Elara wiped the condensation from the inside of her truck’s windshield and stared at the six empty acres of her family’s orchard. The cherry trees stood like skeletons, their branches clawing at a pale March sky. To anyone else, it looked dead. To Elara, it looked like a ticking clock.
She smiled. This spring, she wouldn't need a bridge. She would be the bridge.
Then the call came.
Fatima nodded. "Then you're not asking for seasonal working capital. You're asking for a seasonal strategy ."
She had to go back to the well.
By September, the harvest was done. The last truck pulled away, carrying the final pallets of frozen cherries to a pie-filling plant in Michigan. The grocery chains paid their invoices. Dante released the holdback—the remaining 8% minus fees. Elara received a wire for $23,000.
The line of credit was approved for $200,000. seasonal working capital
"You're too small for a revolving line of credit from a bank. But you're too big for me to keep funding at reasonable rates. You need to self-finance your seasonal cycle."