Grocery Store Feasibility Study in New Hampshire

Small loans, spread across three counties

New Hampshire's grocery record is built on small tickets. The median of $150,000 is 0.43x the median for grocery stores across the country, while the middle of the distribution spans $50,000 to $195,000, a ceiling well below what a full supermarket would cost. For FY2017 to FY2026 the file holds 28 loans totalling $8.3 million, which ranks the state 29 of 55, and groceries stand 14 of 39 within New Hampshire. The location quotient of 0.75x shows the class slightly under its national weight. These are small markets, convenience-style stores and independent grocers, not chain supermarkets.

Programs, lender and places

SBA 7(a) made 24 of the loans and SBA 504 made 4. Franchise share is 0.00%. Eastern Bank is the lender listed, holding 6 loans and $340,000 of the 7(a) total, as SBA names the current holder; SBA's file tracks only what a lender holds or held, and says nothing of its practices. Hillsborough County dominates with 15 loans and Rockingham follows with 7, Carroll has 4, and Coos and Strafford one each. The southern tier near the Massachusetts line carries the record, and the northern counties are barely present. Annual counts jump about: no approvals in FY2017, FY2022 or FY2026, and 6 each in FY2020, FY2023 and FY2025.

Outcome measures withheld

Cancellation and charge-off cannot be stated as rates for New Hampshire groceries, because too few loans sit in each cohort. We publish neither number and do not call either zero. Any rate on another page is a floor that loans still open can still raise.

Questions a New Hampshire grocery study must answer

Margins in grocery are slim, and a study has to be exact about sales per square foot, the mix of fresh and packaged goods and the shrink that fresh food brings. In a state with small towns and seasonal tourism, it must separate year-round residents from visitors and show the slow months honestly. Competition from the large chains and warehouse clubs in the southern counties has to be mapped, along with any local advantage such as a prepared food counter, a butcher or a regional product line. A loan near $150,000 will cover equipment and inventory but rarely a building, so the study must show what the rest of the project uses for funds. Coverage on conservative sales is the test a lender applies, and if real estate is purchased the appraisal will rest on the store's income.