Funding a Business in Concord, NC: Cabarrus County, NC by the Numbers

This is Concord, North Carolina

At least twelve other US places share the name Concord, including the much larger cities in California and New Hampshire. This site is about Concord, North Carolina, in Cabarrus County northeast of Charlotte. Searches for licenses, chambers or small-business help that leave off the state often return the other Concords first, so add "NC" when you look for local offices.

The Cabarrus County, NC business base

Cabarrus County had 5,279 employer establishments in 2023. Together they employed 77,218 people in the pay period that includes March 12 and paid about $3.72 billion in annual payroll. Of those establishments, 2,856, or 54.1 percent, had fewer than five employees, and 84.0 percent had fewer than twenty (U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023).

Separately, 22,242 businesses in the county had no paid employees in 2024, with combined receipts of about $1.07 billion (U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics 2024). These are mostly owner-operators, and they come from a different program and year than the employer counts, so the two totals should be read side by side rather than added.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023. Health care and social assistance had the largest payroll of any sector, about $772.7 million.

The office ZIP code, 28025

Concord, NC is split mainly between two ZIP codes: about 67 percent of the city's land is in 28027 and 30 percent in 28025, the ZIP of our address. ZIP 28025 also reaches well beyond the city; only about 18 percent of its land lies inside city limits (U.S. Census Bureau 2020 ZIP code tabulation area to place relationship file). Treat the figures below as describing the 28025 postal area, not the city.

In 2023, ZIP 28025 had 1,374 employer establishments with 18,916 paid employees and roughly $1.11 billion in annual payroll; 56.0 percent of the establishments had fewer than five employees. Construction led with 195 establishments, two-thirds of them under five employees, followed closely by health care and social assistance with 192. Retail had 152 and accommodation and food services 105 (U.S. Census Bureau, ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023).

Self-employment in Concord, NC

An estimated 8.2 percent of employed Concord, NC residents were self-employed, plus or minus 1.3 points, compared with 8.6 percent (plus or minus 0.8) for Cabarrus County and 9.8 percent (plus or minus 0.1) for North Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024). The city and county ranges both sit below the state's, so self-employment is somewhat less common here than statewide. About 3.6 percent of the city's employed residents ran an incorporated business of their own and 4.6 percent an unincorporated one.

What the main sectors tend to ask for

• Contractors carry labor and materials between draws and buy compact equipment and trailers. Contractor and construction financing covers both.
• Restaurants finance kitchens, hoods and coolers, and sometimes the upfit of a leased space. Restaurant financing goes through the options.
• Medical and dental practices wait on insurers after care is delivered and buy costly clinical equipment. Practice financing explains the fit.
• Retailers and wholesalers buy stock before it sells, which is what inventory financing is for.

For timing gaps of any kind, start with working capital; for machines and vehicles, equipment financing. The six options appear side by side in the comparison, and every sector page is listed under financing by industry.

Permits, registration and local contacts

Before signing a lease or ordering an upfit in Concord, NC, look at the city's Small Business Permit Guide, which separates businesses simply moving into a space from those constructing or upfitting and points the second group to the Plan Review staff (City of Concord website, accessed 2026-10-16). Zoning and permits before you lease turns that into a checklist alongside a funding timeline.

The city's website also has a Licenses & Permits page under its Business section. New entities register with the North Carolina Secretary of State and tax accounts with the North Carolina Department of Revenue.

The Cabarrus Regional Chamber of Commerce lists its address as 57 Union Street South, Concord, NC, and the Cabarrus Economic Development Corporation describes itself as the lead economic development agency for the county and its municipalities. Both, with free counseling options, are in Cabarrus County small business resources. Oakwick Lending Group is not affiliated with any of them.

Reaching Oakwick Lending Group

Call (980) 352-5260 or use the short online form; most of the work happens by phone. Owners in Kannapolis, Harrisburg, Mount Pleasant and other nearby towns reach us the same way, as the communities we work with shows. About Oakwick explains why a broker carries the word Lending, and the contact page has the address and phone.

Concord, NC businesses we help

For Concord, NC owners, Oakwick Lending Group focuses on the sectors our lending partners have confirmed they fund: contractors and construction trades, restaurants and food service, medical and dental practices and retailers and wholesalers that carry stock. Approval is never automatic for any sector.

What to gather before you call

• Recent business bank statements (partners often ask for three to six months)
• Your most recent business tax return
• Current financial statements: profit and loss plus a balance sheet
• A driver's license or passport for each owner
• Details of any loans, leases or advances the business already carries
• The equipment quote, contract or purchase order the funding is for

Each lending partner sets its own list, so treat this as a starting point.

How a request moves forward

1. Reach us at (980) 352-5260 or through the contact form. When we call back, the first questions are simple: what the funding is for, how long the business has operated and its rough revenue.
2. We explain which funding types fit that use and what partners usually need to see. Nothing is submitted without your go-ahead.
3. Once you agree, the request goes to partners that provide that type of funding. The credit decision belongs to each partner.
4. When an offer arrives, weigh its full cost, how payments are scheduled and the conditions. Accepting is entirely your choice.

Our office is at 4 Union St S, Concord, NC 28025.

By Oakwick Lending Group · Updated 2026-10-16