A funding partner reviews what Ashmont Advances sends on, and any offer's amount, rate and term are that partner's own.
Three invented cases for a Thomasville, GA station store: one stock order priced as four line paydowns, a 12-month loan and a cash advance; a used frozen drink machine on a 30-month schedule; and a 16-day payroll draw. The counts are 2023 Census figures for Thomas County, GA and ZIP 31792.
At a glance
- Gasoline stations, Thomas County, GA
39 (CBP 2023)
- Paid employees at those stations
252 (CBP 2023)
- Convenience stores, Thomas County, GA
13 (CBP 2023)
- Gasoline stations, ZIP 31792
22 (ZBP 2023)
Crew sizes at Thomas County, GA gasoline stations and convenience stores in 2023
County Business Patterns counted 39 gasoline stations with paid employees in Thomas County, GA in 2023. Those stations paid 252 employees a combined $6.7 million for the year, and 19 of the 39 got by with fewer than five people. Convenience stores, a separate Census code from gasoline stations, numbered 13 with paid employees, and 11 of those 13 had fewer than five.
In ZIP 31792, the postal ZIP that carries the Thomasville name, ZIP Code Business Patterns found 22 gasoline stations with paid employees in 2023.
A station store with a small crew pays its clerks every week or two whatever the day's traffic, and its shelves empty between distributor deliveries. The cases below follow those two bills.
Term loan or credit line for store inventory? A Thomas County, GA gas station view
In an invented example, a Thomasville, GA station store places a larger distributor order than it normally does: $15,385 of drinks, snacks and paper goods. The table prices that invented order three ways.
| Option | What the store pays | Cost of the money |
|---|---|---|
| Credit line at a 13.85% annual rate, four monthly paydowns | $3,846.25 a month for four months | $443.92 interest |
| 12-month loan at a 12.4% annual rate | $1,369.82 a month | $1,052.84 interest ($16,437.84 in all) |
| Merchant cash advance, a 1.28 factor | Collected from each day's card sales until the factor total is reached | $4,307.80 ($19,692.80 collected) |
In this invented example, the line costs the least because each paydown shrinks the balance and it is gone in four months; the loan keeps a balance out for a year; the advance's cost is fixed by the factor however many days the card sales take to cover it.
Goods bought for resale can also go on inventory financing, paid down as they sell. A term loan fits better when the money buys something the store keeps for years.
A used frozen drink machine for a Thomas County, GA c-store: questions before signing
In an invented example, a convenience store buys a used two-barrel frozen drink machine from an equipment dealer for $7,945. At an 11.65% annual rate over 30 months, that invented purchase means 30 payments of $306.54, or $9,196.20 in all; $1,251.20 is interest.
Questions to settle with the dealer before a request on a machine like this invented one:
- The machine's age and serial number, which tell a partner what it is financing.
- Whether the dealer replaced the compressor or the barrel seals, and the invoice for that work.
- Whether the price includes delivery and setup on the counter.
- Whether the machine needs a dedicated outlet; new wiring for it is property work outside this site.
On used equipment, a partner may set a shorter term than on new or want part of the price paid down. Those choices belong to the partner and show up in any offer.
Credit line uses for Thomas County, GA gas station and c-store owners: payroll between deposits
In an invented example, a station store's biweekly clerk payroll of $6,470 falls due two days before the weekend's card deposits settle. To bridge it, the owner takes the invented $6,470 from a credit line at a 14.9% annual rate and returns it 16 days later. Sixteen days of interest on the invented draw come to $42.26.
Payroll due before deposits settle is a timing gap rather than a drop in sales. A line sized to one payroll can carry that gap each time it opens and be paid down again, while a working capital loan fits a single larger cost with a set end date. A card-processor hold, a cabinet repair and weekly against monthly payments fill the short-term funding article.
What a Thomasville, GA station owner can bring to the first call
- The store bill and its amount: a stock order, a counter machine or a payroll week.
- The date the bill is due and the date the money to pay it back comes in.
- Recent business bank statements, which a partner may ask for after the call.
- Any card-sale advance the store is already paying, since a partner may ask about it.
The call can start with just the bill and its due date; documents come later, if a partner asks for them. The trades page places gas stations beside restaurants and hotels, and the Thomasville, GA page has the county figures for other trades.
By Ashmont Advances · Updated