Liquor Store Merchant Cash Advance & Business Funding
Liquor stores can get a merchant cash advance based on steady card and cash deposits. The pressure point is inventory: distributors often want payment on delivery or within a short window, and the holiday season means buying heavily before it sells. Funders look at deposit consistency and how much the store owes its distributors.
How do funders read liquor stores?
Funders want cash deposited on a regular schedule, few returned distributor payments and a license in good standing. The account's pattern in the weeks after the holidays matters most, since that's when inventory is paid for and sales cool off.
How does money come in for liquor stores?
Most sales are card and cash at the register, with a growing share through delivery apps that pay out weekly. Distributor invoices are the largest cost, and payment terms for beer, wine and spirits are usually short. Many stores also sell lottery tickets and tobacco, which add deposits with thin margins.
Which months are slowest for liquor stores?
This table shows how many people private beer, wine and liquor retailers (NAICS 445320) businesses employed each month, as an index where the year's average is 100. It comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, the most recent full year available. Staffing is a stand-in for how busy a business is. Deposits can move more or less than headcount, so read it as the shape of the year, not your numbers.
| Month | Staffing index (average = 100) | |
|---|---|---|
| January | 100 | |
| February | 99 | lowest |
| March | 99 | |
| April | 99 | |
| May | 100 | |
| June | 101 | |
| July | 101 | |
| August | 101 | |
| September | 99 | |
| October | 100 | |
| November | 101 | |
| December | 101 | highest |
The low point is February at 98.9 and the high point is December at 100.9, a swing of 2 points. Staffing peaks around the winter holidays and dips slightly in February.
| Quarter | Total payroll index (average = 100) |
|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 98 |
| Quarter 2 | 97 |
| Quarter 3 | 100 |
| Quarter 4 | 105 |
Payroll by quarter can rise at year end for reasons like bonuses and overtime, not only more work.
What do liquor stores use merchant cash advances for?
- Stocking up for the holidays and big game weekends.
- Buying a discounted pallet or close-out lot.
- Walk-in cooler and beer cave repairs.
- Security cameras and ID scanners.
- License renewal fees.
What does an advance payment look like in a slow month?
Staffing barely moves through the year here, so the slow month to plan for isn't seasonal. Say the weeks after the holidays bring deposits 20% under average while holiday stock is still being paid for. Say a business like yours deposits $90,000 in an average month and carries a fixed payment of $9,000 a month, 10% of that average:
| Deposits | Fixed payment | Share of deposits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average month | $90,000 | $9,000 | 10.0% |
| A month 20% below average | $72,000 | $9,000 | 12.5% |
A fifth less in deposits turns a 10% payment into 12.5%. Keep a cushion for it, or ask how reconciliation works before you need it.
Which funding options fit liquor stores?
Each page runs one option against this industry's slow months.
Same-day merchant cash advance for liquor stores
Money the same business day for an urgent cost, with the fixed daily debit measured against a slow month.
Business line of credit for liquor stores
A draw sized for a slow month, repaid in thirds, with the interest on the balance worked out.
MCA consolidation for liquor stores
One payment in place of two, with the share of deposits before and after in a slow month.
Run a business like this?
Tell us your slow months up front and we'll look for funders that size for them. Call 877-FUND-654 with any question. We call you back, usually the same business day, and we always talk with you before we shop your file.