Sprucewood Financial's bar page covers funding for Silver Bow County, Montana taverns and pubs: the county's drinking-place figures, five funding types set against a tavern's purchases, remodels and kitchen additions, buying a pub with its license and stock, payroll gaps, patio additions and permits, and reading a card-sales advance before signing.
At a glance
- Drinking places, Silver Bow County, MT
32 employers (CBP 2023)
- Employees at drinking places
193 (CBP 2023)
- Drinking places with fewer than five employees
13 (40.6%, CBP 2023)
Drinking Places in Silver Bow County, MT: Employers, Staff and Payroll
| Measure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Employer establishments | 32 | CBP 2023 |
| With fewer than five employees | 13 (40.6%) | CBP 2023 |
| Employees | 193 | CBP 2023 |
| Annual payroll | $2.6 million | CBP 2023 |
| Employer establishments in ZIP Code 59701 | 29 | ZBP 2023 |
| Drinking places with no paid employees | 6 | NES 2024 (separate program) |
Payroll per employee at the county's drinking places came to about $13,601 in 2023 (our arithmetic from Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023); the employee count includes part-time workers, so that figure is not a wage rate. For a tavern, the payroll line is steady while sales swing, which is where many of its funding questions start.
Bar Business Financing Options in Silver Bow County, MT: Five Funding Types for a Tavern
- Draft systems, coolers, ice machines and kitchen equipment: equipment financing
- A back-bar remodel, a kitchen addition or buying a pub: a term loan
- Weekly liquor, beer and food orders and payroll between busy weeks: a line of credit
- A one-time gap with a clear end date: working capital
- A short gap against strong card sales: a merchant cash advance, which is not a loan
Inventory financing is the sixth type, but bar stock is rarely financed on its own; for a tavern, a credit line suits that job better.
Pub Business Loan for a Back-Bar Remodel or Kitchen Addition in Silver Bow County, MT
Illustration only, invented figures: an invented pub adds a small kitchen and rebuilds its back bar for $64,000, financed over 72 months at 10.5% for about $1,202 a month (our arithmetic). A kitchen addition changes what the pub sells, so a partner wants the expected food sales and the cost of a cook's wages along with the contractor's bid.
Kitchen additions involve building, fire and health review. The zoning and building permits guide covers the city-county side.
How to Finance Buying a Pub in Butte, MT: Price, License and Inventory
Illustration only, invented figures: an invented pub sells for $360,000, including $18,000 of stock at cost, with 20% down, leaving $288,000. Over 120 months at 10%, the invented payment is about $3,806 (our arithmetic). Part of a bar's price may be its liquor license, which the state must approve for transfer to the buyer, and a partner wants to know the license is transferable before it funds. Count the stock yourself on the day of closing, because a stock figure agreed months earlier rarely matches the shelves.
- Get the seller's tax returns, bank statements and sales reports.
- Separate the price: license, equipment, stock, lease and goodwill.
- Confirm the license transfer steps with the state.
- Confirm the lease can be assigned, and for how long.
- Show how the pub's cash flow covers the payment after your own salary.
The Montana liquor license guide covers the license side, and the term loans page covers acquisitions.
Payroll Gaps at a Butte, MT Pub: Working Capital or a Line of Credit
Illustration only, invented figures: an invented pub runs short by $4,600 a week for 3 weeks between busy stretches, $13,800 in all. Drawn on a line of credit for about six weeks at 15% a year, that costs about $238 in interest (our arithmetic, before fees). If the gap repeats every year, a line suits it; if it happens once, a short working capital loan with a set end date may suit better.
Patio Additions at Butte, MT Bars: Permits First, Then a Term Loan
Illustration only, invented figures: an invented bar builds a patio for $54,000, paying about $1,147 a month over 60 months at 10% (our arithmetic). Outdoor service can change the area covered by a liquor license, and the patio itself needs city-county approval, so line up both before borrowing.
Card-Sales Advances at a Butte, MT Tavern: Reading the Holdback
A tavern with steady card sales may be offered a merchant cash advance. It is not a loan: the provider buys a share of future card sales, which the bar remits daily until the agreed total is collected. Convert the factor into dollars and compare it with a line of credit for the same need. The article on how a merchant cash advance works for a bar or cafe works one through in dollars, and the article on equipment loans and credit lines for taverns compares the two loan routes.
The industries page lists the other trades, and the Butte, MT data page has the county figures.
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