First hire a credit cleaning company. This will cost you roughly $200 USD.
I ignore my credit till I require it, then use a credit cleaner, because the entire credit report industry is pretty much a racket.
All manner of junk shows up on credit reports over the years. You can clean all this yourself + likely paying $200 will be far more profitable, than spending many hours/day for months to do this yourself.
Last time I did this my mid score was 618 + after a month of my credit cleaner's work, my mid score as 796.
You'll still require much more than a high credit score to get this type of loan + having a high credit score will ease all your steps.
1. Figure out how much money you would need.
2. Calculate the price of a monthly card that would give unlimited skating for a month. It should break even at about 20 day tickets.
3. Divide the amount you need by the price of a monthly card.
This is the number of cards you need to sell to get funding for your rink.
4. Sell the tickets, but don't collect the money yet. Tell them that you will only collect the money if you reach a certain level of ticket sales. That will encourage them to spread word of mouth to their neighbors. (If they aren't enthusiastic about an ice skating rink then you are building in the wrong community).
5. Also tell them that if the sale happens, you will give them a free T-shirt when they pay for their ticket.
This method has the advantage that, not only do you get the money without borrowing and interest, you also know that you have customers. The only out of pocket expense will be the T-shirts.
Let's be clear - There is a hierarchy of funding available. The top tier is your national bank where you'll get the cheapest rates and the bet terms. So, given that you want to do a startup, it's unlikely it'll happen.
Assuming you've done all the preparation (business plan, etc)... Then, first step is to go to friends and family and ask them for some investment. Even if you raise $1,000, it's proof to other investors that there are people that believe in you. Once you've gotten a handful of investors, go to the location and work with whoever is selling or leasing it to you. Maybe they'll believe in your idea too. Then set out on the leverage quest. Perhaps a small credit union or independent bank for the best rates, online business lenders, all the way to private capital that is ridiculously priced. All kinds of options.
Let me add - Credit score doesn't mean a thing when dealing with a startup. I knew of a guy who just got out of jail a year before he came to me. He started a business by raising money and now needed a few million because he was growing so fast. But he had bad credit, so the bank wouldn't look at him. But private investors do.
Hi, I just wanted to add on to what David Favor mentioned in his answer. It's a good step to first hire a credit cleaning company to clean up your credit.
However, it's also advisable to maintain or increase your credit score for an extended period before opening this ice rink. This gives you some leverage when negotiating your payment structure with the bank.
It'll also allow you some more time to put together more money so that you can afford to take a lower loan with lower interest.
If you have any further questions, feel free to drop me a message. :)
Another option to think of....
If traditional funding doesn't work, consider thinking outside the box and partnering with a local developer or real-estate investor.
Both may have property they're unable to do anything with and provided you have experience and they see you as a low risk, they could be willing to partner.
My guess is Rent, Electric (due to size of the facility) and Insurance will be your highest cost. If rent can be subtracted short-term and build-out handled by the partner, you may not need much.
Good Luck!
Call me, I'll walk you through the entire process!
