Funding for your situation
Why a third site is a different funding story than a second, and how a funder reads two operating locations plus a request.
✓ Checking what you qualify for does not affect your credit score.
By the third location the question stops being whether the concept works and becomes whether your systems do. Each site now needs opening cash, and the two existing ones must keep covering their own rent and payroll. A funder reads this file differently: two operating locations with real deposit history, and a request that has to fit on top of both.
Merchant Fund Express is a funding marketplace: you apply once, and the file is matched to the structure that fits it. The sections below show what this situation usually costs, how a funder reads it, and what to prepare.
| Cost item | Illustrative amount |
|---|---|
| Lease deposit and first month | $16,000 |
| Build-out and finishes | $70,000 |
| Equipment and fixtures | $40,000 |
| General manager hire and training | $14,000 |
| Systems and software across sites | $7,000 |
| Ten weeks of opening payroll | $32,000 |
| Cushion for overruns and slow early weeks (about 10%) | $18,000 |
| Funding need for the third site | $197,000 |
Sizing check. If the full repayment shown in an offer were $256,000 over about 26 weeks, the weekly debit would be about $9,846. Against illustrative monthly deposits of $315,000 (about $72,692 a week), that is roughly 14% of weekly deposits. Your own offer states the real repayment amount in dollars; run your numbers on the factor rate calculator before you accept anything.
Source: worksheet by Merchant Fund Express. Illustrative only: these figures are not an offer, and real amounts depend on your file and the funder.
Deposit, build-out and equipment before the first sale.
A general manager or district lead is often the real cost of scaling.
Scheduling, inventory and POS across three sites.
Weeks of low sales at the new location.
These are the same factors described on revenue and deposit requirements and time in business. Merchant Fund Express walks you through how your own file reads before you apply.
A complete file is what makes a same-day decision possible. If something is missing, tell us and we will work around it.
Applying with Merchant Fund Express is a single application. We review it the same day on a complete file, explain what the numbers say in plain terms, and fund typically the next business day after signing. Nothing here affects your credit score to check.
Not harder, but it is read as a portfolio. Strong deposits at two sites help, and any weakness at one is visible.
Files are read per business account, so how deposits flow matters. A single, clean account is usually easier to evaluate.
A term loan suits a defined build, and working capital suits the runway. Many owners use both.
The minimum FICO is 500, and better credit means better products and terms. See credit score requirements for how the tiers work.
Merchant Fund Express gives a same-day decision on a complete file. Applying takes a few minutes and will not affect your credit score.
