Lauderdale County, AL had 48 gasoline station employers in 2023, more than half of them with fewer than five employees. A station's money turns quickly through fuel and store sales, while pumps, tanks and coolers are long-lived purchases. This page covers the counts, station lending and funding, buying a station and the records partners read.
At a glance
- Employer establishments
48 employer locations countywide (CBP 2023)
- Fewer than five employees
58.3% of the county's 48 (CBP 2023)
- Annual payroll
$7.5 million across 318 employees (CBP 2023)
- Without paid employees
6 counted with no payroll (NES 2024)
Gas Station Counts for Lauderdale County, AL
Among gasoline stations (NAICS 4471, which includes stations with convenience stores), Lauderdale County, AL had 48 employer establishments in 2023 with 318 paid employees and $7.5 million in annual payroll; 28 of them, or 58.3%, had fewer than five employees, and 21 used a ZIP 35630 address (County Business Patterns and ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023). That is about 6.6 employees per establishment and about $23,522 of payroll per employee (our arithmetic).
Nonemployer Statistics, a separate program that uses NAICS 2022 codes, counted 6 businesses without paid employees in gasoline stations (NAICS 2022 4571) in the county in 2024, with $1.8 million in combined receipts, or about $296,000 each (our arithmetic). The two programs count different businesses and are not added together here.
Gas Station Lending for Florence, AL Owners
A station handles large sums that are not mostly its own: a fuel load is paid for, sold within days, and paid for again, at a margin per gallon that is small against the total. The store side, with snacks, drinks and household goods, carries a wider margin on smaller sales. Funding requests split three ways: stock (fuel and store goods), equipment (pumps, tanks, coolers, canopy and point-of-sale), and the purchase of a station itself.
Gas Station Lenders: How It Works in Florence, AL
| The cost | Funding type to compare | What a partner reads |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel loads and store stock | Inventory financing or a line | Gallons sold and store sales by month |
| Pumps, dispensers or coolers | Equipment financing | The quote |
| Buying a station business | Term loan | The seller's records and supply agreement |
| A short cash gap | Working capital | Deposits |
Gas Station Funding Across Lauderdale County, AL
Inventory financing ties money to the goods; a line of credit fits loads that repeat every few days. Equipment financing covers dispensers and coolers.
Illustration only, invented figures: $160,000 of new dispensers and canopy lighting financed at 9.5% a year over 72 months costs about $2,924 a month, about $210,524 in total. At a margin of $0.25 a gallon, the payment equals the margin on about 11,696 gallons a month (our arithmetic on invented figures).
Gas Station Loan: What Partners Review in Florence, AL
- Fuel gallons and store sales by month for two or more years
- The supply agreement with the fuel company, and its end date
- The firm's bank statements and its returns
- Equipment quotes or the age of existing tanks and dispensers
- Environmental reports on the tanks, if the station is being bought
Gas Station Business Loan: When It Fits in Florence, AL
A loan fits when the cost it covers will earn its payments back: new dispensers that take card payments the old ones could not, a cooler wall that adds store sales, or a purchase whose records show the business can carry the debt. It fits less well as a patch for fuel margin that has fallen for months.
Loan to Buy a Gas Station: When It Fits in Florence, AL
Buying a station means reading its fuel volume, store sales, supply agreement and tank records. The land and building are real estate, which Coastspring does not arrange; the business, its stock and equipment can be part of a request. The article on buying a gas station in Florence, AL walks through the steps.
Retail Employers by Shoals ZIP, 2023
| ZIP (USPS name) | Retail employers | Share with fewer than 5 employees |
|---|---|---|
| 35630 (Florence, AL) | 226 | 41.2% |
| 35661 (Muscle Shoals, AL) | 123 | 41.5% |
| 35653 (Russellville, AL) | 59 | 49.2% |
| 35674 (Tuscumbia, AL) | 52 | 53.8% |
| 35660 (Sheffield, AL) | 40 | 50.0% |
ZIP 35630 held 21 of the county's 48 gasoline station employers, or 43.8% (our arithmetic; ZBP and CBP 2023), lower than the shares for clothing stores (91.5%) or health and personal care stores (60.9%) on the same basis (our arithmetic).
Fuel Margin Arithmetic for a Lauderdale County, AL Station
Fuel sales look large and earn little per gallon, so partners read the store side closely. Illustration only, invented figures: a station sells 60,000 gallons a month at $0.22 a gallon of margin, $13,200 in all, and store sales of $85,000 at a 30% margin, $25,500. The store brings in 1.9 times the fuel margin on these invented numbers (our arithmetic), which is why a cooler wall or food counter can matter more to a request than the pumps.
Gallons, Tanks and Supply Terms to Pin Down First
- How many gallons a month does the station sell, and how has that moved over two years?
- When does the fuel supply agreement end, and what does it require?
- How old are the tanks, and when were they last tested?
- What share of store sales come from tobacco, lottery and other low-margin lines?
By Coastspring Funding Group · Updated