104 SBA loans have financed Hardware Hank locations since 1991, written by 63 different lenders across 9 states. Half were approved for $174K or less, the mix is almost entirely 7(a), and 34% 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.