Ravenmoor Finance, a small-business funding broker in Ocala, Florida, works through how very small businesses get working capital. With 59.1% of Marion County's employers under five employees, the post orders the options from simplest to most complex, explains what each asks of the owner, and notes that a merchant cash advance is not a loan.
Small firms are the norm here
Of Marion County's 8,389 employer establishments in 2023, 4,955, or 59.1%, had fewer than five employees, and 87.6% had fewer than 20 (U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023). In ZIP 34471, which includes our street address, the share under five employees was 53.7%. For businesses this size, one customer paying late can put payroll at risk.
First, measure the gap
Before asking how to get working capital, write down three things: how much is short, the date the shortfall starts, and the date it ends. A gap with a clear end, such as a large invoice due in six weeks, calls for something different from a gap that recurs every month. Many small firms find the second kind is really a pricing or terms problem, not a funding one.
Options from simplest to most complex
- Change the terms you already have. Ask suppliers for longer payment terms, or customers for deposits or shorter terms. It costs nothing to ask.
- A business line of credit. A limit you draw on when a gap appears and repay when it closes, with interest only on what is drawn. Easier to arrange before you need it.
- A short working capital loan. A lump sum for a single known gap, repaid on a fixed schedule, often weekly or monthly.
- A merchant cash advance. Not a loan: a funder buys future card or bank receipts at a discount. It can cost more in dollars than a loan for the same need, so compare its total cost before accepting.
We list the options by effort and complexity, not by price. Prices are set by partners and vary with each business.
Three hypothetical gaps, three answers
A two-person landscaping firm in Belleview, FL finishes a large job and invoices it on 30-day terms, but payroll is due in ten days. The gap has a clear end, so a short working capital loan, or a draw on a line if one exists, fits.
A small Dunnellon, FL gift shop is short every month in the same week, when rent and supplier bills fall together. The gap repeats, so a line of credit sized to it usually fits better than a new loan each time.
An Ocala, FL food truck owner is offered an advance against card sales to replace a generator. The need is equipment, which can usually secure its own financing; an advance would sell future receipts for a purchase that could be financed directly. These examples are illustrations, not real businesses or typical offers.
What working capital can be used for
Partners generally accept payroll, supplier invoices, tax payments, insurance premiums and short repairs. They are wary of short-term money used for long projects, such as a renovation, because the repayment schedule ends before the project pays back. If the need is a machine, equipment financing is usually a better match.
What partners look at for a very small firm
When a business is the owner and a few employees, partners read the bank statements closely: average balances, how often the account ran low, regular deposits, and any existing daily or weekly debits. Tax returns matter too, but they can lag a year behind. Owners can help by keeping business and personal money in separate accounts and by listing every existing advance or loan up front.
A note on stacking
Small firms are frequent targets for repeated advance offers. Taking a second advance before the first is collected means two funders drawing on the same receipts, leaving less for wages and rent. If you already hold one, tell any partner at the start.
Local context
For the county's full business figures and the sectors partners fund, see the city page for Ocala, FL. Other articles in the series are on the Ravenmoor blog.
By Ravenmoor Finance · Updated