SBA Loan for Winery Expansion | 100% Financing for Tasting Room and Event Venue

The winery had generated its entire revenue history while operating in a building that the ownership described as unsuitable for the quality of product and hospitality they provided. The leased space in a strip-center retail plaza limited occupancy, restricted production capacity, offered minimal parking, and provided no visibility to drive-by traffic. Private event hosting, one of the highest-margin revenue channels for a boutique winery, was severely constrained: the winery was regularly turning away wedding inquiries, corporate event requests, and large party bookings because the space could not accommodate them. Wholesale distribution was limited by production capacity that the facility could not support. The tasting room experience, the primary customer acquisition channel for wine club memberships, was restricted by the size and configuration of the space.

The winery's growth to $516,000 in annual revenue and 320 wine club subscribers had occurred entirely within these constraints. The 43% average annual growth rate from 2020 to 2022 demonstrated market demand for the product and the brand, but the revenue ceiling imposed by the facility meant that growth would plateau without a relocation. The ownership had identified a former bank building with the visibility, parking, and square footage the winery needed, but the property required a full adaptive reuse conversion: interior buildout to transform a commercial bank into a wine production facility, tasting room, and event venue capable of hosting weddings, parties, and private functions.

The financing required Cornovus Capital to build a proforma and assumptions model that demonstrated the revenue trajectory a facility change would produce. The winery's trailing DSCR at the time of the executive summary was 1.21x, adequate on trailing revenue but requiring a convincing forward projection to support the facility acquisition and buildout at the scale the project required. Each revenue growth channel, tasting room sales, wholesale distribution, private event bookings, and wine club subscription income, had to be documented with specific assumptions tied to the capacity the new facility would unlock. SBA owner-occupancy compliance also had to be addressed for a property being converted from bank use to winery and event venue use.

• Leased strip-center location with no event capacity, limited production, insufficient parking, and no street visibility
• Regularly turning away wedding, corporate event, and large party bookings due to space constraints
• Wholesale distribution limited by production capacity the current facility could not support
• 320+ wine club members generating $255,000+ in annual recurring revenue, with growth constrained by tasting room limitations
• Adaptive reuse conversion of a former bank building required detailed buildout planning and SBA occupancy compliance
• Proforma-driven underwriting required documented revenue assumptions across four distinct growth channels

Cornovus Capital structured the SBA loan for winery expansion as a single facility with multiple capital provisions engineered to fund every phase of the acquisition, conversion, and operational ramp at 100% financing with no equity injection. The real estate acquisition covered the full purchase of the former bank property. A dedicated $100,000 interior buildout and capital improvement allocation funded the adaptive reuse conversion from a commercial bank into a winery production facility, tasting room, and event venue. A 10% construction contingency reserve provided a financial buffer against unforeseen costs during the buildout. A separate $100,000 working capital allocation ensured the winery could sustain operations, maintain inventory, fund marketing, and manage the revenue ramp-up period without drawing on personal reserves or disrupting the existing business while the conversion was underway. All third-party diligence and closing costs, including appraisal, environmental assessment, legal fees, title work, lien searches, construction monitoring, and SBA packaging, were absorbed within the facility. The 25-year fully amortizing term preserved the ownership's personal capital entirely, allowing the winery to relocate, build out, and ramp into the new facility without depleting the liquidity the business needed to operate during the transition.

The proforma and assumptions model was the centerpiece of the credit package. Cornovus Capital documented four specific revenue growth channels and the dollar impact each would produce once the facility constraint was removed. Tasting room sales were projected to increase by $60,000 or more annually as the new location's visibility, parking, and capacity expanded the walk-in and appointment-based customer base. Wholesale distribution was projected to add $60,000 or more as the increased production capacity allowed the winery to fill larger orders and develop relationships with grocery retailers, restaurants, and regional distribution partners. Private event revenue, the channel most directly constrained by the current facility, was projected to add $85,000 or more annually from weddings, corporate events, and celebratory functions the winery had been unable to accommodate. Wine club subscription revenue, already generating over $255,000 annually from 320 members, was projected to grow as the expanded tasting room experience drove new memberships, with a target of 200 additional subscribers. Each assumption was conservative, supported by the winery's trailing performance, and tied to a specific operational change the new facility enabled.

SBA owner-occupancy compliance for the adaptive reuse was addressed by documenting the full use plan for the converted property: wine production and storage areas, the tasting room, event hosting space, retail, and administrative offices. Cornovus Capital coordinated the SBA authorization, appraisal, environmental review, construction monitoring scope, and closing to bring the acquisition and buildout to a single closing structure that provided the ownership with immediate access to the property and a clear timeline for the conversion.

• Structured 100% SBA 7(a) financing with no equity injection and six distinct capital provisions in a single facility
• Real estate acquisition funded in full for the former bank property
• $100,000 interior buildout and capital improvement allocation for adaptive reuse conversion to winery, tasting room, and event venue
• 10% construction contingency reserve for unforeseen buildout costs
• $100,000 dedicated working capital for transition operations, inventory, marketing, and revenue ramp-up
• All closing and diligence costs absorbed: appraisal, environmental, legal, title, lien searches, construction monitoring, SBA packaging
• Built a four-channel proforma documenting projected revenue growth from tasting room ($60K+), wholesale ($60K+), private events ($85K+), and wine club subscriptions ($140K+)
• Addressed SBA owner-occupancy compliance for adaptive reuse conversion of a former bank into a winery, tasting room, and event venue
• Included 10% construction contingency reserve to protect against unforeseen buildout costs
• 25-year fully amortizing term preserving ownership capital through the acquisition, conversion, and revenue ramp period
• Coordinated appraisal, environmental, construction monitoring, SBA authorization, and closing

The SBA loan for winery expansion closed at 100% financing with no equity injection, delivering six distinct capital provisions in a single facility. The winery acquired the former bank property with the full purchase funded through the SBA structure. The $100,000 interior buildout allocation funded the adaptive reuse conversion into a destination tasting room, event venue, and wine production facility. The 10% construction contingency reserve provided protection during the conversion process. The $100,000 working capital allocation gave the ownership the liquidity to sustain operations, maintain wine inventory, fund the marketing transition, and manage the revenue ramp into the new facility without drawing on personal capital. All closing and third-party diligence costs were absorbed within the facility, meaning the borrower closed the acquisition and began the conversion with zero out-of-pocket expense.

The transaction positioned a boutique winery that had averaged 43% annual revenue growth despite severe facility constraints to expand into a property capable of supporting the full range of revenue channels the ownership had been building: an elevated tasting room experience to drive wine club acquisition, private event hosting for weddings and corporate functions, increased production capacity for wholesale distribution, and the street presence and parking that a destination winery and event venue requires. The revenue trajectory projected in the proforma, from $516,000 to $600,000 and toward $900,000, was built on four documented growth channels that each required nothing more than the physical space the new facility provided. The proforma and assumptions work that Cornovus Capital developed for this transaction demonstrated what the ownership already knew: the demand was there, the product was proven, the brand was growing, and the only thing standing between the business and its next phase of revenue was the building it operated in.

• 100% SBA 7(a) financing closed with no equity injection, six capital provisions in a single facility, zero out-of-pocket expense at closing
• Former bank building acquired and converted to boutique winery, tasting room, event venue, and production facility
• $100,000 interior buildout funded the adaptive reuse conversion of the owned property
• $100,000 working capital preserved operating liquidity through the move, transition, and revenue ramp
• 10% construction contingency reserve provided buildout cost protection
• All third-party diligence and closing costs absorbed within the facility
• 25-year fully amortizing term at WSJ Prime + 2.75% with ownership capital fully preserved
• Revenue projected from $516,000 to $600,000+ (2023) and $900,000+ (2024) across four documented growth channels
• 320+ wine club members generating $255,000+ in annual recurring revenue positioned for expansion in the new facility
• Private event hosting, wholesale distribution, and tasting room capacity expanded from the facility the current location could not provide
• SBA owner-occupancy compliance achieved for adaptive reuse conversion

Additional financing outcomes are available in our Transaction Highlights archive.