Black Friday is decided in August, when the purchase order goes in. Here is how the usual ways of paying for Q4 stock compare on the same $100,000 buy, when each one has to be in motion, and the one question that decides which is right for your brand.
Most brands that struggle in Q4 are profitable. The product sells. The issue is that the money to buy the stock is needed in August or September, and the money from selling it arrives in December and January. In between sits a gap of three to five months, and every financing option on this page is a different way of paying to bridge that gap.
That makes the comparison simpler than it looks. You are not asking "which product is best". You are asking "what does it cost to borrow roughly $100,000 for roughly four months, and what does it do to my cash flow while I am repaying it". Some options charge a fixed fee whatever the term. Some charge interest by the month. One charges nothing during an intro period. And some take a slice of every sale during the exact weeks you are trying to make money.
Costs are typical ranges, not quotes. Provider offers are individual and change often; check the actual offer against these columns.
| Option | How it prices | Rough cost on $100K over ~4 months | Repayment during Q4 | Speed and access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform advance (Shopify Capital, Amazon Lending, PayPal Working Capital and similar) | Fixed fee set at offer, or a term loan | Fixed fee, commonly in the low-to-mid teens percent of the advance | A percentage of daily sales is remitted until repaid, so your best weeks repay fastest | Fast, invite-based, sized to your platform sales history |
| Merchant cash advance | Factor rate, typically 1.1-1.5 | $10,000-$50,000 on top of the advance, term-dependent | Daily or weekly holdback from receipts | 1-3 days, needs card sales history |
| Revenue-based financing (Clearco, Wayflyer and similar) | Fixed fee, often 6%-12% of the advance | $6,000-$12,000 | Percentage of revenue until repaid | Days, needs connected sales and ad accounts |
| Bank or fintech line of credit | Variable APR, often 10%-25%+ | $3,500-$8,500 for four months | Monthly interest, principal when you choose | Days to weeks, needs revenue history, often 1-2 years |
| Supplier terms (net 30-90) | Free if paid on time, or a small discount lost | $0-$3,000 (lost early-pay discount) | Due on the term date regardless of sales | Depends entirely on the supplier relationship |
| 0% intro APR business credit (stacked cards and lines) | 0% during a 6-18 month intro period | $0 in interest if repaid inside the window | Minimum payments only; you choose when to pay down | Days to a few weeks, underwritten on the owner, not the store |
MCA, line of credit and SBA ranges from NerdWallet, Bankrate and SBA.gov (2025-2026). Platform and revenue-based fees are described from published product mechanics, not from any provider's current offer.
A percentage of sales sounds gentle. In practice it means a slice of every Black Friday order goes out the door before you have paid for January's restock. Check what the remittance does to your cash in weeks 47 to 52, not what it averages over a year.
If your Q4 sells through in six weeks and you repay early, a fixed-fee advance costs the same as if it had taken six months. Interest-based and 0% options reward a fast sell-through. Fee-based ones don't.
The offer is based on what you sold through that channel last year. If this year's plan is bigger, or you sell on more than one channel, the offer will usually be smaller than the buy.
Most bank and fintech lines want a year or two of revenue and clean statements. Strong brands in their first eighteen months often can't get one, whatever their margin.
Business credit cards look at the owner's personal credit and income, not the store's history. That is why a young brand with a strong owner can reach a larger figure here than anywhere else in the table. It is also why a stretched personal profile changes the answer.
Advances, bank lines and platform loans usually make the owner personally liable for the balance. The 0% programs we run do not. Either way, the plan to repay has to be real before you draw.
Dates assume a supplier lead time of six to twelve weeks. Shorter lead times move everything later; sea freight from Asia moves it earlier.
Late July to mid August: know your number
Last year's Q4 units, this year's forecast, the purchase order you actually want to place, and the gap between that and the cash you will have. That gap is the amount you are financing, not the whole PO.
August: line up the capital
Platform advances and revenue-based offers take days once you accept. A 0% credit round takes days to a few weeks because applications are sequenced. A bank line can take longer. Start now so the money is there when the supplier invoice is.
Late August to September: place the PO and pay the deposit
Most suppliers want 30% to 50% down at order and the balance before shipment. The deposit is the first draw on whatever you set up in step two.
October: balance payment, freight, and the ad ramp
Stock ships when the balance is paid. Ads for BFCM start building audiences now. This is the month where cash is thinnest and where a fixed remittance on every sale hurts most.
November: sell through
Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Remittance-based products repay fastest here. With 0% credit and a line, you decide what to pay down and what to keep for the December restock.
December to February: repay, restock, and read the numbers
Pay down the balance from the Q4 revenue, leave enough for January's reorder, and write down what the financing actually cost you against what the stock earned. That number is what decides next year's choice.
If you sell mostly on one platform, last year's Q4 was solid, and the gap is a fraction of what the platform offers, take the offer. It is fast, it is sized to you, and the remittance ends quickly if Q4 goes well.
When you know that a dollar of ads returns two dollars in forty days, a fixed fee on capital that goes straight into that engine can be worth it. Do the maths on the fee against the return, not against the interest rate you imagine it equals.
The cheapest capital in this table is the invoice you are allowed to pay later. Ask, every season. A supplier who has seen you pay on time for two years will often say yes.
When the platform offer is too small, the bank wants two years you don't have, and your own credit is in good shape, a stacked 0% round is usually the largest amount available at the lowest cost, as long as the payoff plan is written before you buy the stock.
We do the last row of that table for ecommerce brands, so here is exactly what that means and what it doesn't.
We look at the owner's credit before we tell you a range, and if the platform offer already covers your gap we will say so.
You know every issuer and every product before an application goes in, and you submit each one yourself with your own true information.
The plan for the end of the 0% period is written before the PO goes in: what the money is for, when the stock turns into cash, what gets paid first.
We stay around after the money lands, through Q4 and the January restock, because the repayment is where the plan either works or doesn't.
No personal guarantee on the programs we run, which is not something most of the options in that table can say.
Results depend on your credit profile, income and existing accounts. Nothing on this page is a guarantee of approval or of any amount.
A short application and an honest range, including "the platform offer already covers you" when that is the answer.
