HOW TO WRITE YOUR OWN BUSINESS PLAN

HOW TO WRITE YOUR OWN BUSINESS PLAN

There’s a saying that goes “You can only sell your business with the knowledge that you possess”. Only you can fully understand your business. Take this opportunity to discover the strengths and weaknesses of your company. Go back to your business plan from time to time to revise and improve it as your business continues to evolve it’s business model.

A good business plan will help you define your short and long term goals clearly, together with action plans top achieve them. The double purpose of a business plan is also to show to your potential suppliers, contractors and investors that your business can be considered and could serve a purpose to.

Here are the 8 things that goes in on a solid business plan:

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY – The summary of your entire business plan covers major points and states the resources you will need. It is a major key for potential investors to decide whether they want to learn more about your business or not.

2. COMPANY OVERVIEW – This is a general explanation of your products, services and overall business model. You can start off with your background in the fashion industry (if any) and the potential of your fashion collection in the market. You’ll also need to explain here how your brand fits into the industry as a wholesale, retail or a custom operation. Highlight whether your designs target high end, niche or mass markets. Sum it up with how much money you need to operate for 1 to 3 seasons at least, including the factors that will make your business a profitable one over a defined time frame.

3. MARKETING STRATEGIES – There are 3 things you need to clearly define here:

– MARKET: Understanding the industry by showing an accurate market analysis that pinpoints the number of customers and sales in your target market with the number plus locations of stores that will buy them from you.

– TARGET CUSTOMERS: Show that you have a thorough understanding of your consumers by picturing your customers and keeping their image in your mind always. In this way, you don’t lose track of who they are and what they will want.

– Unique Selling Proposition (USP): This is my favorite of all, and for good reason. With USP, you define the attributes that make your collection different from the rest of the field. What makes it different from all your competitors? (COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS) What makes your product high quality or affordable and why? What’s the biggest draw for your customers and retail store partners?

4. SALES STRATEGY – In here, you will have an outline of the number or items to be sold per season and via which accounts it will sell through. You’ll need to explain your pricing strategy and include the expected sales including your projected growth. Include also the details on how you developed these projections. Mention also all hiring plans, showroom, shows, websites and foreign markets that you’ll sell to. Lastly, include promotional plans to support your sales, including all show types (fashion/online), lookbooks and travel expenses for in-store guest appearances for example.

5. COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS – Answer this: What is your business advantage and disadvantages over your competition? Do a research on how long they have been in the business, annual sales, where they sell their products and how they do their own marketing. Compare your style with theirs, including the quality, customer relationships and pricing. Be as fair as you can be and not be biased to your brand. Fact fullness is important here.

6. PRODUCT PLAN – How many number of collections will you come out with annually, their production timeline and quality control strategy. You need to be transparent here. This will take a lot of time to iron details out, but it will be valuable to help you and your investor have an understanding of how your products are to be produced.

7. OPERATIONAL PLAN – What amount of resources do you need to keep your business running on a daily basis? Include staff pay, technologies and the support systems important to sales. Be as detailed an specific here so as to show an idea of your costs.

8. FINANCIAL ANALYSIS AND PROJECTIONS – Do you have a financial statement that shows your ability to manage expenses, income and liabilities? You will need to show how you can turn an investment into profit. I suggest to work or hire a professional accountant here to help you with this portion if finances are not your thing. I’m just lucky to have my wife Kristina being able to handle this part for me every time it’s about crunching numbers for me. Having the ability to manage cash flow and plan your finances are primary to getting investors involved and the growth or survival of your business.

Question of the day: Have you done a BUSINESS PLAN ever? Do you need help with making yours?

Social Media Share

What people talk 4 Comments

December 13, 2020 Jimbo

I created a lot of business plan already because this is crucial in my program. But what is most important in making a business plan is the power to think broadly. You need to expand your horizons because many challenges can happen anytime. You should already think of the possible solutions to the problem even though it is not still happening. Be prepared!

December 14, 2020 Khel Lawrence

I have created some business plan and also have assesed papers that were created by students and professionals. I agree with the comment of Sir Jimbo. It really takes a lot of time, patience, broader understanding of any business. Everyone needs to be very creative in accomplishing and assessing business plans.

January 16, 2021 rhona

Creating a business plan is like cup of beef rather than cup of cake which is easy to eat. you can’t find flexible resources anywhere to create a better and better business plans. It is like a great sequence of your execution of your business. Most of the startups need this before they want to enter into business. Many startup competitions ask for business plan. They may have a good idea but they are failing to create a business plan so that they are not getting entry into a competitions

November 3, 2024 Bottega Veneta оригинальные товары

Наш интернет-магазин Bottega Veneta предлагает разнообразие оригинальной продукции от легендарного бренда. В нашем каталоге вы сможете выбрать и приобрести продукцию из новых коллекций с возможностью доставки по Москве и всей России.
https://bottega-official.ru

Tell us about your thoughtsWrite message

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to Top
Back to Top
Close Zoom
Context Menu is disabled

Subscribe To My Newsletter!

Join my mailing list to receive the latest news and updates!

You have Successfully Subscribed!