SBA 7(a) Grocery Store Feasibility Study in Minnesota

Minnesota grocers: half the national ticket

Grocery stores in Minnesota borrow under the 7(a) program at about half the national scale and almost never with a franchise. Over FY2017 to FY2026 the file records 68 loans, with $31.2 million in gross dollars. A median loan of $150,000 is 0.48x what grocers elsewhere borrow, while the inner half of loans spans $49,925 to $403,500, the territory of a neighborhood market or specialty grocer and not a supermarket. The franchise share is 0.00%. Minnesota is 15th among states by count, and grocery stores hold 14 of 39 inside the state.

Twin Cities concentration

Hennepin County has 21 loans and Ramsey 17, so those two counties account for most of the file, while Anoka and Dakota have 5 each, and Murray and Scott 3 each. Two holders appear: U.S. Bank, National Association with 12 loans and Sunrise Banks National Association with 6, both present holders in SBA's data. Approvals were thin in FY2017 at 2 loans, rose to 14 in FY2024, and stood at 4 loans worth $3.8 million in FY2026.

Cancellation and the withheld rate

Of the Minnesota grocery loans approved from FY2017 into FY2024, 13.8% or more were cancelled, with the same figure as the ceiling. Charge-offs get no percentage on this page, since the seasoned window holds too few loans to publish a rate; a silent line means thin evidence, never a clean slate.

What a Minnesota grocery study has to test

A grocery has razor-thin margins, so the study has to start with sales per square foot and per customer, drawn from the households nearby and the rival stores, including the large chains and discount formats nearby. Gross margin by department, shrink on perishables and the cost of refrigeration need to be explicit. Inventory is a large part of the investment and has to be financed along with fixtures. The median near $150,000 suggests a small store or a purchase of an existing one, so the study should say which. For a specialty grocer, the size and loyalty of the community served should be evidenced, not assumed. Winter weather shifts shopping patterns, so monthly cash flow matters. Coverage of the payment must hold when sales run below the owner's plan. Grocery stores are coded as a single class without a flagged limitation.