Franchise funding
For owners of New Orleans-style cafes, drive-thrus and non-traditional units: refurbishments, equipment and how the review reads them.
✓ Merchant Fund Express starts with a soft credit pull. Terms depend on your location's revenue and history.
Updated October 21, 2026 · Merchant Fund Express
Running a PJ's Coffee cafe or drive-thru and need capital? Merchant Fund Express funds existing PJ's owners with business loans, merchant cash advances, revenue-based financing, lines of credit, equipment financing and working capital, from $25,000 to $5,000,000. We read weekly royalty and marketing drafts and roaster orders against your deposits, and we size requests like a scheduled refurbishment to what the store can carry. A complete file gets a same-day decision, and funding often follows the next business day.
Owners of open PJ's units in the published formats: inline or end cap cafes, often with a drive-thru; free-standing cafes or drive-thru-only buildings; and non-traditional units inside airports, hospitals, hotels, campuses and military sites with a condensed menu. Coffee is roasted by an affiliate and bought as designated product. The menu adds blended drinks, tea, desserts, sandwiches and, at many stores, beignets.
Read it with the coffee and beverage franchise sector guide and our coffee shop industry page.
Checked Oct 2026 against official sources: the franchisor's own franchising site, its FDD or SEC filings, or the SBA Franchise Directory. Figures change; confirm current numbers in the latest Franchise Disclosure Document. Figures we could not confirm from an official source are left out.
Already running a PJ's Coffee location and need capital? Merchant Fund Express funds existing franchise owners with every product below. Terms depend on the business's revenue and history.
The franchisor calls for a refurbishment after the first five years. It is a known, dated project, which suits a term loan or equipment financing planned ahead; see franchise remodeling funding.
Drive-thru units run a second POS and see a different sales mix. Owners ask about lane hardware, timers and the extra station; see adding a drive-through lane.
Fresh-roasted coffee and food are ordered steadily, and seasonal menus raise orders before sales follow. A line of credit fits.
| Need | Product | Published requirement it leans on | What to send |
|---|---|---|---|
| Five-year refurbishment | Business loan | Tier 1: 3+ years, FICO 650+, applicant owns 50%+ | Contractor quote, statements |
| Espresso or brewer replacement | Equipment financing | Vendor quote and useful life | Quote, 3 months of statements |
| Roaster and food orders | Line of credit | Tier 1: about $25K/month revenue, 8+ deposits a month | Statements, supplier invoices |
| Airport or campus slow months | Revenue-based financing | Tier 2: $800 minimum daily balance, up to 2 current advances | Statements |
| Payroll or repair gap | Working capital | Tier 2: 6+ months, FICO 600+, $60K verifiable revenue | Statements, invoice |
Merchant Fund Express accepts ITIN applicants and offers Spanish-speaking support.
Suppose a cafe with drive-thru deposits $72,000 a month. Payroll is $21,000, coffee, food and supplies $18,500, franchisor drafts $5,040, rent $7,500 and existing payments $2,000. The owner plans a refurbishment quoted at $45,000.
Figures in this example are illustrations of the arithmetic, not an offer, quote or approval. Real terms depend on the file and the funder.
A store that has not opened has no deposits, so it needs operating history before Merchant Fund Express can review it. Existing owners adding a unit are read on their current stores' deposits; see second location funding. Buying an open store follows franchise transfer financing.
Yes, if the store is operating with business deposits. A term loan or equipment financing sized to the quote is the usual fit.
Yes. Equipment financing is reviewed against a vendor quote and the machine's useful life.
The products are the same. Those units follow travel or facility traffic, so revenue-based financing often fits their swings.
Each store or entity is read on its own deposits and weekly drafts, so a request can cover one store or several.
No. Merchant Fund Express is independent. We use the PJ's Coffee name only to identify the owners this page is for; it does not mean the franchisor endorses or works with us.
Merchant Fund Express is independent. Not affiliated with or endorsed by PJ's Coffee or its franchisor. Brand names identify the owner audience only.
Merchant Fund Express reviews your location's revenue, deposits and existing payments. Same-day decision on a complete file; funding often the next business day. About five minutes to apply.
