Marking Approach
25% of the document marks are for the financial projections Appendix 1 and the finance section (D)
The other 75% is for everything else
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Important
Write in the 3rd person ( “The business will achieve…” NOT “ We will achieve”)
Get the VAT right. I repeat Get the VAT right. What is the customer paying? What is the VAT rate? What is the net sales price?
Get the margins right. If the product is being sold by an agent or retailer, they must get a margin and you must account for this.
Template
The following should be used as a template : ( i.e. Use the exact same reference numbers for the section headings) ( You do NOT need to use google docs. Word or equivalent is fine)
Contents Page ( Essential)
Executive Summary
1-2 pages including a brief SWOT analysis and a summary of the main points arising from sections A-D
Many readers of plans don’t read any further than the summary. Would this summary convince you to go any further? Is it easy to read? Is it consistent with the rest of the document?
.
A Product
There are 3 categories of Project
(1) Manufacturing (M)
(2) Retail (R)
(3) Service (S)
Required In This Section
Details of main Products or services ( All)
A Diagram of the Production Process: ( for one of the products) ( M only)
Draw a flow diagram
Stage 1,2, 3 ( Cutting , Pressing , Finishing etc)
Equipment Required : Prices and Specifications ( Are figures including or excluding VAT) ( All)
Has Energy Usage been estimated? (M only)
Labour Required ( Consistent with B People section and D Financial section) ( All)
Production Overheads ( M) ( Consistent with D Financial section)
Details of the Premises :/ Planning Issues ( All)
Floor Plan ( All)
Quality Legal and Safety Issues (All)
What is the Production Plan ? i.e. How many units can/will you produce / Best Case Scenario / Worst Case Scenario and Most Likely ? ( M)
- People
Organisation Chart
C V’s of Promoters / Management. Not a detailed CV. Just a couple of lines outlining qualifications and experience. You can employ who you like here if required e.g. 36 year old food scientist. You must have the right people to make it happen.
Management Numbers and pay
Staff Numbers and pay
Have you included the additional costs of employment? ( Employers PRSI (+10% ) .Holiday pay ( 4-5 weeks: Will you need to employ other staff during that period. If so this will cost another 10% of annual wages).? Any other benefits for employees?
This part of the plan should be consistent with other sections e.g. financials ( Wage Rates , Number of Production Operatives etc )
C Marketing
What is the Sales figure ( Best/ Worst/ Most Likely) ? / Feeding into the Financial Projections. Is VAT included? What does the end customer pay. What is the net sales price. What margin does the retailer get? What is the wholesale price paid to the manufacturer. Are you really clear about VAT and margins?
How good is the Market Research? / Primary ( Questionnaires) or Secondary sources
Have they estimated the Potential Market?
What about the Available Market?
People with the Interest and Ability to buy?
Interest is influenced by advertising/ promotions
Ability depends on spending power and access to the product
What is the target market ( or niche) ?
Defined by Geographical Area or Type of Customer?
Do they know who their customers are?
Is the marketing plan credible?
Who are the competitors and what do they do?
( Size of Sales / manufacturing or reselling / barriers to entry)
Has competitor reaction been assessed?
D Financial
The detailed financial projections should be included in Appendix 1 ( not here) Only a summary should appear in this section.
A table summarising the following key areas would be appropriate
Sales
Gross Profit ( € and %)
Net Profit ( € and %)
Key Overheads if required
Peak Borrowing Requirement ( from cash flow statement)
Return on Investment
Repayment or Interest Cover re borrowings
Each scenario should be included
The Finance Section will also contain a table summarising
Sources of Finance
Loans
Grants
Equity
And Uses of Finance
Fixed Assets
Working Capital
Key Questions
Have you made a reasonable effort to estimate the Working Capital Requirement? – not applicable to cash businesses.
Are you really clear about Gross Margins?
Are the projections believable or are they showing ridiculous amounts of profit?
Has any basic breakeven analysis been performed?
Have the promoters addressed Cash Flow shortages and how they are going to overcome same , in the document.?
Are the assumptions used consistent with the rest of the project ( Marketing and Product in particular)?
Conclusion
This should state that the project has been subjected to rigorous testing (Best Case/ Worst Case etc) and appears to be viable under all scenarios. Etc etc
Very brief summary of the strategy / SWOT generally communicating “positivity”
APPENDIX 1 : Financial Projections
Financial Projections for 3 Years
Assumptions clearly set out
Profit and Loss Account
Balance Sheet
Cash Budget (Quarterly)
Three sets of ( 3 year) Projections are prepared, so that the
Best Case
Worst Case and
Most Likely scenario can be investigated
The most likely scenario should be included in the plan ( printed properly), with the other 2 scenarios on a USB drive included in an envelope , stapled to the last page of the document.
Taxation Issues relevant to the projections
What VAT Rate applies ?
PAYE / PRSI ( Is employer’s PRSI included? : Use a 10% rate)
Corporation Tax ( 12.5%)
When Payable and how is this dealt with in the Projections?
Other issues
(i) Referencing
Is there a Contents Page ?
Are Pages numbered ?
Is there internal referencing within the document e.g from the Financial Projections to the Production Plan and does it work?
Are Publications Used listed in a Bibliography Section?
(ii) Presentation of Document
No spelling errors
Is it easy to read?
Standard of English
Use of Diagrams/ Tables etc.
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Business plan- Set up a Wine and Whiskey tasting bar