Funded
Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant, funded with TD. We built the plan, the numbers and every document, and saw it through to funding.
Buying a restaurant?
Up to $500,000 To buy an existing restaurant.
- 100% of submitted files funded
- $10M+ funded to date
Buying a restaurant is a different application from building one. The lender wants an appraisal, the seller's numbers and a lease you can take over. The loan comes from a bank or credit union, through the government-backed Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP). We don't lend. We line it all up, build the plan and the forecast, and take it to the right lender. You bring the documents only you can get. We do everything else.
We win when you win.Our shared success compensation is only paid when you're funded.
- 100%of submitted files funded
- $10M+funded to date
- 100hrsabout how much of your time we save per file
- Canada-widebanks and credit unions
Where we take your application
- RBC
- TD
- BMO
- Scotiabank
- CIBC
- National Bank of Canada
- Desjardins
- Meridian
- BDC
What a lender needs from a purchase
The history is theirs. The file is yours.
The lender reads the business you are buying and the owner you will be.
An appraisal that supports the price
A certified appraiser values what you are buying, including what it would cost to build the space from scratch. The value has to come in above your price, or the deal has a problem.
Two years of the seller's numbers
Two years of the seller's financial statements, prepared by an accountant, plus their corporate tax returns and notices of assessment. We make the case that it does better under you, but the history still has to be there.
A lease you can take over
You take over the lease rather than negotiating it, so the years left on it have to carry the loan. Have your lawyer check the lease transfer and look for a demolition clause, which can let the landlord end the lease early.
A signed purchase agreement
The agreement sets the price that the appraisal and the loan are measured against. We build the rest of the file around it.
Your side of it
Your credit, your cash and net worth, your filed tax returns and the plan for how you will run it. The seller's history shows the business works. Your application makes the case that it will work under you.
See if you pre-qualify
Buying the building as well? See property financing.
How it works
From first call to funded.
Seven steps. You are only asked for the things only you can provide. Everything else is ours.
- Yours
- Bank statements, tax returns, the lease, quotes and invoices. The documents only you can get.
- Ours
- Everything else on this page. The plan, the numbers, the budget, choosing the bank, applying, the back and forth, and getting the money paid out.
- 01
Check if you qualify and pick the right bank
First, we find out whether you are a strong candidate and what the best route is. We ask the lenders we know what they are funding right now and look for the best terms for your goals. If we do not see a way forward, we tell you on that first call rather than taking your time.
- 02
We check everything first
We gather your documents and look for problems before the bank does. Some things are an instant no under this program, and we would rather find them early than in front of a lender.
- Personal and corporate tax returns
- Your credit report, and what a lender will read into it
- Your net worth, and the cash you are putting in
- Your lease, its length, and any clause that lets the landlord end it early
- Competitors and comparable restaurants
- Your restaurant experience and the team around you
- 03
The business plan
A written plan that tells your story the way a bank reads it, delivered as a designed, password-protected web page the lender can open on their phone. It covers:
- Executive summary
- Company overview
- Management team
- Products and services
- Market opportunity
- Marketing and sales strategy
- Operations plan
- Financial projections and debt servicing
- Use of funds
- Why this works
- Appendices
- 04
The financial model
A three-year forecast in Excel, built the way a restaurant CFO would build it, with every assumption visible so the bank can check it. It covers:
- Assumptions
- Revenue build
- P&L, three-year forecast
- Break-even analysis
- Sensitivity analysis
- Monthly cash flow projections
- Projected balance sheet
- Rent schedule
- Loan amortization schedule
- Full capex schedule
- 05
Lender match and submission
We work with your own bank, or match you to the lender that lends to restaurants and fits your profile. Lenders change what they will do all the time, so the match matters as much as the application. Then the whole package goes in at once: plan, forecast, budget, quotes, invoices and every supporting document, in one organized online folder the lender can move through quickly.
- 06
Approved
Approval is the lender's decision and nobody can promise it. What we control is a complete application in front of the right lender, which is why every one we have submitted so far has been approved and funded.
- 07
Funded, and the money in your account
Approval is not cash yet. The bank pays the loan out in stages, and each payment needs the right invoices and proof of payment. We manage the payout for you and prepare all of it, so each payment moves quickly.
Brands we've worked with
- Recipe Unlimited
- Happy Belly Food Group
- Rosie's Burgers
- Heal Wellness
- The Pickle Barrel
- Texas Roadhouse
- Sunnyside Grill
- Hibachi Teppanyaki
- Florette
- Marigolds & Onions
- SweetChops
- OMG Real Estate
- Joey Cutlets
Funded
Files we took all the way through.
Every application we've submitted has been funded. Over $10 million so far, and about 100 hours saved for each client.
Funded
Buying an existing restaurant
An asset purchase rather than a build, which means an appraisal, an inherited lease, and two years of the seller's statements and returns. Financed through a credit union.
Funded
Independent restaurant
Every document, the plan and the forecast, taken to Meridian and through three rounds of questions to approval.
Funded
Bar build
A ground-up bar, financed on projections rather than history, because there was no trading history for the location to lean on.
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On Instagram
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What it costs
What's the investment?
One small investment to start. The rest only when you're funded.
To start, there is a project launch investment. It covers the early work. The amount depends on your project and on how many owners are applying, so we quote it once we've seen your deal.
Once you're approved and funded, there's shared success compensation. It scales with the funding you receive. Both are small next to the loan, and worth it. We walk through all of it before we begin.
The good news: where the lender allows it, both can be included in your loan.
We also help you negotiate the best terms and value with your lender. Think of us as your partner in getting funded, and in getting a better deal.
No surprises. We explain every term before you sign.
See if you pre-qualify
We win when you win.Our shared success compensation is only paid when you're funded.
Who you deal with
I speak restaurant. I speak bank.
Hi, I'm Adam Gilbert. I've spent my career in the restaurant business, on the finance and marketing side. That includes senior marketing and finance roles at one of Canada's best known restaurant groups, through its sale to the country's largest full-service operator.
I run Sweet Sauce Hospitality Partners, and I am building my own restaurant concepts, so I am not advising from the sidelines. I know what a build really costs, and what the bank will ask before it asks.
A good business plan tells your story, then backs it up with numbers. It has to make the bank believe in your restaurant, and then prove it.
Let's get yours funded.
Questions
Restaurant purchase FAQs.
Straight answers. Including the ones where the honest answer is that it depends on your lender.
See if you pre-qualifyDo you lend the money?
No. The loan comes from a bank or credit union, through the Canada Small Business Financing Program, a Government of Canada program. The government guarantees a large share of the loan for the lender. We are a brokerage: we build the application, take it to the right lender and see it through to funding.
What will the lender need from the seller?
The historical numbers, because the lender needs to see that the business can carry the debt, whatever the buyer plans to change. We line these up early so the sale does not wait on them.
- Two years of year-end financial statements, at least Notice to Reader
- Two years of corporate tax returns and notices of assessment
- The lease, for the buyer's lawyer to review the assignment and any demolition clause
- The signed agreement of purchase and sale
What if the appraisal comes in below the purchase price?
Then the deal has a structural problem that needs solving before a lender will go further. It is far better to find out early, while the price and the terms can still be discussed, than after the file has gone in.
Can I buy the building as well?
Yes, and when real property is part of the project the limit is higher: up to $1,000,000 in term financing plus a $150,000 working capital line. Tell us early, so we quote the right number.
How much funding can I get?
Most restaurant owners we work with qualify for between $200,000 and $500,000. $500,000 is the program limit for the build, the equipment and costs like franchise fees, and up to $150,000 of that can be working capital. Buying the building too? The limit is higher, so tell us early and we will quote the right number.
What is the Canada Small Business Financing Program?
The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is a federal program that helps small businesses borrow through banks and credit unions. The government guarantees a large share of the loan for the lender. That guarantee is what makes restaurant lending workable for a bank. To qualify you must be a for-profit Canadian business with under $10 million in annual revenue.
- The build, such as your kitchen or dining room
- Equipment, from ovens and fryers to point of sale
- Furniture and fixtures
- Franchise fees and working capital
My cash versus my net worth. What is the difference?
Lenders check two separate things, and people mix them up all the time. First, the cash you put into the project, usually 10 to 40% of the cost. Second, your net worth, which backs your personal guarantee. That does not have to be cash: home equity, a car and investments all count. Lenders usually want it to equal about 25% of the loan, not of the whole project. If you have been told you do not have enough cash, it is worth a second look.
How long does it take?
It depends on two things: how fast we get your documents, and how long the lender takes to decide. We can speed up the first. Once we see your project, we will give you an honest timeline for both.
Can you guarantee I will be approved?
No, and be careful of anyone who says otherwise. The decision belongs to the lender. What we control is how complete your application is, and which lender sees it. That is where we focus, and it is why every application we have submitted so far has been funded.
Where do you work?
Across Canada. The CSBFP is a federal program and we work remotely, so where you are does not matter. We are based in Toronto and work with owners in the Greater Toronto Area, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec City. Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec City are handled in French or English.