Quillfield Business Funding, a small-business funding broker in Kalamazoo, Michigan, compares six options for Kalamazoo County owners: working capital, term loans, lines of credit, inventory financing, equipment financing and merchant cash advances, which are not loans. Each is set out by repayment, typical use and what lending partners review; partners decide and set terms.
Six options in one table
| Option | How it is paid back | Fits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working capital | Fixed installments over months, often debited weekly or monthly | Payroll, rent and supplier bills during a known gap | Short terms mean large individual payments |
| Term loan | Scheduled installments over a set term, usually amortizing | Build-outs, expansions, buying a business | Covenants, balloon payments, prepayment terms |
| Line of credit | Interest on what is drawn; pay down and draw again | Uneven bills, slow-paying customers | Periodic renewal reviews and when drawing stops |
| Inventory financing | Paid down as the stock sells, or on a schedule | Stock bought ahead of the selling season or a big order | Liens on the goods, audits of stock |
| Equipment financing | Loan or lease payments spread over the equipment's useful life | Ovens, dental chairs, lifts, work vehicles | End-of-lease terms, insurance requirements |
| Merchant cash advance | Not repaid like a loan: a share of sales is remitted until a set total is collected | Card-heavy businesses needing money quickly | Total remittance, holdback percentage, stacking |
The fourth column matters as much as the second. Each structure carries its own fine print, and the time to read it is before a partner sends paperwork.
Short term or long term?
The funding should last about as long as the thing it pays for. Wages paid this month should not sit on a five-year loan, and a remodel that earns its keep over a decade should not be squeezed into a six-month repayment. When the term and the purchase line up, the payment tends to come out of the money the purchase itself generates.
Secured or unsecured business funding
A secured loan is backed by named collateral: equipment, inventory, receivables, real estate, or a general lien on business assets filed as a UCC financing statement. An unsecured loan has no specific collateral, though many partners still ask for a personal guarantee from the owners. Secured offers may run longer or larger because the partner has something to fall back on; unsecured offers rely more on cash flow and credit history. Which one a partner offers is the partner's decision.
Loan or business credit card?
A card is a revolving line with a small limit, handy for travel and small supplies. A loan or a line of credit makes more sense once purchases run into the thousands, because card interest is built for short balances. Some owners keep both: the card for day-to-day spending and a line or loan for planned costs.
Allowed uses of business funding
Almost any genuine business purpose: payroll, rent, stock, equipment, a remodel, a vehicle, buying out a partner, consolidating more expensive debt. Partners usually decline personal uses, and some restrict specific purposes in the contract, so name the real purpose at the start.
Where SBA loans fit
SBA-backed loans are made by participating lenders with a partial federal guarantee. Quillfield Business Funding does not make or arrange SBA loans itself. If an SBA loan looks like the better route, the Michigan borrowing checklist explains where to start, and the free advisers in the Kalamazoo County help list can talk it through.
What every partner looks at
- Bank statements, usually the most recent several months
- Time in business and revenue trend
- Existing debt and payments already due
- Business and personal credit history
- The purpose, and for asset purchases a quote or invoice
Requests from across Kalamazoo County follow the same pattern; the county figures show how many of those businesses are small enough that the owner's own credit often enters the review.
By Quillfield Business Funding ยท Updated