SBA 7(a) Brewery, Winery and Distillery Feasibility Study in Colorado

Colorado makers: loans that run well above the national norm

In Colorado, SBA approved 95 loans under the 7(a) program to makers of beer, wine or spirits across FY2017 to FY2026, for $68.6 million. Colorado is 12 among states by loan count, and the class is also 12 of 39 within its borders. The median loan of $450,000 is 1.80x the nationwide ratio, and the interquartile range is $150,000 to $828,000. No franchise appears, at 0.00% of loans. A Colorado maker plainly raises larger sums than the typical maker elsewhere.

Live Oak, JPMorgan Chase and the Front Range

Live Oak Banking Company holds 12 of these loans, worth $9.2 million, and JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association 9, worth $6.1 million. First National Bank of Omaha holds 7 loans at only $783,300 in total, and 5 each sit with Wells Fargo Bank National Association ($3.6 million) and BMO Bank National Association ($3.1 million). Jefferson County leads with 17 loans, Denver follows with 12, Boulder and El Paso have 10 each, Larimer 9, and Douglas and Weld 6. Volume fell sharply near the end of the series: 3 loans and $381,000 in FY2024, against 21 loans and $12.4 million in FY2018.

Cancellation matters too: Colorado's FY2017 to FY2024 approvals gave up at least 17.3% before funding, and the ceiling is identical. Write-offs are mild, with a floor of 2.0% to date across the 50 funded loans of the earlier cohort and 0.00% inside five years. A lender should treat the first number as the one that speaks to execution risk: approval is not funding, and projects need to be ready.

Testing a Colorado maker's request

In this class the code identifies what the borrower produces, so a taproom, tasting room or event programme is not visible, and wineries are in by our scoping decision. A Colorado study should therefore describe the actual operation: barrel or tank capacity, production permits, water and ingredient supply, and the portion of sales through the taproom, retailers and distributors. It should reconcile build-out and equipment with a request that is large compared with the national figure, show payments covered through the slowest quarter, and test what happens if a distributor leaves. The study must show differentiation, not just capacity. The appraisal should treat the plant as specialised property.