Fieldhill Loans helps gas station and convenience store owners in Columbus, IN and Bartholomew County, IN request term loans to buy or remodel a station, inventory financing for store stock, and equipment financing for coolers, POS systems and car-wash equipment. Partners review fuel and store sales, supplier agreements and the purchase terms, then decide.
| Bartholomew County, IN gasoline station employers | 32 employer locations (County Business Patterns 2023) |
|---|---|
| Paid employees | 254, CBP 2023 |
| Convenience store employers | 4 more (NAICS 445120), CBP 2023 |
How stations and convenience stores use funding
A station has two businesses under one canopy. The two parts are fuel and the store inside. Fuel loads are paid on the supply agreement's schedule, and card sales settle after the sale. Store stock, coolers, lottery and tobacco inventory all tie up cash on the shelf.
The answer-first map: a term loan to buy or remodel; inventory financing for store stock; equipment financing for coolers, POS and car-wash equipment. Fuel systems themselves can raise environmental and supplier questions, so ask each partner how it treats them.
Pumps and c-stores in the Bartholomew County, IN data
County Business Patterns counted 32 gasoline station employer establishments (NAICS 4471) in Bartholomew County, IN in 2023, with 254 paid employees and about $6.6 million in annual payroll. Thirteen of them, 40.6%, had fewer than five employees, and 20 had a ZIP 47201 address (ZIP Business Patterns 2023).
Stand-alone convenience stores without fuel (NAICS 445120) numbered 4 employer establishments with 15 employees. Grocery stores (NAICS 4451) counted 14. Nonemployer Statistics, a separate program, counted 3 fuel-station businesses (NAICS 2022 code 4571) and 3 convenience-type retailers without payroll in 2024.
Our arithmetic from the CBP counts: roughly 8 employees per station on average (254 employees across 32 stations).
Stock, wages, equipment and fuel timing
Store stock
Packaged food, drinks, tobacco and household items are bought from wholesalers on the supplier's terms. Coolers full of drinks are cash sitting on shelves.
Wages across long hours
A station open early, late and on weekends carries wage costs across all of those hours.
Equipment
Walk-in coolers, reach-in doors, food-service equipment, POS and security systems, and car-wash equipment where there is one.
Fuel loads
Fuel supply agreements set how and when loads are paid; card fees can take a share of each fuel sale.
Matching station needs to funding types
| Need | Where Fieldhill would start |
|---|---|
| Buying a station or convenience store | Term loan |
| Store stock and cooler inventory | Inventory financing |
| Coolers, POS, food-service or car-wash equipment | Equipment financing |
| Store remodel or added food service | Term loan |
| Short gaps between deliveries and settlements | Working capital |
How to buy a gas station business: the Columbus, IN checklist
Small business loans for a gas station purchase are reviewed on the station's records: fuel gallons and margins by month, inside sales, the fuel supply agreement and its remaining term, the lease or property terms, and the condition of the fuel system. Partners may want fuel and store results shown separately.
A commercial loan for a gas station that includes the land and building is a real estate transaction, which Fieldhill does not arrange. Fieldhill can help with the business side: the purchase of the operating business, the store fit-out, equipment and stock.
Gas station financing requirements: the station papers partners read
- Monthly fuel gallons and inside sales over several years.
- The fuel supply agreement and any branding or image requirements.
- Bank and card processing statements.
- For a purchase: tax returns, the purchase agreement and the lease.
- Equipment quotes for any refit.
Reading a station's numbers before you buy
Fuel volume can make a station look larger than its profit. When you look at a station for sale, ask for inside sales and fuel gallons by month over several years, and the margin on each, so you can see where the profit comes from: fuel, inside sales, food service or a service such as a car wash.
Check what the fuel supply agreement requires of the owner: minimum volumes, branding and image standards, and what happens if the agreement is ended early. Partners read those terms closely, because they shape the station's future costs as much as its past results.
Convenience store business loans when there are no pumps
A business loan for a convenience store without pumps can look more like a small grocery or retail request: inventory turnover, deposit history and the lease are what a partner reads. Inventory financing or a line of credit covers stock; equipment financing covers coolers and food-service units.
A labeled example, not an offer
Hypothetical figures only: a station owner adds a hot-food counter. Equipment and installation are quoted at $36,000, and the owner expects the counter to need about $4,000 of opening stock. Equipment financing for the counter and a small inventory request for the stock keep each cost on its own schedule. The real figures come only from a partner.
Related pages
Retail stores and boutiques are covered on retail funding, and stations with repair bays share needs with auto repair shops. All sectors are on the industries page, and county figures on the Columbus, IN page.
By Fieldhill Loans · Updated
