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

A national-average ticket, with no losses on record

New Jersey's producers of beer, wine and spirits borrow at the national pace under SBA 7(a): the median loan of $250,000 is 1.00x the nationwide typical for the class. What differs is the shape of the record. The state logged 81 loans worth $49.7 million, ranks 16 for loan count among states, with the class at 15 of 39 locally. Most loans lie from $100,000 to $761,000, and none carries a franchise tie.

The class collects breweries, wineries and distilleries by industry code, and a code establishes only that the business produces a drink of that kind. Visitor business is invisible in it, so a producer pouring for crowds looks the same on paper as one that sells only wholesale. Wineries sit in this class too. A study should therefore state the real operating model.

Holders and counties

In New Jersey the largest count, 11 loans and $2.5 million, belongs to Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company; TD Bank, National Association follows with 8 and $1.2 million. Trenton Business Assistance Corporation holds 6 worth $1.3 million. Live Oak Banking Company and Fulton Bank, National Association hold 5 each, worth $5.7 million and $2.4 million. These are SBA's holder records only. Monmouth County has 14 loans, Camden 10, Burlington and Ocean 7 each, Cape May 6, and Somerset and Warren 5.

Cancellation after approval had a floor of 12.5% for loans approved through FY2024, with the ceiling the same. New Jersey's early cohort of 40 loans has no charge-offs recorded, 0.00% by either yardstick, a floor that later failures could lift. Approvals fell from 12 in FY2017 to 5 in FY2021 and FY2022, then rose to 9 in FY2026, when dollars reached $10.2 million, the highest of the series.

What a New Jersey producer study must test

The study should describe capacity, the licences needed to produce, sell on the premises and distribute, and the equipment list with its cost. It should separate wholesale sales, which depend on distributors and shelf space, from direct sales, which depend on traffic, local rules and events. Real estate is often the largest cost in a populated state, so compare buying with leasing, test the zoning for production and for visitors, and show how rent or ownership cost compares with expected margins. Inventory that ages before sale ties up cash and needs its own line. Show the loan payment covered in a year when volume falls short, and include a case in which a licence is delayed.