Up Management Business Plans: Fill & Download for Free

Some years ago my brother and I decided to open up a cigar parlor. We wanted to open it at the newly-developed Patriot Place, home of the New England Patriots. Being a marketing manager by trade I researched and wrote a business plan for the project, learning much along the way. For example, the average retail store generates about 150 dollars of revenue per square foot: for decades, Tiffany’s generated the most at 4000 dollars per square foot til Apple came along and blew everyone out of the water at 6000 dollars per square foot.I did traffic pattern analysis and so on. I got all kinds of rental statistics from the Patriot Place management office and wrote a plan. We got a lawyer and incorporated. We got an accountant and became an LLC. We went to a bank and got 400,000 in SBA financing. We went to the Chamber of Commerce and they hooked us up with a business team at a business college who wrote our financial plan for us for free. We went to Patriot Place sales management and they showed us a concrete box available in the mall. It was 11oo square feet. The rent was 89,000 dollars a year. We hired an architect who drew up a plot plan and did basic diagrams of the layout we wanted. We worked with the town health inspector to make sure there were no gotchas. The triumph was going to the town to apply for a liquor license. By the merest of chance a liquor license had been surrendered that day and the town clerk approved my application. All I needed was a rubber-stamp approval from the town government and the clerk told me it was a formality. It cost me 250 dollars. By comparison, a liquor license in Massachusetts sold by a business costs between 250,000 and 500,000 dollars. I was in the right place at the right time. Most of the profit in any food business is the liquor. A cigar, after taxes, might make 20 percent. Booze makes many times that. Many businesses are propped up by the booze sales alone. Everything else is just a gimmick to get customers to come in and buy booze.Once the Plan was complete with architectural drawings, contractor lists, materials required, SBA documents, business plan, pro-forma financial documents and every other duck lined up we contacted Patriot Place management. They arranged a sit-down meeting to discuss the viability of our potential business in their mall. Meanwhile we contacted all the businesses that would be around us. Almost every single one of them said a variation of the following: “Do not do business with these people. You are getting in bed with the devil. Run away while you still have the time. Once you sign a five year contract it will be too late to run away.” But by this time we had invested over 40,000 dollars in the operation. So we went forward.The meeting was scheduled for 2:oo PM at the Patriot Place boardroom. My brother and I put on our best suits: we made copies of the plans and had them bound. We wanted to look professional and capable. At 2:00 we showed up at the Patriot Place office. No one was around. After about fifteen minutes a guy showed up who said he represented Patriot Place rental management. He looked about 25. He was wearing cut-off shorts and flip flops, a concert T-shirt and dark Ray-Bans. He told us the conference room was not available so we would have to do the meeting at Davios restaurant. We walked to the restaurant in silence. I was hoping we would meet other officials there who were more professional. But when we got to the restaurant it was fully booked. The guy stood outside in his flip flops for a minute and then he said, “We can do the presentation here on the park bench.” I was incredulous. We were going to give a business presentation in the middle of a mall on a bench, with shoppers passing by. So I said, “Will others from the organization be joining us?” and he grinned and said, “It’s just me, baby!”. What choice did we have but to sit down and present? My tie was flapping in the wind. My brother was silent. I handed a packet to the guy and went to my Power Point summary. At first all he was interested in was our liquor license: how we got it, the miraculous story of how I was in the right place at the right time. He listened intently.But when I started to present the guy’s cell phone rang. He picked it up. “It’s my girlfriend,” he said. And started talking. Then while he was talking he said to us, “Yeah, keep going.” There was a pit in the bottom of my stomach. It was like talking to air as I spoke while he carried on an animated conversation with his girlfriend. I finished before he did. We waited in silence for him to finish his call. When he was done all he said was, “Does this packet include everything?” I said, “Yes, the business plan, architectural diagrams, contracts, LLC legal documents, all of it.” “OK,” he said, getting up, “We’ll let you know in two weeks. By the way, it’s triple net and we take 2 percent of any revenues over 1 million dollars per year. That’s revenues, not profit. And you have to use our services for snow and trash removal, plumbing, electrical and janitorial. You’ll be billed monthly.” And he got up and left.My brother and I sat there. It was like getting raped. Neither of us said a thing. We just looked around at the mall. “It’s like getting in bed with the Devil,” that store owner told us.Two weeks went by. They never called us. Another week went by. They never called us. Finally I called the name on the card the man had given us. It took him awhile to remember who we were. “Oh, we’re not doing that,” he said, dismissively, “but thanks for the Plan. It was very thorough. We’ll use it as a template if we ever decide to put in a cigar store.” And he hung up. No good-bye. I stood there looking at my cellphone like an idiot. We were out 40,000 dollars and had nothing to show for it. Later we were alerted by the town that our liquor license had been denied. It had been given to Patriot Place instead.We never went to Patriot Place again, not to shop, not to eat, not for anything. They were the devil.

To help us better understand this process of creating a business plan, let’s take a look at the primary steps involved:1. Executive SummaryAlthough this is the first thing the reader will encounter in your business plan, it is often the last piece to be completed. As the SBA says, “This section briefly tells your reader where your company is, where you want to take it, and why your business idea will be successful.” A startup’s approach to an executive summary will differ from that of an established business. The SBA goes on to say,“If you are just starting a business, you won’t have as much information as an established company. Instead, focus on your experience and background as well as the decisions that led you to start this particular enterprise. Demonstrate that you have done thorough market analysis. Include information about a need or gap in your target market, and how your particular solutions can fill it. Convince the reader that you can succeed in your target market, then address your future plans.”2. Company DescriptionThis part outlines the different segments of the business. According to the SBA, this includes a description of how the products or services will satisfy the market needs. Katherine Arline of Business News Dailywrites that the company description should be considered to be “an extended elevator pitch.”“You want to thoroughly explain the goals of your business and how you will satisfy the needs of your market,” Arline says. “Your company description also explains the competitive advantages that you believe will make your business a success.”3. Market AnalysisA startup owner will need to demonstrate industry knowledge and have a firm grasp on the market size and potential market share, according to the SBA. This is where a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) comes in, which Kristie Lorette outlines in a story for Demand Media:Strengths: “Business strengths are factors that you can control,” she writes. “… Strengths may be the people you employ (their experience, education, credentials, etc.) in the business relationships you have with existing customers, or history (you’re one of the only providers of the product or service in your local area).”Weaknesses: “Weaknesses are also factors over which you have control, but are areas that you need to improve. Weaknesses are the factors holding your business back from gaining a competitive advantage. Some weaknesses include inexperience, the business location and access to resources such as cash.”Opportunities: “Opportunities are external to your business, the reasons your business exists or the need the business fulfills. Opportunities become results you will achieve through your marketing strategies.”Threats: “Threats are external forces beyond your control that you need to be aware of so you can make contingency plans. Threats may include poor economic conditions, bad publicity about your industry or business, laws and regulations or a change in consumer purchase behavior.”4. Organization and ManagementThis segment breaks down the structure of the business and includes an organization chart that shows the chain of command as well as details on the owners and business leadership. Here’s how the SBAdescribes it:“Who does what in your business? What is their background and why are you bringing them into the business as board members or employees? What are they responsible for? These may seem like unnecessary questions to answer in a one- or two-person organization, but the people reading your business plan want to know who’s in charge, so tell them. Give a detailed description of each division or department and its function. This section should include who’s on the board (if you have an advisory board) and how you intend to keep them there. What kind of salary and benefits package do you have for your people? What incentives are you offering? How about promotions? Reassure your reader that the people you have on staff are more than just names on a letterhead.”5. Service or Product LineThis is where the focus turns to what the business will actually produce. What is it, how does it work, what need does it fill and how does it benefit others? The SBA says this part should represent the benefits as perceived by the customer. Other elements to include in this section are the product’s advantages, its life cycle, and any details on copyrights, patents, research and legal agreements. Alyssa Gregory further details this for About.com:“The purpose of the products or services section of your business plan is to clearly express the benefits you’re providing to your customers or clients,” she writes. “All of the background you provide should focus on that goal. Think in terms of answering, ‘Why does my ideal client want this? How will my product or service make his/her life better, easier or more profitable?’”6. Marketing and SalesFor marketing, the SBA advises you include a description of potential market penetration and growth, along with channels of distribution and methods of communication with customers. For sales, you should describe the team, the training process, recruitment strategies and an analysis of sales prospects. Randy Duermyer writes about this for About.com, saying:“Those who are considering lending your small business money or investing will want to know how you intend to reach your target market and attain the market share you feel you can attain, which you’ve already discussed in the Market Analysis section of your business plan,” he says. “Your marketing plan will help them understand that. … If it applies to your business, outline your sales strategy in this section when you are writing a business plan. For example, will there be a sales force? Will sales training be provided? Will your sales team be given incentives to encourage them to increase sales and meet or exceed their goals?”7. Funding RequestHere is where any loan or financial assistance requests will be examined. The SBA recommends including current and future funding requirements, how the funds will be used and any other relevant financial strategies involved.“When you are outlining your funding requirements, include the amount you want now and the amount you want in the future,” the SBA says. “Also include the time period that each request will cover, the type of funding you would like to have (e.g., equity, debt), and the terms that you would like to have applied.”8. Financial ProjectionsCreditors will want to understand your financial expectations and projections, the SBA says, as well as an analysis of your finances that includes “a ratio and trend analysis for all of your financial statements (both historical and prospective).” Elizabeth Wasserman examines this for Inc.com:“The purpose of the financial section of a business plan is two-fold,” says Wasserman. “You’re going to need it if you are seeking investment from venture capitalists, angel investors or even smart family members. They are going to want to see numbers that say your business will grow — and quickly — and that there is an exit strategy for them on the horizon, during which they can make a profit. Any bank or lender will also ask to see these numbers as well to make sure you can repay your loan.”9. AppendixThe final section may include a variety of information that may be needed as supplemental material, according to the SBA, all of it being dependent on each unique scenario. This can include credit history, reference letters, licenses and permits, legal documents, building permits, contracts and a list of business consultants.

User-12882619237230437422's answer here is correct but it's worth adding...To get an SBA loan you go straight to a local bank and apply for it there. The SBA works with more than 1,000 local banks throughout the US. The banks manage the process for you. Call around the banks you like and ask which of them work with the SBA. You'll find one that does fairly quickly.The SBA has different loan programs for different amounts with different qualifications, and they change too, so it's hard to keep up. I can't give you a summary of what they are as I write this. Maybe somebody else will. But the most standard of them will guarantee up to 70% of the startup costs, so the entrepreneurs have to put up 30% or it doesn't work.The SBA does have standard information it wants for the different programs. The bank loan manager will manage the application process. You will have to submit a business plan and a lot of personal financial information.