1,202 SBA loans have financed Ace Hardware locations since 1990, written by 337 different lenders across 50 states. Half were approved for $477K or less, the mix is almost entirely 7(a), and 38% went to owners whose business was under two years old.
A lender that has already underwritten this brand knows the unit economics, the build-out costs, and the franchisor. That is worth more to you than a bigger bank starting from scratch.