Franchise funding
For operators of drive-ins with stalls, lanes and a drink-heavy menu.
✓ 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
Already running a Sonic drive-in and need capital? Merchant Fund Express funds existing Sonic owners: business loans, merchant cash advances, revenue-based financing, lines of credit, equipment financing and working capital, from $25,000 to $5,000,000. Sonic sales are drink-led and seasonal, so we read summer and winter deposits side by side with franchisor and supplier drafts. A complete file gets a same-day decision, and funding often follows the next business day.
Franchisees who already operate Sonic drive-ins. Inspire Brands describes freestanding locations built for drive-in and drive-thru service with 6 to 12 stalls, plus inline, endcap and small format drive-thru designs. The menu runs on drink combinations, tots, corn dogs and smashburgers across five dayparts, which puts ice machines, beverage dispensers, stall menu housings and carhops at the center of the operation.
See the burger franchise funding sector guide and our restaurant 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 Sonic location and need capital? Merchant Fund Express funds existing franchise owners with every product below. Terms depend on the business's revenue and history.
A drink-heavy menu depends on ice machines running nonstop; see emergency commercial refrigeration funding.
Staffing stalls and lanes for warm months means paying more people before bigger deposits arrive; see restaurant payroll funding.
Stall menu housings, canopies and lighting take weather damage. Equipment financing or a term loan spreads the cost.
| Need | Product | Published requirement it leans on | What to send |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ice machines or dispensers | Equipment financing | Vendor quote and useful life | Quote, 3 months of statements |
| Summer staffing and inventory | Line of credit | Tier 1: 3+ years, FICO 650+, about $25K/month revenue | Statements, debt schedule |
| Storm damage or urgent repair | Working capital | Tier 2: 6+ months, FICO 600+, $60K verifiable revenue | Repair invoice, statements |
| Canopy or stall refresh | Business loan | Tier 1, applicant owns at least 50% | Contractor bid, statements |
| Winter dip in deposits | Revenue-based financing | Tier 2: minimum daily balance $800 | Statements |
Merchant Fund Express offers Spanish-speaking support.
Imagine a freestanding drive-in with $118,000 in monthly deposits in early summer. Food, drink and paper are $36,000, crew and carhop payroll $34,000, franchisor drafts $9,600, rent $9,000 and existing payments $3,400. The owner wants two ice machines and stall menu housings quoted at $54,000.
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 drive-in that has not opened needs operating history first; see opening a restaurant franchise. An owner adding a drive-in is read on current deposits (second-location funding); taking over an operating drive-in follows franchise transfer financing.
Yes. Seasonality is normal for a drive-in; revenue-based financing lets payments follow deposits.
Yes, against a vendor quote and useful life.
Not for a typical first review; full financials come in above $250,000.
Each entity is read on its own; a request can cover one drive-in or several.
No. Merchant Fund Express is independent. We use the Sonic 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 Sonic 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.
