up to larger, established companies to help with growth, and this growth almost always has a tremendous ripple effect.
“The health of our small businesses has a big impact on the health of our communities,” he said. “If you can help a business owner with funding that equipment expansion or getting them the working capital that they need, it's not just a big deal for them, but it’s a big deal for their team and all their teams’ households, and it's a big deal for the community.”
He’s been involved in many major projects – his outstanding book is over $200 million, he says – but it’s not the size that matters.
“A deal that I'm very proud of was when we stuck our neck out on a startup salon, and I don't think anyone else in town would have said yes on that deal,” he said. “She built a great business and sold it, and did extremely well. To me, those are the huge success stories…that personally mean a lot.”
Hyatt said credit unions are rapidly gaining market share in a commercial lending world that was once entirely dominated by banks.
“When I first started calling on folks in 2014, the responses I would get from all kinds of businesses owners would be ‘Are you kidding me? Credit unions are doing this?’” he said. “And today, we’re the number one call.”
Like everyone else in his business, Hyatt has to judge and balance risk. You want to help people, but they have to be able to hold up their end of the deal.
“You look at the buyers’ ability to make adjustments or be nimble and turn things around if there are speed bumps,” he said.
Hyatt likes being in Traverse City, where there’s still plenty of momentum despite more marked slowdowns elsewhere.
“We’ve had persistent higher rates now for a few years, and the market may have slowed down a little bit, but the value is still there,” he said. “This market maintains its value, and we constantly see folks that want to be in this market."
