Specialty Food Retailers

Businesses and organizations in the Specialty Food Retailers industry (NAICS code 4452, part of the Retail Trade sector) received 33,270 PPP loans totaling $1.71B during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The average loan for this industry was $51,339 — below the national PPP average of approximately $67,000. This reflects the small business character of most participants in this industry, typically sole proprietors and micro-businesses with modest payroll obligations.

94.1% of loans in this industry were forgiven — totaling $1.66B. To qualify for forgiveness, borrowers had to demonstrate that they maintained headcount and compensation levels and used at least 60% of loan proceeds for payroll expenses.

Notable recipients in this industry include NATIONAL DCP, LLC of DULUTH, GA ($10,000,000); SANTA MONICA SEAFOOD COMPANY of RANCHO DOMINGUEZ, CA ($9,199,167); and EDDY FOODS INC of YOAKUM, TX ($8,359,600).

The loan amount distribution for this industry shows a more even spread across loan sizes, suggesting a mix of small and mid-sized businesses. Because borrower names are withheld for loans under $150,000, a substantial portion of recipients in this industry may not appear by name in this dataset.

As part of the broader Retail Trade sector — selling merchandise to the general public for personal or household consumption. — businesses in NAICS 4452 were particularly reliant on PPP assistance to bridge the gap between declining revenues and fixed overhead obligations during the shutdown period.