Banking relationships that show up when you need them
The time to know your banker is before you need a line of credit, not the week you do.
Use a local or regional bank for the business
Big national banks treat small shops as transaction volume. Local and regional banks treat them as customers. The difference shows up the first time you need flexibility.
Set up a line of credit before you need it
A line of credit is much easier to get when the business looks healthy than when it doesn't. Apply when you don't need it. Use it when you do.
Meet your banker once a year
A 30-minute coffee with your banker, every year, with a one-page snapshot of where the business is. That relationship pays for itself the first time something goes sideways.
Take your version of this question further
This is one operator-tested angle on the question. Your shop, your size, your trade, and your team change the answer. Ask your specific version inside Ask a Shop Owner to get a response grounded in how owners like you actually handled it.