How to Appeal to a Range of Customers

 

While things were going well, the owners wanted the business to appeal to more customers, which meant having a great first impression. Renovations would make the space more inviting and comfortable with a clean and updated interior. The excellent weather in the area also led to the idea of adding a patio.

 

The problem is that traditional bank financing attempts in the past hadn’t gone very well. Being a small and fairly new business makes everything more complicated. However, they decided to move forward and find out how much they would need and what types of alternative financing were available.

 

The Cost to Update the Restaurant

 

Looking into costs, the owners found that the average cost to renovate a restaurant is around $200 to $250 per square foot. Then there would be the costs associated with building and outfitting a new patio. After doing some calculations, the owners decided that they would need about $300,000 to get everything done.

 

This would handle all the updates, the patio, and any extra items that might be needed as the project went on. The next step in the process was to see if this was feasible. The owners started to delve into small business loan alternatives that would meet their needs.

Sifting Through the Many Options

 

Since traditional business loans hadn’t worked in the past, the team started to look at alternatives. Things like commercial real estate financing were quickly taken off the list since the plan wasn’t to buy a new facility. However, options like merchant cash advances, asset-based loans, and lines of credit seemed like reasonable options.

 

After digging into the details, it was clear that one choice was head and shoulders above the others. In the end, the owners decided to move forward with a merchant cash advance.

 

The Benefits of a Merchant Cash Advance

 

The amount of money the restaurant needed was easy to access with a merchant cash advance. In addition, funding could be done within one to two days so the plan could move forward quickly. With term lengths from three to 24 months, it was a flexible option that appealed to the owners.

 

A merchant cash advance is often one of the easiest financing options to be qualified for. Payments can be made weekly, daily, or semi-monthly and are based on sales. On days when the restaurant does well, more of the advance is paid off than on days when things might be slow.

What Happened Afterward?

 

With the money available for renovation, the kitchen equipment was updated and the seating area was updated with a full-service bar and more seating. A patio was installed and a truck was bought to pick up supplies and make deliveries. It was a quick process once the money was available.

 

Since that day, revenue at the Italian restaurant has doubled in the past year and the company is bringing in over $5 million each year. Going for a merchant cash advance let this business truly thrive and bring in new customers while keeping its promise of being fun for the entire family.

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