Finance for building an online store

Ask someone what it costs to start selling online and they’ll usually quote the website. For most product businesses, that’s the smallest number on the page. A tidy store on a hosted platform can go live for less than the cost of the first stock order, and well before the first meaningful ad budget.

So when you’re working out how to fund an online store, think in three layers: the build, the stock, and the traffic.

Where does the money actually go?

Layer	What’s included	One-off or ongoing	Typical funding
Build	Platform setup, theme or custom design, apps, payment gateway, photography, product copy	Mostly one-off, with monthly subscriptions	Cash, a business credit card, or a small unsecured loan
Stock	Opening inventory, packaging, a buffer for best sellers, import freight and duty	Ongoing and grows with sales	Line of credit, import finance, supplier terms
Traffic	Search and social ads, influencers, email platform, content	Ongoing, often the largest line	Cash flow, line of credit, sales-linked finance
Fulfilment	Courier accounts, a third-party logistics provider, returns	Ongoing	Cash flow

Business.gov.au points out that ecommerce platforms charge subscription fees and often a fee per transaction, and that marketplaces tend to take a larger cut than selling through your own site. Build those percentages into your margins from the start. The margin and markup calculator makes it quick to see what’s left after fees, freight and returns.

Why a new store is hard to fund on its own

Most business lenders assess an application by reading the bank account it trades through. A store that launched last month doesn’t have that history yet. So in the early stage, funding tends to come from:

• Your own savings, which is what most lenders expect to see in a brand-new venture anyway
• An existing business. If the store is a new channel for a shop or wholesaler that already trades, lenders assess the established business and its turnover
• Property security. Owners with equity in a home or commercial property can borrow against it, but think carefully before putting a house behind an untested store
• Small-limit credit, such as a business credit card, to spread the build cost over a few months

Banks are often the cheapest option when the store sits inside a business they already know. If it’s a new venture and the bank declines, our guide to startup business loans covers the alternatives honestly.

Platform finance and sales-linked loans

Once a store has a few months of steady sales, a different type of finance opens up: funding repaid from a share of each day’s takings.

Platform lending. Some ecommerce and payment platforms lend to their own merchants, using the sales data they already hold. According to Shopify’s help centre as at October 2026, Shopify Capital loans for Australian merchants carry a fixed borrowing cost and are repaid through a daily percentage of sales. The total must be repaid within 18 months, with at least 30% repaid by six months and 60% by twelve. PayPal offers a similar product to sellers who process enough through PayPal, covered on our PayPal business loans profile.

Revenue-based finance from fintech lenders. Revenue-based finance works on the same principle but isn’t tied to one platform. It can suit stores that sell across their own site and marketplaces.

The appeal is obvious: repayments shrink in a quiet week. The trade-off is that the cost is fixed regardless of how fast you repay, so repaying early doesn’t save much. Compare the total dollar cost with an unsecured term loan before you accept.

If your store is trading and you want to know which route suits it, start a short enquiry. Expect it to take a minute, with your credit score unaffected.

Cash that gets stuck between sale and settlement

Online stores often look healthier on the sales dashboard than in the bank account. Watch for:

• Marketplace payout cycles, which can hold your money for days or weeks after the sale
• Reserves some payment providers apply to new or fast-growing merchants, holding back part of your takings for a period
• Returns and chargebacks, especially in fashion, where return rates can be high
• Stock bought months ahead, particularly if you import and pay suppliers before goods ship

None of this is a reason not to grow. It’s a reason to have a buffer, or a facility you can draw on, so a strong sales month doesn’t leave you short on cash.

A note on tax and the website build

The ATO generally treats a website as in-house software, which is a capital cost claimed over several years. Hosting, domain renewals and minor updates are usually deductible as running costs. The government made the $20,000 instant asset write-off permanent for small businesses from 1 July 2026, so a build under that amount may be deductible in full in the year it’s ready to use. This depends on your circumstances, so check the treatment with your accountant before you rely on it in a cash flow plan.

Worked example: a Hobart skincare brand moves beyond markets

An illustration only. A small skincare maker in Hobart has sold at weekend markets and through two stockists for three years, turning over about $280k a year. The owner wants a proper online store to reach buyers on the mainland.

Item	Amount
Store build on a hosted platform, theme customisation and apps	$9k
Product photography and copy	$4k
Extra stock and packaging to cover online demand	$22k
Launch ad budget (first three months)	$12k
Courier setup and a returns buffer	$3k
Total	$50k

The owner pays for the build and photography from savings. Because the existing business has three years of trading history through its bank account, a lender approves a $35k line of credit on that turnover, and the stock and ad budget are drawn from it as needed. After nine months of online sales, the store has its own track record. When a platform finance offer appears in the store admin, the owner compares its fixed cost in dollars with simply increasing the line, and picks the cheaper one for the next stock run.

Getting your store funded

An online store becomes much easier to fund once it has sales to show, and before that, the strength of your wider business is what counts. Have your margins, platform fees and stock plan written down, and you’ll be able to judge any offer on its total cost.

When you’d like a second opinion, our form takes around sixty seconds. Asking leaves your credit file alone, and your details aren’t sent off to a crowd of lenders. One of our team reads what you’ve told us and calls you back. Please give us accurate sales and stock figures, so the first suggestion suits how your store actually trades.

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