Starting
your own business is an incredibly exciting time, especially if it is an avenue
that you are passionate about, however the preliminary stages can be quite
daunting as there is a lot of information that needs to be documented before
anything else happens. There will need to be a formal business plan presented
to the bank and/or councils to acquire the funds and licenses so, to ensure
that you have everything you need, this guide aims to provide a brief overview
of what needs to be included.
Executive
Summary
This
is the very first part of your business plan and will include what your vision
is for your business, for example, if you have a coffee shop design in mind, this is where you would explain
your reasons for opening a coffee shop at the premises you have chosen. It is a
good idea to state if there is a specific area of interest near your chosen
site, for example, a shopping district or a college or university which will
allow repeat custom; you will go into this in more detail later in the plan but
it is a good tactic to mention it briefly at the beginning of your plan. In
this summary, include the site size, the length of the lease, start up funds
and how the remaining capital is going to be funded and how you expect your
company to grow in the next 3 years in revenue and net profit.
After
the brief opening statement, state a minimum of three key objectives that you
wish to achieve in your first year of your business along with a list of how
you are going to achieve those objectives, i.e turn profits in the first month
by maximising sales through aesthetics and marketing strategies.
Products
This
section is incredibly important as it is the very crux of your business - the
products that will bring in your revenue and build your profits. So, if you are
looking to begin a cafe business, you menu would be in this section along with
a list of ingredients that will be needed and any merchandise that will also be
sold on site. It is essential that you
go into depth about your products, including how to prepare them, for example,
if you are looking to open a coffee shop, explaining how the temperature of the
milk is important to making the perfect latte shows that you are serious about
the business idea because you have done extensive research.
Competition
Knowing
and understanding your competition is what makes a business successful. As a
business owner, it is important to display in your business plan your awareness
of other similar businesses around you but also what gives your business the
edge over them. If you are a small coffee shop in the same vicinity as Costa,
what gives you the edge over this well-established coffee house? Why would
customers rather come to you? Tackling these obstacles is important as it shows
that you have considered all angles to make your business a set above the rest.
