12 SBA loans have financed The Honey Baked Ham Co. And Cafe locations since 2001, written by 9 different lenders across 7 states. Half were approved for $253K or less, the mix is almost entirely 7(a), and 42% 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.