Start-up | |
Requirements | |
Start-up Expenses | |
Legal | $2,000 |
Stationery etc. | $200 |
Brochures | $200 |
Rent | $500 |
Research and Development | $3,500 |
Expensed Equipment | $750 |
Total Start-up Expenses | $7,150 |
Start-up Assets | |
Cash Required | $23,850 |
Other Current Assets | $0 |
Long-term Assets | $9,000 |
Total Assets | $32,850 |
Total Requirements | $40,000 |
The two principal owners of Green Power is Dan and Sue Lang.
Green Power offers a wide range of environmentally-conscious energy solutions related to new and existing structures. The main areas of consulting that Green Power will offer are:
Green Power has segmented the market into two distinct target market groups. The first group is architects who are building a structure either speculatively (infrequently) or for a client (generally). The second customer group is individual customers who desire environmental elements designed into their building. The niche that Green Power has chosen to participate in is a fairly new field. Green Power faces competition from eco-architects as well as from the local utilities that may have a small department that offers green energy consultation advice. The industry often operates to satisfy clients; it is the end customer that typically requests green energy designs and they either seek out a specific architect or they request their architect to receive guidance from firms such as Green Power.
Green Power has segmented its target market into two different customer groups, both equally attractive.
Individual customers This segment contains consumers who are either having a residential home, or a commercial structure, designed. Due to their personal environmental concerns and a recognition that it can be cost effective to have building decisions with environmental considerations, they have requested Green Power’s assistance. They are generally working directly with Green Power for their design needs and will likely then take this design criteria to their builder.
Market Analysis | |||||||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |||
Potential Customers | Growth | CAGR | |||||
Architects | 7% | 23 | 25 | 27 | 29 | 31 | 7.75% |
Individual customers | 9% | 16,009 | 17,450 | 19,021 | 20,733 | 22,599 | 9.00% |
Total | 9.00% | 16,032 | 17,475 | 19,048 | 20,762 | 22,630 | 9.00% |
Green Power has chosen these two market segments for compelling reasons. The architects have been focused on because they are the service providers that do the bulk of the design work for residential and commercial structures. The architects are used as sales people for Green Power’s services, they are the ones that can then sell these services to their customers. It benefits the architects because they are able to offer a wider range of value-added-services to their customers without spending capital of learning the information themselves. By aligning itself with architects, Green Power is able to offer their services to a larger group of people.
Green Power will also serve individual customers. These are people who know that they want environmental considerations made in the design of their structure and will seek out a firm such as Green Power to have this work done. Burlington is a wonderful place to locate Green Power as there is a high population of environmentally-conscious people in this city. This provides Green Power with a large market of interested customers. Additionally, this market group is attractive because people that have environmental tendencies are often vocal about their commitments or causes. By offering green energy services, Green Power allows this group of people to act on what they believe in on a personal level, adhering to the wise saying think globally, act locally.
The environmental power consultancy industry is fairly new. Only recently has there been an emergence of firms that offer these services. This can be explained by several factors. First, people are becoming more environmentally aware these days, a function of many things including the recent problems with the Middle East and Fundamental Islamists. These recent problems have forced people to reconsider America’s dependence on oil and the need to maintain good relationships with Saudi Arabia only because of their oil. Another factor that has contributed to the growth of green power is that it has become increasingly cost effective to make business decisions while taking into account the decisions impact on the environment. For years an environmental decision was based on personal consciousness and ethics, not overriding economic factors. Now money can be saved when environmental impacts are taken into account. Please read the following section which will indicate the different players within the industry.
The competition generally takes two different forms:
Eco-architects These are architects that specialize in environmental design considerations. Typically their entire practice is based around structures that have environmental elements. Green Power could actually be within this industry niche, however they are able to serve a larger customer baser, therefore earn more revenue as well as make a positive impact in our world by offering its services to both end consumers as well as regular architects as opposed to the business model of only serving one set of customers.
Local utility The local utilities often have a department that offers free consultation for environmental design considerations. There are incentives for the utilities to attempt to curb their customer’s use of their energy. These incentives take the form of not needing to make as many capital expenditures to develop the power delivery infrastructure to accommodate the increased load for energy demands. Therefore, the more the utility is able to get their customers to conserve, the less money they have to spend on infrastructure improvements, the more money they earn. That being said, the utility often has a small department that offers tips on energy conservation. While these tips can be quite helpful, since they are offered for free for the power customers, they are not nearly as comprehensive as they could be. So while they provide good initial tips, the local utility is not a strong competitor to serve a client who is committed to making as much of a positive environmental difference as can be achieved by using a specialized firm.
The buying pattern for consumers is currently being defined as we speak, a function of how new the industry is. Currently, purchasing decisions are based on customers typically making requests for these services from their architect or they do a bit of research to determine who offers these services. As the industry becomes more mature, firms will become more established and reputation and visibility/awareness will shape buying decisions. Since there is a wide range of options regarding implementation, price is less of a consideration for the decision since most of the service providers can offer a wide range of inexpensive to expensive options.
Green Power’s business strategy recognizes and will leverage the fact that a lot of business will be transacted through networking and word-of-mouth referrals. With this in mind, Green Power will work diligently to build alliances with architects who can co-brand their services with Green Power thereby increasing Green Power’s potential qualified customers.
Green Power will rely on its competitive edge of adopting a cost effective environmental solution so in addition to meeting environmental concerns of the customer, Green Power’s services will save the customer money over time.The marketing strategy will highlight both environmental attributes as well as economic ones.The marketing campaign will recognize the existence of two distinct market customers. Lastly, the sales strategy will offer a compelling economic analysis of how the customer can save money by adopting Green Power’s designs.
Marketing strategy.
The marketing strategy is based on developing an awareness regarding Green Power’s services to both architects and the end use consumers. Green Power will strongly use networking as a means to develop relationships with many of the city’s architects. Although Burlington is a reasonably-sized city, the architect community is fairly close knit. If one wanted, it is easy to develop active relationships with many of the different architects in Burlington. By developing these relationships, Green Power will allow the firms to become familiar with not only the services offered by Green Power, but also the personalities involved, recognizing that much of business is transacted by who you know. Advertisements will be placed in the local architect newsletter.
To reach the end user customers, Green Power will use Advertisements in the local paper as well as within the yellow pages. As a means of increasing visibility of Green Power, GP will participate in several community-based seminars that serve as a free source of information for the citizens of Burlington. Green Power believes that participating in the seminars will be an effective way of meeting many of the potential customers and allowing them to become familiar with Green Power expertise.
The sales strategy implicitly and explicitly takes into account the philosophy that the reason that many of the people are attracted to Green Power is because of its personal environmental ethics. The sales strategy will leverage this desire with the fact that environmental decisions can have positive economic impacts in the long term. Therefore the sales strategy will leverage the competitive edge of economic justification as the method for turning sales leads into customers. For this strategy to be effective, Green Power will present customers case studies and quantifiable data proving economic justification.
Green Power has adopted a conservative sales forecast for the business plan. By adopting a conservative prediction, it is easier to hit sales goals and increase the likelihood that the business plan is relevant to the business. If the sales forecasts was wildly off, it casts doubt on the application of the plan for the business.
Sales will be slow for the first several months, a function of Green Power being a start-up organization. As Green Power increases their customer pool and more architects become familiar with GP’s services, business will grow. Growth will be forecasted and preferenced as steady. The steadier it is, the easier it will be to deal with the incremental growth in work. Please view the following table and charts for a graphical representation on monthly and yearly sales.
Cost of sales for a consulting company are negligible, however, cost of architects sales will be 20%, since we will pay commissions to the architects for referrals.
Sales Forecast | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Sales | |||
Architects | $41,060 | $95,445 | $112,454 |
Individuals | $45,987 | $106,898 | $125,948 |
Total Sales | $87,047 | $202,343 | $238,402 |
Direct Cost of Sales | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Architects | $8,212 | $19,089 | $22,491 |
Individuals | $0 | $10,690 | $12,595 |
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales | $8,212 | $29,779 | $35,086 |
Green Power has identified several milestones as a way of setting achievable goals. Performance is likely to be improved through the quest of reaching the goals. This phenomenon is well documented and is used in large corporations such as GE’s Seven Sigma Program as well as many state’s benchmarked-based assessment testing systems. Green Power has identified the following milestones:
Milestones | |||||
Milestone | Start Date | End Date | Budget | Manager | Department |
Business plan completion | 1/1/2003 | 2/15/2003 | $0 | Dan & Sue | Business planning |
10th customer | 1/1/2003 | 3/30/2003 | $0 | Sue | Sales |
Revenue exceeding $50,000 | 1/1/2003 | 8/30/2003 | $0 | Sue | Sales |
Profitability | 1/1/2003 | 2/28/2004 | $0 | Dan | Accounting |
Totals | $0 |
The website will be used as a marketing tool. It will offer a description of the services offered as well as a listing of different clients served.
The plan for marketing the site is fairly simple: submission to search engines such as Google and listing the website on all of the company’s correspondence and printed marketing/sales media.
Green Power will utilize a local programmer to build the site.
The company will be lead by the husband and wife team of Dan and Sue Lang. Dan grew up in Oregon and attended the University of Oregon for his undergraduate education. Dan’s major was environmental studies and business. After graduation Dan worked for a year at an environmental testing company. Through general networking, Dan was introduced to one of the three principals of a company called The Seal Company. The business model for this company was to make assessments for private and public companies as to their environmental impact. His position with The Seal Company provided him with wonderful insight into the industry of environmental assessment and helped provide him with a foundation of knowledge regarding green energy, just one of the areas of assessment. After a year of this Dan enrolled into the University of Oregon’s Master’s Architect program, taking course work in environmental design. This degree would provide Dan with the skills to make a larger impact in his community.
Sue went to the University of Burlington for undergrad and then moved out to Oregon to attend Willamette University’s MBA program. After her degree Sue moved up to Portland and worked for the Bonneville Power Administration where she worked in their renewable resource division. Much of her projects were marketing based, trying to gain public acceptance of renewable energy sources.
For the first three months of business the organization will be quite lean, consisting of just Dan and Sue. Dan will be responsible for most of the business-related issues as well as doing research and helping out with the work projects. Sue’s responsibilities will be marketing and sales based. She will work hard on developing visibility for the company as well as working with prospective customers. Green Power has forecasted that on month four it will need administrative assistance. The duties will be answering the phone, some input accounting, and other clerical functions. Initially this person will be part time but will move to full time at the beginning of year two.
Personnel Plan | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Dan | $24,000 | $30,000 | $36,000 |
Sue | $24,000 | $30,000 | $36,000 |
Associate consultant | $0 | $15,000 | $30,000 |
Administrative assistant | $4,600 | $18,000 | $20,000 |
Total People | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Total Payroll | $52,600 | $93,000 | $122,000 |
The following sections will outline the important Financial Assumptions.
The following table details important Financial Assumptions.
General Assumptions | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Plan Month | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Current Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% |
Long-term Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% |
Tax Rate | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The Break-even Analysis is indicated below.
Break-even Analysis | |
Monthly Revenue Break-even | $7,333 |
Assumptions: | |
Average Percent Variable Cost | 9% |
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost | $6,641 |
The following table and charts will indicate Projected Profit and Loss.
Pro Forma Profit and Loss | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Sales | $87,047 | $202,343 | $238,402 |
Direct Cost of Sales | $8,212 | $29,779 | $35,086 |
Other Costs of Sales | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Cost of Sales | $8,212 | $29,779 | $35,086 |
Gross Margin | $78,835 | $172,565 | $203,317 |
Gross Margin % | 90.57% | 85.28% | 85.28% |
Expenses | |||
Payroll | $52,600 | $93,000 | $122,000 |
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses | $4,800 | $4,800 | $4,800 |
Depreciation | $1,800 | $1,800 | $1,800 |
Rent | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 |
Utilities | $2,400 | $2,400 | $2,400 |
Insurance | $2,400 | $2,400 | $2,400 |
Payroll Taxes | $7,890 | $13,950 | $18,300 |
Other | $1,800 | $1,800 | $1,800 |
Total Operating Expenses | $79,690 | $126,150 | $159,500 |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | ($855) | $46,415 | $43,817 |
EBITDA | $945 | $48,215 | $45,617 |
Interest Expense | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Taxes Incurred | $0 | $13,924 | $13,145 |
Net Profit | ($855) | $32,490 | $30,672 |
Net Profit/Sales | -0.98% | 16.06% | 12.87% |
Pro Forma Cash Flow | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Cash Received | |||
Cash from Operations | |||
Cash Sales | $87,047 | $202,343 | $238,402 |
Subtotal Cash from Operations | $87,047 | $202,343 | $238,402 |
Additional Cash Received | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Other Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Investment Received | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Cash Received | $87,047 | $202,343 | $238,402 |
Expenditures | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Expenditures from Operations | |||
Cash Spending | $52,600 | $93,000 | $122,000 |
Bill Payments | $30,707 | $71,679 | $83,201 |
Subtotal Spent on Operations | $83,307 | $164,679 | $205,201 |
Additional Cash Spent | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Dividends | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Cash Spent | $83,307 | $164,679 | $205,201 |
Net Cash Flow | $3,740 | $37,664 | $33,201 |
Cash Balance | $27,590 | $65,254 | $98,456 |
The following table will indicate the Projected Balance Sheet.
Pro Forma Balance Sheet | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Assets | |||
Current Assets | |||
Cash | $27,590 | $65,254 | $98,456 |
Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Current Assets | $27,590 | $65,254 | $98,456 |
Long-term Assets | |||
Long-term Assets | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 |
Accumulated Depreciation | $1,800 | $3,600 | $5,400 |
Total Long-term Assets | $7,200 | $5,400 | $3,600 |
Total Assets | $34,790 | $70,654 | $102,056 |
Liabilities and Capital | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Current Liabilities | |||
Accounts Payable | $2,795 | $6,169 | $6,898 |
Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other Current Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Current Liabilities | $2,795 | $6,169 | $6,898 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Liabilities | $2,795 | $6,169 | $6,898 |
Paid-in Capital | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 |
Retained Earnings | ($7,150) | ($8,005) | $24,485 |
Earnings | ($855) | $32,490 | $30,672 |
Total Capital | $31,995 | $64,485 | $95,157 |
Total Liabilities and Capital | $34,790 | $70,654 | $102,056 |
Net Worth | $31,995 | $64,485 | $95,157 |
The following table contains typical Business Ratios of both Green Power as well as the industry as a whole.
Ratio Analysis | ||||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Industry Profile | |
Sales Growth | n.a. | 132.45% | 17.82% | 8.18% |
Percent of Total Assets | ||||
Other Current Assets | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 41.37% |
Total Current Assets | 79.30% | 92.36% | 96.47% | 75.36% |
Long-term Assets | 20.70% | 7.64% | 3.53% | 24.64% |
Total Assets | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Current Liabilities | 8.03% | 8.73% | 6.76% | 31.49% |
Long-term Liabilities | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 16.85% |
Total Liabilities | 8.03% | 8.73% | 6.76% | 48.34% |
Net Worth | 91.97% | 91.27% | 93.24% | 51.66% |
Percent of Sales | ||||
Sales | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Gross Margin | 90.57% | 85.28% | 85.28% | 100.00% |
Selling, General & Administrative Expenses | 91.55% | 69.23% | 72.42% | 82.59% |
Advertising Expenses | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.16% |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | -0.98% | 22.94% | 18.38% | 1.47% |
Main Ratios | ||||
Current | 9.87 | 10.58 | 14.27 | 1.93 |
Quick | 9.87 | 10.58 | 14.27 | 1.50 |
Total Debt to Total Assets | 8.03% | 8.73% | 6.76% | 3.09% |
Pre-tax Return on Net Worth | -2.67% | 71.98% | 46.05% | 59.56% |
Pre-tax Return on Assets | -2.46% | 65.69% | 42.93% | 7.63% |
Additional Ratios | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Net Profit Margin | -0.98% | 16.06% | 12.87% | n.a |
Return on Equity | -2.67% | 50.38% | 32.23% | n.a |
Activity Ratios | ||||
Accounts Payable Turnover | 11.99 | 12.17 | 12.17 | n.a |
Payment Days | 27 | 22 | 28 | n.a |
Total Asset Turnover | 2.50 | 2.86 | 2.34 | n.a |
Debt Ratios | ||||
Debt to Net Worth | 0.09 | 0.10 | 0.07 | n.a |
Current Liab. to Liab. | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | n.a |
Liquidity Ratios | ||||
Net Working Capital | $24,795 | $59,085 | $91,557 | n.a |
Interest Coverage | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | n.a |
Additional Ratios | ||||
Assets to Sales | 0.40 | 0.35 | 0.43 | n.a |
Current Debt/Total Assets | 8% | 9% | 7% | n.a |
Acid Test | 9.87 | 10.58 | 14.27 | n.a |
Sales/Net Worth | 2.72 | 3.14 | 2.51 | n.a |
Dividend Payout | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | n.a |
Sales Forecast | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Sales | |||||||||||||
Architects | 0% | $2,500 | $2,654 | $2,747 | $3,212 | $3,455 | $3,525 | $3,656 | $3,787 | $3,987 | $3,902 | $3,878 | $3,757 |
Individuals | 0% | $2,800 | $2,972 | $3,077 | $3,597 | $3,870 | $3,948 | $4,095 | $4,241 | $4,465 | $4,370 | $4,343 | $4,208 |
Total Sales | $5,300 | $5,626 | $5,824 | $6,809 | $7,325 | $7,473 | $7,751 | $8,028 | $8,452 | $8,272 | $8,221 | $7,965 | |
Direct Cost of Sales | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Architects | $500 | $531 | $549 | $642 | $691 | $705 | $731 | $757 | $797 | $780 | $776 | $751 | |
Individuals | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales | $500 | $531 | $549 | $642 | $691 | $705 | $731 | $757 | $797 | $780 | $776 | $751 |
Personnel Plan | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Dan | 0% | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 |
Sue | 0% | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 |
Associate consultant | 0% | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Administrative assistant | 0% | $0 | $0 | $0 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $500 | $500 | $600 | $600 | $600 | $600 |
Total People | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
Total Payroll | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,500 | $4,500 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 |
General Assumptions | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Plan Month | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
Current Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | |
Long-term Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | |
Tax Rate | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | 30.00% | |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Pro Forma Profit and Loss | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Sales | $5,300 | $5,626 | $5,824 | $6,809 | $7,325 | $7,473 | $7,751 | $8,028 | $8,452 | $8,272 | $8,221 | $7,965 | |
Direct Cost of Sales | $500 | $531 | $549 | $642 | $691 | $705 | $731 | $757 | $797 | $780 | $776 | $751 | |
Other Costs of Sales | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Total Cost of Sales | $500 | $531 | $549 | $642 | $691 | $705 | $731 | $757 | $797 | $780 | $776 | $751 | |
Gross Margin | $4,800 | $5,096 | $5,274 | $6,167 | $6,634 | $6,768 | $7,020 | $7,271 | $7,655 | $7,492 | $7,446 | $7,213 | |
Gross Margin % | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | 90.57% | |
Expenses | |||||||||||||
Payroll | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,500 | $4,500 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 | |
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | |
Depreciation | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | |
Rent | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | |
Utilities | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | |
Insurance | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | $200 | |
Payroll Taxes | 15% | $600 | $600 | $600 | $660 | $660 | $660 | $675 | $675 | $690 | $690 | $690 | $690 |
Other | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | |
Total Operating Expenses | $6,200 | $6,200 | $6,200 | $6,660 | $6,660 | $6,660 | $6,775 | $6,775 | $6,890 | $6,890 | $6,890 | $6,890 | |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | ($1,400) | ($1,104) | ($926) | ($493) | ($26) | $108 | $245 | $496 | $765 | $602 | $556 | $323 | |
EBITDA | ($1,250) | ($954) | ($776) | ($343) | $124 | $258 | $395 | $646 | $915 | $752 | $706 | $473 | |
Interest Expense | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Taxes Incurred | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Net Profit | ($1,400) | ($1,104) | ($926) | ($493) | ($26) | $108 | $245 | $496 | $765 | $602 | $556 | $323 | |
Net Profit/Sales | -26.42% | -19.63% | -15.90% | -7.24% | -0.36% | 1.45% | 3.15% | 6.18% | 9.05% | 7.28% | 6.76% | 4.06% |
Pro Forma Cash Flow | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Cash Received | |||||||||||||
Cash from Operations | |||||||||||||
Cash Sales | $5,300 | $5,626 | $5,824 | $6,809 | $7,325 | $7,473 | $7,751 | $8,028 | $8,452 | $8,272 | $8,221 | $7,965 | |
Subtotal Cash from Operations | $5,300 | $5,626 | $5,824 | $6,809 | $7,325 | $7,473 | $7,751 | $8,028 | $8,452 | $8,272 | $8,221 | $7,965 | |
Additional Cash Received | |||||||||||||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received | 0.00% | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Other Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Sales of Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Sales of Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Investment Received | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal Cash Received | $5,300 | $5,626 | $5,824 | $6,809 | $7,325 | $7,473 | $7,751 | $8,028 | $8,452 | $8,272 | $8,221 | $7,965 | |
Expenditures | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Expenditures from Operations | |||||||||||||
Cash Spending | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,400 | $4,500 | $4,500 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 | $4,600 | |
Bill Payments | $85 | $2,551 | $2,581 | $2,604 | $2,754 | $2,801 | $2,816 | $2,857 | $2,884 | $2,937 | $2,920 | $2,915 | |
Subtotal Spent on Operations | $4,085 | $6,551 | $6,581 | $7,005 | $7,154 | $7,201 | $7,316 | $7,357 | $7,484 | $7,537 | $7,520 | $7,515 | |
Additional Cash Spent | |||||||||||||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Purchase Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Purchase Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Dividends | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal Cash Spent | $4,085 | $6,551 | $6,581 | $7,005 | $7,154 | $7,201 | $7,316 | $7,357 | $7,484 | $7,537 | $7,520 | $7,515 | |
Net Cash Flow | $1,215 | ($925) | ($758) | ($195) | $171 | $272 | $434 | $671 | $968 | $735 | $701 | $450 | |
Cash Balance | $25,065 | $24,140 | $23,383 | $23,188 | $23,358 | $23,630 | $24,064 | $24,735 | $25,704 | $26,439 | $27,140 | $27,590 |
Pro Forma Balance Sheet | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Assets | Starting Balances | ||||||||||||
Current Assets | |||||||||||||
Cash | $23,850 | $25,065 | $24,140 | $23,383 | $23,188 | $23,358 | $23,630 | $24,064 | $24,735 | $25,704 | $26,439 | $27,140 | $27,590 |
Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Current Assets | $23,850 | $25,065 | $24,140 | $23,383 | $23,188 | $23,358 | $23,630 | $24,064 | $24,735 | $25,704 | $26,439 | $27,140 | $27,590 |
Long-term Assets | |||||||||||||
Long-term Assets | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 | $9,000 |
Accumulated Depreciation | $0 | $150 | $300 | $450 | $600 | $750 | $900 | $1,050 | $1,200 | $1,350 | $1,500 | $1,650 | $1,800 |
Total Long-term Assets | $9,000 | $8,850 | $8,700 | $8,550 | $8,400 | $8,250 | $8,100 | $7,950 | $7,800 | $7,650 | $7,500 | $7,350 | $7,200 |
Total Assets | $32,850 | $33,915 | $32,840 | $31,933 | $31,588 | $31,608 | $31,730 | $32,014 | $32,535 | $33,354 | $33,939 | $34,490 | $34,790 |
Liabilities and Capital | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Current Liabilities | |||||||||||||
Accounts Payable | $0 | $2,465 | $2,495 | $2,513 | $2,661 | $2,708 | $2,721 | $2,761 | $2,786 | $2,839 | $2,823 | $2,818 | $2,795 |
Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other Current Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Current Liabilities | $0 | $2,465 | $2,495 | $2,513 | $2,661 | $2,708 | $2,721 | $2,761 | $2,786 | $2,839 | $2,823 | $2,818 | $2,795 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Liabilities | $0 | $2,465 | $2,495 | $2,513 | $2,661 | $2,708 | $2,721 | $2,761 | $2,786 | $2,839 | $2,823 | $2,818 | $2,795 |
Paid-in Capital | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 | $40,000 |
Retained Earnings | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) | ($7,150) |
Earnings | $0 | ($1,400) | ($2,504) | ($3,430) | ($3,923) | ($3,949) | ($3,841) | ($3,597) | ($3,101) | ($2,336) | ($1,734) | ($1,178) | ($855) |
Total Capital | $32,850 | $31,450 | $30,346 | $29,420 | $28,927 | $28,901 | $29,009 | $29,253 | $29,749 | $30,514 | $31,116 | $31,672 | $31,995 |
Total Liabilities and Capital | $32,850 | $33,915 | $32,840 | $31,933 | $31,588 | $31,608 | $31,730 | $32,014 | $32,535 | $33,354 | $33,939 | $34,490 | $34,790 |
Net Worth | $32,850 | $31,450 | $30,346 | $29,420 | $28,927 | $28,901 | $29,009 | $29,253 | $29,749 | $30,514 | $31,116 | $31,672 | $31,995 |
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Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 10,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their solar farm business. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regards to the importance of business planning. We will then go through a solar farm business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.
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A business plan provides a snapshot of your solar farm business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategy for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.
If you’re looking to start a solar farm, or grow your existing solar farms, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your solar farms in order to improve your chances of success. Your solar farm business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.
With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a solar farms are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a solar energy farm business.
The second most common form of funding for a solar farms is angel investors. Angel investors are wealthy individuals who will write you a check. They will either take equity in return for their funding, or, like a bank, they will give you a loan. Venture capitalists will not fund a solar farms. They might consider funding a solar farms company with a locations across the country, but never an individual location. This is because most venture capitalists are looking for millions of dollars in return when they make an investment, and an individual location could never achieve such results.
How to write a business plan for a solar farm.
Your business plan should include 10 sections as follows:
Your executive summary provides an introduction to your solar farm business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.
The goal of your executive summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of solar farms you are operating and the status; for example, are you a startup, do you have an existing solar farms that you would like to grow, or are you operating a network of solar farms?
Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan. For example, give a brief overview of the solar energy industry. Discuss the type of solar farms you are running. Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target market. Provide a snapshot of your marketing strategy. Identify the key members of your team. And offer an overview of your financial plan.
In your company analysis, you will detail the type of solar farms you are running.
For example, you might operate one of the following types:
In addition to explaining the type of solar farms you operate, the Company Analysis section of your business plan needs to provide background on the solar farm business.
Include answers to question such as:
In your industry or market analysis, you need to provide an overview of the solar energy industry.
While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.
First, researching the solar energy industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.
Secondly, market research can improve your strategy particularly if your research identifies industry trends.
The third reason for market research is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.
The following questions should be answered in the market analysis section:
The customer analysis section of your solar energy business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.
These are the main customers for the industry: Solar Power Utilities, and Federal Government.
As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of solar farms you operate. Clearly, commercial utilities would want different products and services, and would respond to different marketing tactics than government entities.
Try to break out your target market in terms of their location, and their wants and needs. With regards to location, include a discussion of the demand for solar energy for utilities’ renewable power portfolio standards. Because most solar farms primarily serve customers living in their same region, such information is usually available on local or county government websites.
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Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your solar farm business faces and then focus on the latter.
Direct competitors are other solar farms projects.
Indirect competitors are other options customers may use that aren’t direct competitors. This includes traditional energy suppliers, other alternative energy providers, and other power plant contractors, such as fossil fuel and other renewable energy power plant contractors. You need to mention such competition to show you understand that not all energy needs will be met by a solar farms.
With regards to direct competition, you want to detail the other solar farms with which you compete. Most likely, your direct competitors will be solar farms located very close to your location.
For each such competitor, provide an overview of their businesses and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as:
With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.
The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:
Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.
Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a solar farm business plan, your marketing plan should include the following:
Product: in the product section you should reiterate the type of solar farms that you documented in your Company Analysis. Then, detail the specific services you will be offering.
Price: Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your marketing plan, you are presenting the services you offer and their prices.
Place: Place refers to the location of your solar farms. Document your location and mention how the location will impact your success. For example, is your solar farms located in a high-sunlight exposure area, or in a desert, etc. Discuss how your location might allow you to serve a greater volume of customers.
Promotions: the final part of your solar farms marketing plan is the promotions section. Here you will document how you will drive customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:
While the earlier sections of your solar energy business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.
Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your solar farms, such as researching and writing grants, maintaining solar panels, staying abreast of new technology developments, processing paperwork, etc.
Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to sign your 100 th contract, or when you hope to reach $X in sales. It could also be when you expect to purchase additional solar panels, or when you expect to launch a new solar farm location.
To demonstrate your solar farms’s ability to succeed as a business, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.
Ideally you and/or your team members have direct experience in renewable energy or in power generation. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.
If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act like mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in renewable energy and/or successfully running small businesses.
Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements.
Income Statement : an income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenues and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.
In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.
Balance Sheets : Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $1,000,000 on building out your solar farms, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a bank writes you a check for $1,000,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.
Cash Flow Statement : Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and make sure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.
In developing your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a solar farms business:
Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your solar farm design blueprint or location lease.
Putting together a business plan for your solar farms company is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will really understand the solar farm industry, your competition and your potential customers. You will have developed a marketing plan and will really understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful solar farms.
What is the easiest way to complete my solar farm business plan.
Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily complete your Solar Farm Business Plan.
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Document description.
This renewable energy business plan template has 32 pages and is a MS Word file type listed under our business plan kit documents.
COMPANY NAME Plan 2012 COMPANY NAME OWNER’S NAME INSERT ADDRESS Phone: Email: INSERT IMAGE/ LOGO
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