Add small-business loans to the items you can purchase at a discount from Sam’s Club.

Sam’s Club, a division of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., is testing an online program to lend $5,000 to $25,000 to qualifying club members, the St. Louis Business Journal reported. The warehouse retailer is working with Superior Financial Group, a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) lender, on the project.

The Sam’s Club pilot program will focus on minority-, women- and veteran-owned small businesses as well as micro-entrepreneurs under the SBA’s Premier Outreach Express products such as Community Express, Patriot Express and Export Express loans.

“We believe this pilot program is a step in the right direction to help fuel small business growth and create jobs to stimulate our economy,” said Catherine Corley, vice president of membership at Sam’s Club, in a statement. “It’s also simple to apply and costs less …”

Sam’s Club members who apply for a small-business loan online during the pilot program will get $100 off the application fee, a 20 percent discount, and a 7.5 annual percentage rate, which is a discount of 0.25 percentage point, the company said. Loans will remain at 10-year terms, common to help keep monthly payments low, the company said. There is no penalty for early repayment.

Sam’s Club said that in a November 2009 study it conducted, nearly 15 percent of its business members reported being denied a loan to run their operation, up from 12 percent in April 2009.

A business membership at Sam’s Club costs $35 a year.