Retail Store Funding in Syracuse, NY

Competing with the biggest mall in town

Syracuse has a very large shopping center in its Lakefront neighborhood, Destiny USA, and many of the city's traditional neighborhoods still have active business districts of their own. Armory Square has become the core of downtown shopping and dining, Hanover Square has a smaller version, and districts such as James Street in Eastwood and Westcott Street have stayed independent.

If you run one of those independents, you are not competing on price against a national chain. You are competing on selection, service and being open when people walk by. All three cost money before they bring any in.

The retailer's cash loop

Every retail business runs the same loop: pay a supplier, put the goods on a shelf, wait for a customer, then pay the next supplier. The longer the goods sit, the more cash is tied up. Three things stretch the loop in particular.

• Minimum order sizes. A supplier may only sell in quantities larger than you need this month.
• Lead times. Holiday stock must be ordered months before shoppers arrive.
• Slow movers. A few products sit and tie up the budget meant for fast sellers.

Compliance you cannot skip

New York retailers need a Certificate of Authority from the state tax department to collect sales tax. It must be obtained at least 20 days before your first taxable sale, and there is no fee. It is a small step, but it has to be done before opening day, which is also when cash is tightest.

Four ways to read your own numbers

1. Weeks of stock on hand. If it is far longer than your supplier terms, you are financing the shelf yourself.
2. Best and worst sellers. Fund the winners, mark down the rest.
3. The slowest month. Your payroll and rent in that month define the size of cushion you need.
4. Repeat customers. A loyal base makes seasonal buying less risky.

Example, for illustration only

A gift and home-goods shop in a neighborhood district wants to order $35,000 of seasonal inventory in September to sell from November to December. The supplier wants payment up front. The shop is healthy, but its bank balance is not large enough to buy that much and still pay rent through October. Funding sized to the order solves a timing problem. It does not mean the season will sell, so choose an amount you could repay even if sales come in lower than hoped. This is not a statement of our terms.

What we ask for

Funding runs from $25,000 to $5,000,000, with funding in as little as 24 hours once approved. The application takes five minutes and uses a soft credit pull. We want about three months of business bank statements, no tax returns, and we consider FICO 500+. Sole proprietors can apply. Look at working capital or a line of credit, then apply.

See also: Syracuse, Onondaga County, restaurants, construction.