Cotton, cattle, petroleum and a large university define the South Plains. This page follows the farm year and the town businesses that live alongside it.
Apply Now →The South Plains is a region of northwest Texas centered on Lubbock. It covers part of the Texas side of the Llano Estacado. It is prominent in petroleum production but mainly agricultural, with cotton the most common crop and numerous large cattle ranches. At one point it was the world's largest cotton-producing region, although depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer and cotton price variation have since reduced production. Texas Tech University in Lubbock is the largest of several colleges and universities in the region. Our county grouping includes Lubbock, Lamb, Terry, Yoakum, Lynn, Garza, Hockley, Bailey, Hale, Cochran, Crosby and Floyd, and is general rather than official.
That pattern means a farm-service business has to survive three-quarters of a year of spending that its customers repay late.
The source notes that cotton price variation has reduced production in the region. For a supplier, that creates a cash risk that is not about its own sales. When prices turn, farm customers delay equipment purchases, stretch their accounts or buy fewer inputs. A parts dealer or implement shop can feel it a quarter later. The fix is a reserve built during good years. When that has not happened, working capital is a way to bridge a lean stretch while repairing the business model.
Lubbock and the smaller towns around it have restaurants, auto shops, clinics, contractors and retailers whose customers are farmers, ranch hands, students and university staff. The student calendar and the farm calendar both affect them. A cafe near campus slows in summer; a tire shop near farm country is busiest in spring and at harvest. If your slow months are predictable, your funding should be, too.
For illustration, with round numbers: an implement dealer wants to stock $60,000 of parts ahead of spring work. If customers are paying on time and the parts turn in a few months, that stock pays for itself. If customers are already stretching their accounts, the same stock sits on the shelf. Before applying, write down who will buy the stock and when.
Funding runs from $25,000 to $5,000,000, and can be funded in as little as 24 hours once approved. The application is about 5 minutes. Sole proprietors can apply, which includes many one-owner farm-service and Main Street businesses. Apply now or read more about your own county first.
Cotton, cattle ranching and petroleum production, centered on Lubbock and home to Texas Tech University.
Depletion has reduced cotton production in the region, which affects the farm customers many local suppliers rely on.
Yes. Sole proprietors can apply, and what is offered depends on the application.
Those near campus tend to follow the academic calendar, with slower summers.
No. It is a general grouping and membership is approximate.
Three months of business bank statements and a 5-minute application. FICO 500+ considered. $25,000 to $5,000,000, funded in as little as 24 hours.
Apply Now →It takes about two minutes and it will not affect your credit score.
No obligation • No impact to your credit score
