online store business plan sample pdf

How to Make an Ecommerce Business Plan for Your Startup

Darren DeMatas

June 5, 2024

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So you’ve decided that you want to quit your day job and start your very own ecommerce empire. That’s great!

But before you become the next Jeff Bezos  (and definitely before you quit your job!), it’s worth spending some time thinking about a business plan. In this article, we’ll dive into the key elements of an ecommerce business plan, which is very different than writing traditional business plans.

Why You Should Create a Business Plan

We know that starting an ecommerce business is exciting, and it can be tempting to jump right in without constructing a business plan. READ: PLEASE DON’T DO THIS.

If you haven’t put your ideas, questions and concerns on paper, then you haven’t given your business model enough thought .

Taking the time to write a business plan might seem like a lot of work, but it can save you a lot of time and money in the long run by better preparing you for potential challenges and opportunities that you’ll face as a first-time entrepreneur. Think of it as a roadmap for your new business venture.

It’s exciting to start your own ecommerce business. However, you want to be well prepared and not jump into anything without having a solid, foolproof ecommerce business plan in place.

After all, you wouldn’t jump out of a plane without a parachute, so why start a business without a safety device in place? That safety device is your business plan.

The business plan is the brainstorming process that ensures your concept and goals are realistic.

This is more than just mental notes. True business plans take your ideas , questions, and concerns and put those in writing.

As you start creating your business plan, you’ll soon understand that it’s more than a single piece of paper with handwritten details on it. It’s a clearly constructed format of how your business will be created, how it will operate, and what you hope the future holds in terms of a successful ecommerce business.

When you write your business plan, be sure to have a target audience in mind. Are you going to look for investors or put a Kickstarter campaign into motion and use this as your descriptive platform? If so, make sure that your business plan contains everything the audience would want to know about your business (and more!). Many traditional funding solutions require a business plan in order to give you capital. However, there are alternative solutions, such as  Payability  that specialize in ecommerce and don’t require credit checks, a business plan, or any complicated paperwork. They can also get you approved in as little as 24 hours.

When your business plan is completed, you should have achieved the following goals:

• Knowledge:  A greater sense of knowledge of the business aspects.
• Resources:  The resources you’re going to need to make your business successful, such as partners, money, employees, etc.
• Road Map: Have clear set goals to take you from the very beginning of your business and onward.
• Viability: In other words, is your business possible? Will you have enough profit margins to keep the doors open long-term?

Now that you know why you should create a business plan, it’s time to move on to how you can create your business plan and get started putting your ecommerce business into motion.

How to Start an Ecommerce Business Plan

At the very beginning of the planning stages, it’s a good idea to develop a framework for your business model. This business model will continue to evolve as you create each section of your ecommerce business plan, so don’t strive for a perfect completed plan on the first try. You will be making tweaks to the plan of certain steps along the way.

There are many ways to sell products online and different business models  to pursue. Research and learn from successful ecommerce business examples in the market. The exact business model you follow will be one that makes the most sense with your resources, skills, and interests.

In order to create the best online business plan with your product in mind, you need to figure out the following things:

What are you selling?

The first step to creating an online business is to learn the absolute basics of what you can sell.

• Physical products: Clothing , shoes, home goods
• Digital products: Software as a Service products, ecourses, ebooks
• Services: Consulting services, home cleaning

Who are you selling to?

• Business-to-Business (B2B): You are selling to organizations, corporations, and non-profits rather than individual customers
• Business to Consumer (B2C): This means you are selling to individual consumers rather than businesses
• Marketplace: You are acting as a middleman by bringing businesses and (B2B or B2C) customers to one website.

How are you sourcing your product?

• Manufacture in-house: You make your product or service in-house
• Third-party manufacturer: You outsource the manufacturing of your product or service to a third-party manufacturer
• Dropship: You partner with a dropship manufacturer. Basically, this means that they make your product, package it and ship it directly to your customer while your company handles the entire customer relationship.
• Wholesale : You buy goods or services from other companies in bulk and re-sell those products on your online store

Additional References

• Entrepreneurship: Business & Marketing Plans
• Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• Entrepreneurship Resources
• Business Plan Resources

Executive Summary

The executive summary will be written according to your goals, and it’s recommended that this is done at the very end of your business plan completion. This will ensure that you include all of the important factors about your business and present your ideas in a concise and complete way.

Some of the features you’ll include in the executive summary include information showing that you’ve done your research, you have concrete sales forecasts, and the main details about your brand.

Business Model

When you’re figuring out your business model, you have to consider four different areas:

• Monetization strategy
• Product/industry
• Target market
• Sales channel

Monetization Strategy

The monetization strategy delves into the methods you are going to use to sell your products.

This strategy will look at different product monetization methods, including white label, private label , affiliate marketing, wholesale, dropshipping, and even selling ads.

Product/Industry

The product industry section is where you summarize your main niche.

For example, “Vegan Skincare Products.”

Target Market

In the target market section, you will write a sentence or so on who your target market, or ideal customer, is in the community.

If you’re selling vegan skincare products, your target customers might be women who embrace the vegan lifestyle and use natural skincare products in their daily beauty regimen.

Sales Channel

The sales channel refers to where you’re going to sell your products.

For example, you might be selling your products on your own website, and this should be entered in this section.

Business Overview

This next section covers your company overview.

This section of your business plan will cover various features of your company, including the following:

• Company type
• Domain name
• Value proposition
• Brand traits

The brand name section lists your business name or brand name.

This is an extremely important aspect of your business plan as it’s what will set the tone for everything that follows.

Pick a brand name that’s simple yet unique and is something that can be used in a wordplay manner, if desired, but not pun-worthy.

Company Type

The company is how your business operates. For example, you might label your business as an LLC , S-corporation, sole proprietor, or some other type of business organization.

The best way to determine how you should categorize your company is to speak to your accountant. There are various tax and legal aspects to forming your business in a certain way.

Speak with the professionals in the company and corporation formation field to determine how to label your company and which company type best benefits your business in a variety of ways.

Domain Name

This section is where you list your domain name.

Choose a domain name that is memorable and embraces the overall traits and features of your business.

And, when choosing a domain name, be sure to think of SEO aspects when doing so. You’ll find out just how much all of these things tie together and ensure a frequently-visited website is the end result.

Keep in mind that with ecommerce, the domain name is just as important as the brand name. Maybe even more so!

Value Proposition

A value proposition is a short, crisp statement that will gauge how clear your idea is. Write this section as if you had one minute to explain your business to a potential investor or customer and then practice it over and over again.

The value proposition can be used on your ecommerce store as your company description.

Here’s a good example: Say you’re looking to start a hiking company called Atlas Hiking Co. which sells premium performance hiking shirts. A possible company description could be the following:

Atlas Hiking Co. is a lifestyle hiking company that produces high-performance hiking shirts for outdoor lovers. Our proprietary SPF40 fabric is one of the lightest fabrics on the market, providing mountain lovers with maximum comfort, both from a breathability and sun-protection standpoint. Our product is made in the U.S.A. and a portion of our profits are donated to preserve national parks around the country.

Pay special attention to all the sensory words !

The mission statement in your business plan is the “why” of it all.

For example, why you started the business, why you are selling the products you are selling, etc., can all be added to this section of your business plan.

You can make this portion as simple or detailed as you like. Just make sure to properly and clearly explain your business mission.

The vision part of the business plan is your “how” in the grand scheme of things. It is the dream you have for your company and the path you’re going to take to realize that dream.

When you write the vision portion of the business plan, think long-term. What are you hoping to achieve, not just in the near future but for the long haul of the life of your business?

Look into the future and plan out where you see your business in 5, 10, even 20 years from now.

This will help you construct the rest of your business plan if you know where you want your business to head, now and in the future.

Brand Traits

The brand traits section is a short section in your company overview.

Basically, in the brand traits section you’re going to want to list three to five words that describe your brand.

Think of your brand personality and describe it using a few separate powerful words.

The personnel section lists all individuals, including yourself, who will be involved in the daily operations of your business. You can create a separate section for a full operations plan or add that later.

Some business owners choose to handle all duties on their own or with a partner, while others will hire individuals to fill the following roles:

• CEO (usually the business owner)
• Management team
• Customer service/logistics
• PR/Social media specialist
• SEO manager
• Advertising manager

Competitive Market Analysis

Here’s a fact you can bank on: there has never been a successful e-commerce entrepreneur that didn’t understand his/her target market cold.

That’s why this section is one of the most important in the entire business plan. It will force you to understand the industry in which you operate, the overall industry analysis and outlook, the existing competition, and your target customer demographic.

Market Segment

The market segment portion of the business plan will help you to put your ideas down on paper, make them more focused, and get your team together.

This area will include your niche selection, target market, and competitive analysis.

Niche Selection

The niche section  provides an overview of your niche, why you selected it, whether there’s a micro niche included, and the type of niche you’ve chosen.

The purpose of this section is to crystalize the ideas that you have and make sure they are understandable and viable.

The target market section covers an overview of your target market plus describes your market segments.

Ask yourself who your  target customer  is (population size, age, geography, education, ethnicity, income level) and consider whether consumers are comfortable with buying your product category online.

When listing the target market information, make sure to mention your target audience size as this is important for ensuring that your audience will be adequately covered.

Competitive Analysis

With the competitive analysis portion of your market analysis, you want to list your market leader and direct and indirect competitors.

After you mention who these entities are, you need to list the characteristics of each one, such as domain name, business model, monthly traffic, and pricing range.

However, before you even get started in writing this section, you need to spend several hours researching your target market.

Here are some of the most efficient ways to research a particular market:

Industry reports

Google is your best friend. Look for any recent industry reports on your market of choice. This will give you a good sense of how much growth the industry is experiencing, why this growth is happening, and what are the largest customer segments. In our example of Atlas Hiking Co., we should research the outdoor apparel market.

Let’s say that through our research of the outdoor apparel industry, we discovered that there was a huge boom in youth hiking apparel. Perhaps parents were increasingly concerned about their kids’ exposure to UV rays while hiking, so they began to spend more money on their kids. We could use this valuable information to guide our business strategy.

There’s only so much you can read online. Go to a nearby store that sells similar products to yours and interview the store representative. The store rep has interacted with hundreds of interested customers, which can lead to thousands of valuable insights! It’s amazing how these insights can translate into a meaningful business opportunity.

Here’s an example:

If I were going into Billy’s Outdoor Store to research the outdoor apparel market, I would probably ask Billy the following:

• What are your best-selling products?
• What are your worst-selling products?
• Find products similar to yours and ask the representative his/her favorite features on products similar to yours.
• How much are customers generally willing to spend on these types of products?
• Do customers make repeat orders of any of these products?
• Do you get a lot of customers that are looking to buy last-minute hiking gear before they go on a hike?

Competition

Create an Excel spreadsheet of all of your competitors. In your spreadsheet, you should have the following columns:

• Competitor Name
• Price point
• Product Description
• Key Features (e.g., fabric, waterproof, slim fit, etc.)

What is the competition missing? Is there a gap in the offering? Where you can add some additional value?

After conducting the competitor analysis, Atlas Hiking Co. might find that the competition’s hiking shirts offer very few features at a low price point, but no one offers a luxury hiking shirt with additional features at a higher price point.

This is just an example of the types of insights one can gain from market research which can drastically alter your business model.

Keyword Research

By using Google’s keyword planner  and trends pages, you can get a good sense of how in demand your product is and whether it’s trending upward or downward. Google is great for a general idea, just don’t bank on it.

Some other keyword tools you can use for keyword research include Ahrefs, JungleScout, and Viral Launch. Check out this list  for more ideas.

Trade shows

Are there nearby trade shows that you can go to? Again, creating connections with other people in your industry is a surefire shortcut to countless hours of reading on the internet. Trade shows are also a great opportunity to talk to competitors, meet manufacturers, and better understand where things are heading in your industry.

Once you finish researching the relevant industry, you should summarize your findings by answering the following questions:

General Industry

• How big is the overall industry?
• How big is the specific sub-industry in which you intend to operate?
• Where has most of the historic growth in the market come from?
• Why is this the right time to enter this market?
• What are the sub-segments that are poised for future growth (e.g., youth apparel)?
• How crowded is the product category with competition?
• How is your competition distributing its product (online, retail, wholesale, etc.)?
• What’s missing from the competition’s product offering?

Products and Offers

So we know we want to sell hiking shirts, but how do you research specific products?

But for some of us, we’re not quite sure what we should sell. To succeed in online retail, you need a product that is trending upwards in a growing niche.

Different types of products

Some of the different types of products include the following:

• Convenience products: Frequent purchase products, little effort on buying
• Shopping products: Less frequently purchased in between purchases, little more effort and planning, shop around
• Specialty products: Strong brand preference and loyalty, will buy no matter what the price

The various types of niches include the following:

• Hobby niches
• Lifestyle niches
• Problem niches
• Weird/embarrassing niches

Existing products

Come up with detailed specifications for each product or service you intend to sell. If it’s a hiking shirt we’re selling, we would want to have:

• Detailed sketches of the shirt
• Fabric weight, materials, type
• Key features (e.g., pre-shrunk, water-proof, SPF 40)

Future product pipeline

What are other products that you have in the pipeline? Perhaps once you’ve successfully sold hiking shirts, you’re able to leverage your manufacturing relationships to provide hiking socks and shorts. Include that information in this section.

The products and services section will cover the various selling categories of items.

These product offerings will include the following:

• Core product

Each product group will have its own purpose in your sales catalog. For example, tripwire is the product that brings customers to your ecommerce store or online marketplaces  while the core product is your main seller.

Knowing what products you’ll include within each section allows you to have a firm grasp on what your main product will be and how the other types of products will work alongside your main product.

This section will also cover the search volume and Amazon pricing range.

You’ll need to calculate your true costs. You have to make sure you don’t overestimate your margins.

To tabulate your total true costs, you need to write down the costs in the following areas:

• Target price
• Supplier cost of the product
• Total cost per unit
• Net profit per unit
• Profit margin per unit

Once you complete the pricing portion, you’ll have everything on one sheet and readily accessible whenever you need it.

Marketing Plan and Operations

So, now you’ve concluded that you have a great business idea, and it’s in a growing market. That’s fantastic – but how are you going to drive traffic to your ecommerce website and get customers to buy it ? And how much can you afford to spend on your product?

Marketing  is everything. It’s important that your marketing efforts match your business model.

If you have a website and no marketing, your site won’t have any visitors. With no visitors, you will make no sales. Then how do you grow and sell your ecommerce business (if that’s your long-term goal)? Even with the best possible products, nobody will buy them if they aren’t directed to them in some way.

In order to come up with a marketing strategy, you need to first know your customer inside out. You should be able to answer such questions as:

• How old is your customer?
• Where does your customer live?
• What is the population of your customer base?
• What is their education level?
• What is their income level?
• What are your customer’s pain points?

With so many channels to reach your customer, which one is best for you?

Once we know pretty much everything there is to know about our target customer, we can shift focus to our marketing strategy. You want to choose marketing strategies that equal positive conversion rates. What channels should you use to grab the attention of your customer demographic? Some of the key marketing channels include:

Paid Marketing

• Pay-per-click – this online marketing typically involves using Google Shopping campaigns  and managing a product data feed.
• Affiliate sales networks – Allowing other blogs and websites to sell your product for a cut of the revenue. List the different affiliate sale networks that you plan to promote through.
• Facebook ads ⎯ Ads posted on Facebook to draw in buyers through social media means.
• Influencer marketing ⎯ Hiring industry influencers to get the word out about your product through their social media platforms and contacts.

Organic Marketing

• Social media (Facebook, Instagram , Pinterest, etc.): What is your strategy for social media, and where will you dedicate your attention?
• Search Engine Optimization : Create and promote awesome content so people find your product organically through search.
• Content marketing: Figure out how you’ll use content marketing in your business. Consider various article topics that will persuade your target audience to buy your products.
• Blogger networks: could be organic or paid through affiliate sale programs.
• Key bloggers: Develop a list of the key bloggers in your product category. For Atlas Hiking Co., this might be an influencer that blogs about the best hiking trails in America.

Finding the optimal mix of these advertising tools depends 100% on your customer segment as well as your product type. For example, a SaaS product targeting millennials will require an entirely different marketing strategy than an e-commerce physical product targeting baby boomers. Perhaps that should be a post on its own for another day!

How much should you spend to acquire a customer?

In order to understand this, we need first to discuss a concept known as customer lifetime value or LTV. In essence, this is a formula that helps you better understand how much an average customer will spend over time.

Here’s  a good read on how to calculate LTV.

It’s important to remember that for new businesses, you don’t have a lot of data on customer purchase habits so it’s a good idea to be more conservative with your assumptions in calculating LTV.

Let’s say, for Atlas Hiking Co., I determine that the average LTV per customer is $300. This means that over time, the average customer will spend $300. Let’s say, on average, if I receive $300 in revenue, $100 of that will translate to gross profit before I factor in my marketing costs (basically, I’m just subtracting the cost of making the shirts).

Knowing that my gross profit is $100 per shirt is a critical piece of information because it tells me that I can spend up to $100 in marketing to acquire a customer and still be profitable!

Some of the marketing options include social media marketing and content marketing.

Think about your business model and then line up your marketing budget. Your marketing budget may include the following items:

• Sales/branded content
• SEO/blog content
• Facebook/Instagram ads
• Influencer marketing
• Marketing tools
• Niche advertising

Choosing The Right Technology

With so much technology and SaaS products out there, it’s important to understand the various moving parts and diagram how they all integrate with one another.

Some of the different elements include:

• Shopping Cart Platforms  – e.g., Shopify , BigCommerce , WooCommerce , or any open-source platform
• Hosting – Nexcess , BigScoots , Kinsta , WPX
• Payment Processo r – e.g., Stripe, Paypal
• Fulfillment Center – e.g., Amazon, ShipBob
• Apps – e.g., Zipify, BuildWooFunnels, Gelato
• Accounting & Taxes  – e.g., Quicken, Xero
• Marketing Automation – e.g., Klaviyo , Mailchimp
• Marketing Tools – e.g.  Buzzstream, Ahrefs
• Customer Loyalty Programs  – e.g., Antavo, Smile

Come up with a detailed list of the different products and services you need to run your business as well as the monthly and per-transaction cost of each of them. This will be important in understanding the impact of these services on your margins.

Matching your business model to your technology is essential, too. Certain website platforms are better suited for specific sales models.

Email marketing is another type of technology that should be carefully considered and matched up correctly with your business model.

Keep in mind that it takes, on average, 6-7 interactions with a brand before someone makes a purchase, so you need to keep using technology to get them back to your website.

As you explore the technology options and find out ways to draw potential customers in and keep them happy while they’re there, here are some key points to keep in mind:

• What you say about yourself and your products with your website content
• How you respond to questions on live chat and email support
• How to make use of chatbots
• How you connect on social media
• The information you send through email marketing
• What bloggers and influencers say about your brand
• How existing customers review your company
• How you advertise
• How you establish loyalty beyond sales

After you figure out your technology methods, you have to come up with a technology budget.

The business plan must also include the operations side of things. Determine who will be your manufacturer, secondary manufacturer, and shipping and fulfillment  provider.

When looking at supply chain costs and options, ShipBob  is an ecommerce fulfillment provider you can consider.

Financial Plan

When figuring out your financial plan, evaluating and pinpointing your startup costs  is essential.

The focus of the financial plan is how long it will take for you to make your money back. You also need to figure out if you need a business loan .

Traffic and conversion rates will help you determine how long it will be until you start making money back.

You’ll also want to use an income statement to detail financial information.

This section is used for financial projections, such as forecasting sales, expenses, and net income of the business. Ideally, you’ll want to create a monthly Excel balance sheet showing the following:

• Projected revenue:  First, come up with your projected number of units sold and then come up with your projected revenue (Projected Revenue = # of Units Sold * Average Sales Price).
• Fixed expenses:   these are expenses that are fixed no matter how much you sell. Typically, these relate to monthly SaaS subscriptions, employee salaries, or rent.
• Variable expenses  – these expenses change in direct proportion to how much you sell. Common examples include the cost of goods sold and credit card payment processing fees.

This helps business owners better understand what they need to achieve to hit their profit goals. In reality, projections are usually always off the mark, but it’s good to give yourself some measurable goals to strive for.

This section should aim to answer the following questions about your product offering:

• How much product do you need to sell per year to meet your income goals for the business?
• What are the margins on your product? If you sell one hiking shirt for $50, how much do you make after paying your supplier, employees, and marketing costs?
• What is the lifetime value of a customer?
• How much can you spend to acquire customers? If you conservatively project that the average customer will spend $300 over time on your shirts, then you can afford to spend an amount less than $300 to acquire that customer using the paid marketing channels described previously.
• Do you have any big capital expenditures early on that would require you to need to bring in investors?
• Can you improve gross margins by making bigger orders from your suppliers?

There are various acquisition channels that will help your traffic to convert including:

Your revenue plan will contain a 12-month revenue forecast plan to help you map out each month of earnings.

There are different business earning models you can go through to determine how much you can make with your business.

You want to calculate how much traffic costs. This all depends on the methods you use to gain traffic to your site.

As you determine what your profit might be with your ecommerce business  or ecommerce businesses, there are certain math formulas to use:

• The profit equation
• Break-even analysis
• Units needed to achieve the profit target

You should also consider how you will use fintech companies in your ecommerce business.

What are the key elements of an ecommerce business plan?

The main components of an eCommerce business plan include the executive summary, company description, market analysis, organization and management structure, product line or service, marketing and sales strategy, financial projections, and funding request, if applicable.

How do I create a budget for my ecommerce business?

Start by estimating your initial startup costs and ongoing expenses. Consider costs like website development, inventory, marketing, shipping, taxes, and any necessary licenses or permits. It’s also important to factor in a contingency plan for unexpected costs.

How do I find the right product to sell?

Research is fundamental. Look at market trends, customer needs, and competitor products. Use tools like Google Trends or social media platforms to understand what customers are currently interested in. Always consider your passion and knowledge about the product too, as this can drive your business forward.

How can I differentiate my product from competitors?

Differentiation can come from unique product features, superior customer service, better pricing, or a compelling brand story. Understand what your competitors offer and how you can do it differently or better.

Wrapping Up Your Business Plan

Careful planning is crucial to get your e-commerce business from the planning phase to the launch phase and to ensure its successful future.

Going through the exercise of writing a business plan will cement your own understanding of your business and your market. It will also position you to take advantage of lucrative opportunities while mitigating harmful threats to your business down the line.

Your turn! Have you written a business plan for your online store? Do you have anything to add? Tell us about it in the comments below!

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How to Write an Ecommerce Business Plan [Examples & Template]

Published: April 03, 2024

If you have a promising idea for an online e-commerce business , it’s important to create an e-commerce business plan to ensure your vision has enough stock to be profitable.

Having a business plan for your online store will help you define your target market, establish your monthly and quarterly sales goals, and increase the likelihood of long-term e-commerce success.

In this post, we’ll go over an online store business plan and how you can create one for your e-commerce startup. Let’s get started.

What is an e-commerce business plan?

An e-commerce business plan is a document that outlines your business and its goals, analyzes your industry and competitors, and identifies the resources needed to execute your plan. It also lists the e-commerce retailers you’ll use to distribute your products and the marketing strategies you’ll use to drive sales.

Whether a company operates as a startup or has years of operations and growth under its belt, an e-commerce business plan is essential for evaluating a business and determining areas of improvement.

An e-commerce business plan is essential, with increasing numbers of shoppers conducting business online. It's estimated this number has reached over 2 billion . An e-commerce business plan keeps you organized and is useful when seeking investors who need to understand your company.

So, let’s dive into some examples of e-commerce business plans and what goes into writing one using our free template .

Free Business Plan Template

The essential document for starting a business -- custom built for your needs.

• Outline your idea.
• Pitch to investors.
• Secure funding.
• Get to work!

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E-commerce Business Plan Template

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HubSpot's template provides clear steps to structuring one for your ecommerce business. Throughout this section, I’ll use the example of a photography company specializing in online photo editing.

How to Write an Ecommerce Business Plan

• Give an executive summary.
• List and describe your business.
• Detail your products and services.
• Conduct a market analysis.
• Strategize your marketing plan.
• Create a sales plan.
• Outline legal notes and financial considerations.

1. Give an executive summary.

An executive summary is a one-to-two-page overview of your business. The purpose of an executive summary is to let stakeholders know what the business plan will contain. HubSpot‘s free template offers some tips on how to write one, as I’ve done below:

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Ecommerce Business Plan Template

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This Ecommerce Business Plan Template is tailored particularly to e-commerce companies, and all you require to do is add the elements related to your business.

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​ [Sender.FirstName] [Sender.LastName] ​

​ [Sender.Title] [Sender.Company] ​

​ [Sender.Phone] [Sender.Email] ​

Business Overview

​ [Sender.Company] is headquartered at [Sender.StreetAddress] , [Sender.City] , [Sender.State] [Sender.PostalCode] and operates in the (industry) . [Sender.Company] was founded in (month, year) by (Founder.Name).

​ [Sender.Company] seeks to offer (a general description of specific products or services to be offered) in response to what management has identified as a clear market need.

Products and Services

​ [Sender.Company] will sell (specific products or services to be sold). The products sold by [Sender.Company] will stand apart from the competition due to (explain the unique selling proposition of the product to be sold). [Sender.Company] will also provide (describe any supplementary products or services offered).

Website Design

​ [Sender.Company] will develop a website whose key elements will include the following:

About section explaining the company's mission

Database of products

Shopping cart system

Help and FAQ pages

The website will be built by an established development firm and designed by an accomplished web designer, with the process supervised by [Sender.Company] 's designated supervisor.

Management Team

​ [Sender.Company] is led by (Manager.Name) who has been in the e-commerce industry for (number) years.

Previously, (Manager.Name) worked as (job title) at (previous company) and acquired in-depth knowledge of the e-commerce industry as well as the (industry name) industry and the needs of the mass consumer.

Industry Analysis

​ [Sender.Company] has conducted a thorough analysis of the industry and discovered the following statistics that bode well for the business:

(Provide point-by-point statistics that illustrate the opportunity for your business e.g., growth projections for the e-commerce industry and your specific niche, consumer survey results, cost projections, etc.)

Customer Analysis

​ [Sender.Company] ’s target market is comprised primarily of (describe your ideal customer) .

The demographics of these customers are as follows:

The average income of $XX, XXX

XX% work in (industry)

XX% (married/single)

The median age of XX years

Strong desire for (a specific type of product/service you sell)

Competitor Analysis

There are numerous competitors in the industry in which [Sender.Company] will operate. The most noteworthy competitors consist of:

(List 2-3 competitors and include a brief description of their history, the scope of their businesses, and some noteworthy facts and stats.)

Competitive Advantage

​ [Sender.Company] is positioned for success because:

There are a limited number of competitors.

There's no one selling the exact product/service that [Sender.Company] offers.

The management team is seasoned and has a strong track record of success.

The product/service is on trend, and the industry is growing.

Marketing Strategy

​ [Sender.Company] plans to leverage several strategical prongs to achieve success in its marketing strategy.

Brand Strategy

​ [Sender.Company] will consistently focus its marketing efforts on the brand's unique value proposition, consisting of:

(Describe what makes your product or service stand apart from your competitors)

Promotional Strategy

(List some of the channels or methods your company will use to promote itself, e.g., SEO, email marketing, paid advertising, social media outreach, affiliates, etc.)

Pricing Strategy

​ [Sender.Company] 's pricing, is based on comprehensive market research, and it has been determined that our pricing is fair and attractive compared to competitor offerings.

(State the specific pricing or the general price range of products to be offered.)

Operational Plan

​ [Sender.Company] has determined that the following roles are essential for the success of the company:

(List some of the departments and roles that will need to be in place to operate the business.)

​ [Sender.Company] believes it is reasonable to expect completion of the following milestones at the following times:

(State when you expect the milestone to be completed.)

(Briefly describe what the milestone is e.g., the website goes live, marketing campaigns launch, products ship, etc.)

Financial Projections

​ [Sender.Company] is seeking total funding of $(amount) to launch its business. The capital will be used for (state what funding will be used e.g., building the website, hiring personnel, working capital, marketing, etc.)

Specifically, these funds will be used as follows:

Hiring a content production team: approximately $(amount of money)

Marketing: approximately $(amount of money) design/build and startup business expenses: approximately $120,000

​ [Sender.Company] 's financial projections for the next (number) years are as follows:

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Ecommerce Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Business Plan Outline

• Ecommerce Business Plan Home
• 1. Executive Summary
• 2. Company Overview
• 3. Industry Analysis
• 4. Customer Analysis
• 5. Competitive Analysis
• 6. Marketing Plan
• 7. Operations Plan
• 8. Management Team
• 9. Financial Plan

Whether you are planning to start a new ecommerce business or grow your existing business, you’ve come to the right place to create your plan.

We have helped over 10,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their own ecommerce company.

Below are links to each section of a sample ecommerce business plan to help you write your ecommerce business plan:

Next Section: Executive Summary >

Ecommerce Business Plan FAQs

What is an ecommerce business plan.

An ecommerce business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your ecommerce business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can  easily complete your ecommerce business plan using our Ecommerce Business Plan Template here .

What Are the Main Types of Ecommerce Companies?

An Ecommerce business can really be anything that is able to be sold on the internet, it is an online business. Ecommerce companies range from virtual clothing websites, furniture store websites, electronic devices and accessories, toy stores, etc. These companies can have a warehouse where they store and ship their own inventory or utilize a dropshipper who is a third party company who receives the order straight from the website, fulfills the order, and ships directly to the consumer.

No matter what type of online business you will operate, you will need to know how to make an ecommerce business plan. An ecommerce business plan template is key to creating a solid business plan.

What Are the Main Sources of Revenue and Expenses for an Ecommerce Business?

The primary source of revenue for an ecommerce company is the products that are sold on the website.

The key expenses for an ecommerce company are the costs to maintain a warehouse and shipping costs. There are also payroll costs that need to be factored in for the personnel who will be handling all product fulfillment and shipments. If utilizing a dropshipper, a key expense is the fees that will need to be paid to the dropshipper for fulfilling the orders and shipping directly to the consumers.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Ecommerce Company?

Ecommerce businesses are most likely to receive funding from banks. Typically you will find a local bank and present your business plan to them. A major source of funding for an ecommerce company are angel investors, crowdfunding, or funding from friends and/or associates.

An investor will want to see a solid business plan complete with a strong financial plan (income statement, balance sheets and cash flow statements).  It should also include a comprehensive marketing strategy, details of your business model, an overview of your management team and  market research on your target market. You can quickly complete your plan using our Ecommerce Business Plan Template here .

Where Can I Get an Ecommerce Business Plan PDF?

You can download our free Ecommerce business plan template PDF here . This is a sample Ecommerce business plan template you can use in PDF format.

Other Business Plan Templates

Clothing Line Business Plan Template Clothing Store Business Plan Template Beauty Supply Store Bookstore Business Plan Template

Ecommerce Business Plan Template [Updated 2024]

Ecommerce Business Plan Template

If you want to start an Ecommerce business or expand your current one, you need a business plan.

Your Ecommerce business plan will accomplish several key objectives. First, it will help you create goals for your Ecommerce business and give you a roadmap to follow to reach them. It will also help you develop the right strategies to attain your goals. For example, by understanding trends in the Ecommerce industry, the strengths and weaknesses of other ecommerce businesses, and the demographic and psychographic needs of your target market, you can craft better product and marketing strategies.

You can download our Ecommerce Business Plan Template (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.

The following Ecommerce business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning business plan for an ecommerce startup or an existing ecommerce business.

Below are links to each of the key sections of a sample ecommerce business plan:

E-commerce Business Plan FAQs

What is an e-commerce business plan, do i need an e-commerce business plan, how often should i update my e-commerce business plan, how do i write an e-commerce business plan.

• Executive Summary - In this section, you will provide an overview of your e-commerce business including highlights from each section of the business plan.
• Company Overview - This section includes a description of your company, its legal form of business, where you are located and/or based out of, who is involved in the venture (both financially and non-financially), who your customers will be, and why a consumer should buy from you instead of a competitor.
• Industry Analysis - Here you will describe the current state of the industry that your business is involved in by providing relevant data. This information will allow you to then describe the competitive landscape, any barriers that may affect entry into this industry, and how your company plans to overcome these obstacles.
• Customer Analysis - Identify who your customer is and why they would buy from you. What is the size of your market? How will you reach your target audience?
• Competitive Analysis - Identify who your major competitors are. What are the different ways that you can differentiate your company from these competitors?
• Marketing Plan - This section should include a description of your target customer, how you will reach them, and what the cost associated with this activity will be.
• Operations Plan - This section should discuss how you will run your day-to-day operations. This includes information such as manufacturing or service delivery, inventory management and any other key issues related to how your company will operate.
• Management Team - This section should be composed of resumes for each member of your management team including any current gaps in their skill sets.
• Financial Plan - This section should include projected income statements, balance sheets and cash flow forecasts for the first three years. You will need to provide both your financials as well as those of any sub companies you are involved in.

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Ecommerce Business Plan Outline

How to Write an eCommerce Business Plan + Template

Noah Parsons

10 min. read

Updated May 10, 2024

Free Download:  Sample eCommerce Business Plan Templates

If you’re starting an online eCommerce business , it’s tempting to dive right in and set up your digital shop. After all, eCommerce businesses are often less expensive to start than physical businesses and the risk may seem lower. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. There’s still risk involved and money you may lose if you don’t start your business the right way.

So if you want your business to be successful you’ll want to start with a business plan first. Not having a business plan is one of the primary reasons businesses fail and it’s an easy first step that you can start for free.

Businesses that do take the time to plan are actually proven to be significantly more successful than those that don’t.

• Why write an eCommerce business plan?

If you’re looking for funding from investors for your eCommerce business, you’ll definitely need a business plan. But, business plans aren’t just for entrepreneurs who are looking to raise money for their business. There are many other reasons why you should consider writing a plan.

• Strategy. Writing your plan down will help you clarify your business strategy and figure out key aspects of how your business will run. You’ll think about your marketing plan, fulfillment, sales strategies, and more.
• Test ideas. Business plans can help you figure out if an idea will work. A plan will help you figure out which ideas will be profitable and which will struggle to make money.
• Know your numbers. Developing your financial plan as part of your business plan will help you understand what it’s really going to take to start an online business. Running the numbers will help you determine profitability and what it will take to get your business up and running.
• Market research. Your business plan will help you answer questions about who your customers are and how you can best get your product in front of them.
• Marketing and advertising. Getting your eCommerce business running online is just the first step. Now you need to bring customers to your website . Having a plan and knowing how much it will cost you before your start will improve your chances of success.
• Business plan competitions. An often overlooked way of getting money for your eCommerce business is business plan competitions. There are thousands of them every year that include cash prizes. With a solid business plan, it’s usually free to enter.

A business plan can help you develop your strategy, test your idea , figure out how much money you’ll need to get up and running and identify potential roadblocks. It’s a critical step that will ensure that you don’t waste time or money as you get your business off the ground.

• How to write an eCommerce business plan

Every business plan follows a fairly standard format, but for eCommerce you will need some extra detail in the marketing and fulfillment sections. Here’s an outline of what you should include. 

If you’re ready to get started you can also download a free template for your eCommerce business plan .

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Executive Summary

Every business plan needs an executive summary . Usually, you write the summary last, after you’ve fleshed out all the details of your plan. The executive summary isn’t a repeat of the full plan—it’s really just a brief outline that should be 1-2 pages at the most. 

When you’re getting introductions to investors, you’ll probably just share your executive summary to start, and then share the full plan if an investor is interested. 

Your executive summary should summarize your vision for your online business, the products you’ll be selling, a short description of your target market, and highlights of your management team and financials. If you did a market analysis, don’t get into tons of detail, but cover enough that a casual reader will understand what you’re trying to accomplish.

Opportunity: Problem and Solution

The first chapter of your eCommerce business plan describes your opportunity. That’s a description of the business you are building and the problem you are solving for customers. 

Every business needs to solve a problem for customers. For your business to stand out and be successful, you’ll ideally fill a gap that other companies haven’t filled yet. 

Even if you’re selling the same types of products as other companies, your eCommerce business could offer a better shopping experience, lower prices, or better customer service. The problem you are solving then is that customers can’t get good customer service or low prices from other companies in your industry. They will come to you, instead, because you do offer those things.

You can also solve problems for customers by offering a product they’ve never seen before. Perhaps you’ve developed a new line of kitchen utensils that are designed for older hands and wrists. Or maybe you’ve invented a new line of soap that is more sustainable than traditional hand soap.

Target Market

Arguably, the target market section of your eCommerce business plan is one of the most important components. Your target market describes the types of customers you hope to attract. Trying to please everyone is bound to be a failure—instead, focus on a specific group of people or type of person and build from there.

For example, maybe you’re trying to sell to young professionals who value good design. Or, maybe you’re targeting new families who are looking for sustainably made, affordable kids toys.

When you’re writing the target market section of your business you’ll describe exactly who your ideal customer is, what their demographics are, and how large your target market is.

There are a lot of details that you can include in your target market section of your eCommerce business plan, and we’ve got a great article that covers everything you might want to include .

Marketing and Advertising

For an eCommerce business, getting the word out about your business is critical. Unlike a physical storefront that potential customers might walk or drive by, an online store needs to figure out how to get customers to its virtual doors.

In the marketing and advertising chapter of your business plan, you’ll want to detail your marketing plan for your business – how are you going to get customers’ attention? How will they know you exist?

Here are a few tactics you may want to consider:

• Content marketing. Start writing blog posts that your potential customers may find interesting so that you can attract prospects to your business. Also, consider guest posting on other blogs that your potential customers might read.
• Social media. These days, most consumers expect that the companies they shop at will have some form of social media presence. Pick the networks that you plan to be active on and determine a strategy that will engage your potential customers.
• Traditional PR. Traditional PR isn’t dead. If you can get popular publications to cover your company launch and your products, you’ll be able to drive new customers to your door.
• Advertising. Online advertising will almost certainly be in your plans. The good thing about online advertising is that you can measure its effectiveness and fine-tune things as you go. Depending on your business and how much cash you have on hand, you may consider traditional off-line advertising as well.
• Email marketing. For many eCommerce businesses, email is a core strategy for driving sales. If you have a content marketing plan, you can use that content to drive email subscriptions. You can also offer deals to build your email list, such as free shipping or discounts on orders.

Successful eCommerce businesses are all about ensuring that their operations are running smoothly and efficiently. Use your business plan as your chance to figure out what your operations plans are ahead of time before you jump in and get started. This is where many businesses can get tripped up, so taking the time to get your operations set up properly is worth the up-front investment of time.

Areas you’ll want to cover include:

• Locations. Even though your business may be online, you’ll still need to run the business from somewhere. Perhaps you can run the business entirely remotely, but potentially you may need some office space for employees or warehouse space for product storage. Think about where these locations are located and what it will cost to keep them running.
• Suppliers. You’ll need suppliers for raw materials if you’re making products and you will also need suppliers if you are reselling products. Use your plan to figure out who you’re going to work with, what their purchase terms are, and what kind of delivery timeframes they can provide for you.
• Production. If you’re assembling raw materials into products, you’ll need to know how and where you will be producing your products.
• Storage & fulfillment. If you’re not drop-shipping from products from a supplier, you’ll need to store and ship your own products. Your business plan should detail where and how storage and fulfillment will take place and what the costs will be. Don’t forget to think through how you’ll handle returns and exchanges.
• Technology & payment processors. All eCommerce businesses need technology to function. You’ll want to think about the platform you’ll use for your online store, what functionality you need, and how you’ll accept payments. 

Company & Management

This chapter of your eCommerce business plan describes the structure of your business and who is running it. If you’re going into business with other people, you should establish a partnership agreement. Your plan will need to explain how your business is structured and who owns what portions of the business. 

You’ll also want to include a company description that includes details on the management team and the highlights from their resumes. Potential investors will be looking for experienced owners and managers to get an eCommerce business up and running, so this section of the plan should explain why your team is qualified to build the business into a success.

If you aren’t looking for outside investment, this section of your eCommerce business plan is still important. You should think about the different positions you’ll need to fill and who is going to do each job in the business. Even if you don’t plan on hiring employees right away, having a plan for who you’re going to hire and when will be enormously helpful when the time comes.

Financial Plan

Finally, your eCommerce business plan will need to include a financial plan . Investors will want to see a sales forecast , income statement (also called profit and loss statement), cash flow statement , and a balance sheet. If you use a tool like LivePlan , you’ll be able to build out your financial forecasts relatively quickly, even if you don’t have experience with business numbers.

Even if you’re not working with investors or getting a bank loan, you should run your numbers. This is arguably the most important part of your business plan. You need to know if the numbers work for your business based on your forecasted sales and planned expenses . 

It’s much better to find out if you need to make changes to your business model while it’s all just an idea on paper rather than a business that you’ve already invested money in.

If you need additional help, we’ve created a guide to creating the financial statements you need to include in your business plan .

• Ecommerce business plan templates and examples

If you want to see how other eCommerce businesses have created their plans, check out our free library of eCommerce business plans . You can download all of them in Word format so you can jump-start your own business plan.

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

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How to Write an Ecommerce Business Plan

If you’ve got an exciting concept for an e-commerce venture, it’s crucial to develop a business plan tailored to your online store. This plan will play a pivotal role in ensuring that your vision has the necessary resources to thrive and generate profits. By crafting a comprehensive business plan for your online retail operation, you can effectively pinpoint your target audience, set clear monthly and quarterly sales targets, and significantly enhance the prospects of achieving long-term success in the e-commerce industry.

As a business plan writer and consultant , I’ve authored over 15,000 business plans for various enterprises, many of which have gone on to achieve substantial growth and success. In this article, I offer insights based on my experience and expertise in creating an e-commerce business plan.

What is an ecommerce business plan?

An ecommerce business plan is a comprehensive document that outlines the goals, strategies, and financial projections of an online business. It serves as a roadmap for the business, guiding entrepreneurs in making informed decisions and attracting investors.

How to Write an E-commerce Business Plan Step By Step

• Provide an executive summary.
• Business overview.
• Explain your offerings.
• Analyze the market.
• Develop your marketing strategy.
• Establish a sales plan.

l. Provide an executive summary

An executive summary serves as a succinct, one-to-two-page overview of your business, meticulously crafted to inform stakeholders about the essential elements of your comprehensive business plan. It’s a window into your business’s aspirations, strategies, and financial projections, providing a clear roadmap for decision-making and attracting potential investors.

An ecommerce business plan executive summary can look something like this:

Here’s a complete guide on how to write an effective executive summary with examples.

ll. Business overview

Business overview section beckons for meticulous attention to detail, as it showcases the very essence of your business – your product or service. It’s the stage upon which your offering takes center stage, captivating the audience with its unique value proposition and compelling features. Begin by painting a vivid overview of what you’re bringing to the market, piquing the interest of potential customers and investors alike.

A business overview of Pet Planet online store may look something like this:

Here are 14 profitable eCommerce business ideas you can start today!

lll. Explain your offerings

Having established the foundation of your business and its purpose, it’s time to embark on a deeper exploration of your plan. The spotlight now falls upon the products and services that will form the cornerstone of your venture. Begin by meticulously listing each offering, accompanied by a clear explanation of its purpose. Address the fundamental question of ‘why’ – why have you chosen to offer these specific products and services ? What unique value do they bring to the market?

Once the products and services have been comprehensively described, it’s time to illuminate the pricing model that will govern your offerings. Assign a clear cost to each service, considering factors such as production costs, market demand, and competitive pricing. Determining pricing, especially for a startup, can be a complex endeavor. Fortunately, sales pricing calculators can serve as valuable allies in identifying the optimal pricing strategy .

A explain your offerings of smart home products may look something like this:

• Business Plan Template

For your E-store business, download this ecommerce business plan template now.

lV. Analyze the market

A comprehensive market analysis serves as a compass, guiding your business through the intricate terrain of the marketplace. It begins with a deep understanding of your target audience, delving into their demographics, preferences, and purchasing behaviors. This knowledge empowers you to tailor your products, services, and marketing strategies to resonate with their needs and aspirations.

Here is how analyze the market in our ecommerce business plan.

How to Write Products and Services Section of Business Plan

Your perfect Ecommerce business plan is just a click away.

You have a great business idea. We can help you turn it into a perfect business plan..

V. Develop your marketing strategy

An ecommerce business’s marketing plan is its secret weapon, guiding it towards brand awareness, target audience reach , and enhanced sales and revenue. This plan revolves around positioning strategy, acquisition channels, and tools and technology. Positioning strategy determines how you will differentiate yourself in the market, while acquisition channels identify how your target audience discovers your business.

Finally, tools and technology harness the power of innovation to enhance your reach, automate tasks, and gain valuable insights into customer behavior. By crafting and implementing a comprehensive marketing plan , you can effectively build brand awareness, attract your target audience, and drive growth and profitability for your ecommerce venture.

How to Write the Marketing Plan in Ecommerce Business Plan?

Vl. Establish a sales plan

Importance of an ecommerce business plan.

The significance of an ecommerce business plan cannot be overstated. It plays a pivotal role in:

• Defining Your Business Goals: Clearly articulating your business objectives provides a sense of direction and ensures that your actions are aligned with your overall vision.
• Identifying Your Target Market: Understanding your target audience's needs, preferences, and behaviors is crucial for tailoring your products, services, and marketing strategies effectively.
• Developing Effective Marketing Strategies: A well-defined marketing plan outlines the strategies you will employ to reach your target audience, generate leads, and drive sales.
• Securing Funding: Investors and lenders often require a comprehensive business plan to assess the viability of your venture and the potential return on their investment.

Tips for Writing an Effective Ecommerce Business Plan

• Conduct Thorough Research: Gather comprehensive data and insights into your target market, competitors, and industry trends.
• Set Realistic Goals: Establish achievable and measurable goals that align with your business's resources and capabilities.
• Update Regularly: Review and update your business plan periodically to reflect changes in your market, strategies, or goals.
• Quantify Your Financial Projections: Back up your financial projections with sound assumptions and calculations.
• Seek Feedback: Share your business plan with trusted advisors and mentors for constructive feedback and suggestions.

Revenue projections can be determined by conducting market research, analyzing industry trends, evaluating your target market size, and considering your pricing strategy. Additionally, factors such as marketing efforts, customer acquisition rates, and competition should be taken into account.

Managing operating expenses effectively involves careful budgeting, identifying cost-saving opportunities, negotiating with suppliers, optimizing operational processes, and regularly reviewing expenses. It’s important to strike a balance between controlling costs without compromising the quality of your products or services.

Funding options for an eCommerce business may include self-funding, loans from financial institutions, angel investors, venture capital, crowdfunding platforms, or partnerships. Consider your business’s financial needs, growth plans, and potential risks when exploring funding options.

The break-even point is the point at which your total revenue matches your total expenses, resulting in neither profit nor loss. It can be calculated by dividing your fixed costs by the contribution margin (selling price per unit minus variable costs per unit). This calculation helps you determine the minimum sales volume required to cover costs.

Tracking CAC and CLV is crucial for understanding the effectiveness of your marketing and sales efforts. CAC helps determine the cost of acquiring a new customer, while CLV estimates the value a customer brings to your business over their lifetime. By analyzing these metrics, you can optimize your marketing strategies and ensure that the cost of acquiring customers aligns with their long-term value.

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Free PDF Business Plan Templates and Samples

By Joe Weller | September 9, 2020

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We’ve gathered the most useful collection of business plan PDF templates and samples, including options for organizations of any size and type.

On this page, you’ll find free PDF templates for a simple business plan , small business plan , startup business plan , and more.

Simple Business Plan PDF Templates

These simple business plan PDF templates are ready to use and customizable to fit the needs of any organization.

Simple Business Plan Template PDF

This template contains a traditional business plan layout to help you map out each aspect, from a company overview to sales projections and a marketing strategy. This template includes a table of contents, as well as space for financing details that startups looking for funding may need to provide. 

Download Simple Business Plan Template - PDF

Lean Business Plan Template PDF

This scannable business plan template allows you to easily identify the most important elements of your plan. Use this template to outline key details pertaining to your business and industry, product or service offerings, target customer segments (and channels to reach them), and to identify sources of revenue. There is also space to include key performance metrics and a timeline of activities. 

Download Lean Business Plan Template - PDF

Simple 30-60-90 Day Business Plan Template PDF

This template is designed to help you develop and implement a 90-day business plan by breaking it down into manageable chunks of time. Use the space provided to detail your main goals and deliverables for each timeframe, and then add the steps necessary to achieve your objectives. Assign task ownership and enter deadlines to ensure your plan stays on track every step of the way.

Download Simple 30-60-90 Day Business Plan Template

PDF | Smartsheet

One-Page Business Plan PDF Templates

The following single page business plan templates are designed to help you download your key ideas on paper, and can be used to create a pitch document to gain buy-in from partners, investors, and stakeholders.

One-Page Business Plan Template PDF

Use this one-page template to summarize each aspect of your business concept in a clear and concise manner. Define the who, what, why, and how of your idea, and use the space at the bottom to create a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) for your business. 

Download One-Page Business Plan Template

If you’re looking for a specific type of analysis, check out our collection of SWOT templates .

One-Page Lean Business Plan PDF

This one-page business plan template employs the Lean management concept, and encourages you to focus on the key assumptions of your business idea. A Lean plan is not stagnant, so update it as goals and objectives change — the visual timeline at the bottom is ideal for detailing milestones. 

Download One-Page Lean Business Plan Template - PDF

One-Page 30-60-90 Day Business Plan Template

Use this business plan template to identify main goals and outline the necessary activities to achieve those goals in 30, 60, and 90-day increments. Easily customize this template to fit your needs while you track the status of each task and goal to keep your business plan on target. 

Download One-Page 30-60-90 Day Business Plan Template

For additional single page plans, including an example of a one-page business plan , visit " One-Page Business Plan Templates with a Quick How-To Guide ."

Small Business Plan PDF Templates

These business plan templates are useful for small businesses that want to map out a way to meet organizational objectives, including how to structure, operate, and expand their business.

Simple Small Business Plan Template PDF

A small business can use this template to outline each critical component of a business plan. There is space to provide details about product or service offerings, target audience, customer reach strategy, competitive advantage, and more. Plus, there is space at the bottom of the document to include a SWOT analysis. Once complete, you can use the template as a basis to build out a more elaborate plan. 

Download Simple Small Business Plan Template

Fill-In-the-Blank Small Business Plan Template PDF

This fill-in-the-blank template walks you through each section of a business plan. Build upon the fill-in-the-blank content provided in each section to add information about your company, business idea, market analysis, implementation plan, timeline of milestones, and much more.

Download Fill-In-the-Blank Small Business Plan Template - PDF

One-Page Small Business Plan Template PDF

Use this one-page template to create a scannable business plan that highlights the most essential parts of your organization’s strategy. Provide your business overview and management team details at the top, and then outline the target market, market size, competitive offerings, key objectives and success metrics, financial plan, and more.

Download One-Page Business Plan for Small Business - PDF

Startup Business Plan PDF Templates

Startups can use these business plan templates to check the feasibility of their idea, and articulate their vision to potential investors.

Startup Business Plan Template

Use this business plan template to organize and prepare each essential component of your startup plan. Outline key details relevant to your concept and organization, including your mission and vision statement, product or services offered, pricing structure, marketing strategy, financial plan, and more.

‌Download Startup Business Plan Template

Sample 30-60-90 Day Business Plan for Startup

Startups can use this sample 30-60-90 day plan to establish main goals and deliverables spanning a 90-day period. Customize the sample goals, deliverables, and activities provided on this template according to the needs of your business. Then, assign task owners and set due dates to help ensure your 90-day plan stays on track.

‌Download Sample 30-60-90 Day Business Plan for Startup Template 

For additional resources to create your plan, visit “ Free Startup Business Plan Templates and Examples .”

Nonprofit Business Plan PDF Templates

Use these business plan PDF templates to outline your organization’s mission, your plan to make a positive impact in your community, and the steps you will take to achieve your nonprofit’s goals.

Nonprofit Business Plan Template PDF

Use this customizable PDF template to develop a plan that details your organization’s purpose, objectives, and strategy. This template features a table of contents, with room to include your nonprofit’s mission and vision, key team and board members, program offerings, a market and industry analysis, promotional plan, financial plan, and more. This template also contains a visual timeline to display historic and future milestones.

Download Nonprofit Business Plan Template - PDF

One-Page Business Plan for Nonprofit Organization PDF 

This one-page plan serves as a good starting point for established and startup nonprofit organizations to jot down their fundamental goals and objectives. This template contains all the essential aspects of a business plan in a concise and scannable format, including the organizational overview, purpose, promotional plan, key objectives and success metrics, fundraising goals, and more.

Download One-Page Business Plan for Nonprofit Organization Template - PDF

Fill-In-the-Blank Business Plan PDF Templates

Use these fill-in-the-blank templates as a foundation for creating a comprehensive roadmap that aligns your business strategy with your marketing, sales, and financial goals.

Simple Fill-In-the-Blank Business Plan PDF

The fill-in-the-blank template contains all the vital parts of a business plan, with sample content that you can customize to fit your needs. There is room to include an executive summary, business description, market analysis, marketing plan, operations plan, financial statements, and more. 

Download Simple Fill-In-the-Blank Business Plan Template - PDF

Lean Fill-In-the-Blank Business Plan PDF

This business plan is designed with a Lean approach that encourages you to clarify and communicate your business idea in a clear and concise manner. This single page fill-in-the-blank template includes space to provide details about your management team, the problem you're solving, the solution, target customers, cost structure, and revenue streams. Use the timeline at the bottom to produce a visual illustration of key milestones. 

Download Fill-In-the-Blank Lean Business Plan Template - PDF

For additional resources, take a look at " Free Fill-In-the-Blank Business Plan Templates ."

Sample Business Plan PDF Templates

These sample business plan PDF templates can help you to develop an organized, thorough, and professional business plan.

Business Plan Sample 

This business plan example demonstrates a plan for a fictional food truck company. The sample includes all of the elements in a traditional business plan, which makes it a useful starting point for developing a plan specific to your business needs.

Download Basic Business Plan Sample - PDF

Sample Business Plan Outline Template

Use this sample outline as a starting point for your business plan. Shorten or expand the outline depending on your organization’s needs, and use it to develop a table of contents for your finalized plan.

Download Sample Business Plan Outline Template - PDF

Sample Business Financial Plan Template

Use this sample template to develop the financial portion of your business plan. The template provides space to include a financial overview, key assumptions, financial indicators, and business ratios. Complete the break-even analysis and add your financial statements to help prove the viability of your organization’s business plan.

Download Business Financial Plan Template

PDF  | Smartsheet

For more free, downloadable templates for all aspects of your business, check out “ Free Business Templates for Organizations of All Sizes .”

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7 Business Plan Examples to Inspire Your Own (2024)

Need support creating your business plan? Check out these business plan examples for inspiration.

Any aspiring entrepreneur researching how to start a business will likely be advised to write a business plan. But few resources provide business plan examples to really guide you through writing one of your own.

Here are some real-world and illustrative business plan examples to help you craft your business plan .

7 business plan examples: section by section

The business plan examples in this article follow this template:

• Executive summary.  An introductory overview of your business.
• Company description.  A more in-depth and detailed description of your business and why it exists.
• Market analysis.  Research-based information about the industry and your target market.
• Products and services.  What you plan to offer in exchange for money.
• Marketing plan.   The promotional strategy to introduce your business to the world and drive sales.
• Logistics and operations plan.  Everything that happens in the background to make your business function properly.
• Financial plan.  A breakdown of your numbers to show what you need to get started as well as to prove viability of profitability.
• Executive summary

Your  executive summary  is a page that gives a high-level overview of the rest of your business plan. It’s easiest to save this section for last.

In this  free business plan template , the executive summary is four paragraphs and takes a little over half a page:

• Company description

You might repurpose your company description elsewhere, like on your About page, social media profile pages, or other properties that require a boilerplate description of your small business.

Soap brand ORRIS  has a blurb on its About page that could easily be repurposed for the company description section of its business plan.

You can also go more in-depth with your company overview and include the following sections, like in the example for Paw Print Post:

• Business structure.  This section outlines how you  registered your business —as an  LLC , sole proprietorship, corporation, or other  business type . “Paw Print Post will operate as a sole proprietorship run by the owner, Jane Matthews.”
• Nature of the business.  “Paw Print Post sells unique, one-of-a-kind digitally printed cards that are customized with a pet’s unique paw prints.”
• Industry.  “Paw Print Post operates primarily in the pet industry and sells goods that could also be categorized as part of the greeting card industry.”
• Background information.  “Jane Matthews, the founder of Paw Print Post, has a long history in the pet industry and working with animals, and was recently trained as a graphic designer. She’s combining those two loves to capture a niche in the market: unique greeting cards customized with a pet’s paw prints, without needing to resort to the traditional (and messy) options of casting your pet’s prints in plaster or using pet-safe ink to have them stamp their ‘signature.’”
• Business objectives.  “Jane will have Paw Print Post ready to launch at the Big Important Pet Expo in Toronto to get the word out among industry players and consumers alike. After two years in business, Jane aims to drive $150,000 in annual revenue from the sale of Paw Print Post’s signature greeting cards and have expanded into two new product categories.”
• Team.  “Jane Matthews is the sole full-time employee of Paw Print Post but hires contractors as needed to support her workflow and fill gaps in her skill set. Notably, Paw Print Post has a standing contract for five hours a week of virtual assistant support with Virtual Assistants Pro.”

Your  mission statement  may also make an appearance here.  Passionfruit  shares its mission statement on its company website, and it would also work well in its example business plan.

• Market analysis

The market analysis consists of research about supply and demand, your target demographics, industry trends, and the competitive landscape. You might run a SWOT analysis and include that in your business plan. 

Here’s an example  SWOT analysis  for an online tailored-shirt business:

You’ll also want to do a  competitive analysis  as part of the market research component of your business plan. This will tell you who you’re up against and give you ideas on how to differentiate your brand. A broad competitive analysis might include:

• Target customers
• Unique value add  or what sets their products apart
• Sales pitch
• Price points  for products
• Shipping  policy
• Products and services

This section of your business plan describes your offerings—which products and services do you sell to your customers? Here’s an example for Paw Print Post:

• Marketing plan

It’s always a good idea to develop a marketing plan  before you launch your business. Your marketing plan shows how you’ll get the word out about your business, and it’s an essential component of your business plan as well.

The Paw Print Post focuses on four Ps: price, product, promotion, and place. However, you can take a different approach with your marketing plan. Maybe you can pull from your existing  marketing strategy , or maybe you break it down by the different marketing channels. Whatever approach you take, your marketing plan should describe how you intend to promote your business and offerings to potential customers.

• Logistics and operations plan

The Paw Print Post example considered suppliers, production, facilities, equipment, shipping and fulfillment, and inventory.

Financial plan

The financial plan provides a breakdown of sales, revenue, profit, expenses, and other relevant financial metrics related to funding and profiting from your business.

Ecommerce brand  Nature’s Candy’s financial plan  breaks down predicted revenue, expenses, and net profit in graphs.

It then dives deeper into the financials to include:

• Funding needs
• Projected profit-and-loss statement
• Projected balance sheet
• Projected cash-flow statement

You can use this financial plan spreadsheet to build your own financial statements, including income statement, balance sheet, and cash-flow statement.

Types of business plans, and what to include for each

A one-page business plan is meant to be high level and easy to understand at a glance. You’ll want to include all of the sections, but make sure they’re truncated and summarized:

• Executive summary: truncated
• Market analysis: summarized
• Products and services: summarized
• Marketing plan: summarized
• Logistics and operations plan: summarized
• Financials: summarized

A startup business plan is for a new business. Typically, these plans are developed and shared to secure  outside funding . As such, there’s a bigger focus on the financials, as well as on other sections that determine viability of your business idea—market research, for example.

• Market analysis: in-depth
• Financials: in-depth

Your internal business plan is meant to keep your team on the same page and aligned toward the same goal.

A strategic, or growth, business plan is a bigger picture, more-long-term look at your business. As such, the forecasts tend to look further into the future, and growth and revenue goals may be higher. Essentially, you want to use all the sections you would in a normal business plan and build upon each.

• Market analysis: comprehensive outlook
• Products and services: for launch and expansion
• Marketing plan: comprehensive outlook
• Logistics and operations plan: comprehensive outlook
• Financials: comprehensive outlook

Feasibility

Your feasibility business plan is sort of a pre-business plan—many refer to it as simply a feasibility study. This plan essentially lays the groundwork and validates that it’s worth the effort to make a full business plan for your idea. As such, it’s mostly centered around research.

Set yourself up for success as a business owner

Building a good business plan serves as a roadmap you can use for your ecommerce business at launch and as you reach each of your business goals. Business plans create accountability for entrepreneurs and synergy among teams, regardless of your  business model .

Kickstart your ecommerce business and set yourself up for success with an intentional business planning process—and with the sample business plans above to guide your own path.

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Business plan examples FAQ

How do i write a simple business plan, what is the best format to write a business plan, what are the 4 key elements of a business plan.

• Executive summary: A concise overview of the company's mission, goals, target audience, and financial objectives.
• Business description: A description of the company's purpose, operations, products and services, target markets, and competitive landscape.
• Market analysis: An analysis of the industry, market trends, potential customers, and competitors.
• Financial plan: A detailed description of the company's financial forecasts and strategies.

What are the 3 main points of a business plan?

• Concept: Your concept should explain the purpose of your business and provide an overall summary of what you intend to accomplish.
• Contents: Your content should include details about the products and services you provide, your target market, and your competition.
• Cashflow: Your cash flow section should include information about your expected cash inflows and outflows, such as capital investments, operating costs, and revenue projections.

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Sample Online Retail Store Business Plan Template PDF

Retailing company business plan sample.

Do you know how to set up a retail business online ?

If you don’t, then you have a full plethora of realization before you, because indeed it is true that businesses can now go beyond the offline horizons.

E-retailing is the word; the selling of goods as well as services through the internet, one might say.

Need to write a plan for your venture? Download a FREE Business Plan PDF Sample to develop a template for your own startup.

I should mention, to begin with, that online retailing is an off-offline analogy of the usual brick and Mortar retailing that is common in the business sphere. So every rule, as well as arrangements almost follow in tandem, except those that come as a consequence of the virtual nature of doing business online, where physical interaction is not required in the trading process.

So as much as you require a building for offline trading, also you require an online workshop (a weblog or website) for the online version.

The goal is to get a customer to purchase a product without the barricades of distance or chance. To make it possible for potential customers to get a commodity or service within their fingers, in a few clicks.

Below are some important considerations when setting up an online retail business model:

1) Online Retail Business Plan

It is a popular saying that “one who fails to plan, plans to fail”. Every business was birthed from an idea, adequately conceived, planned, and executed.

What type of product you are interested in, the cost of starting the online retail business, how the business would be financed, considerations regarding a warehouse, advertisement, and marketing plans, as well as business goals and strategies.

The business plan for an online retail store should be conceived and thoroughly analyzed, and if possible written and documented. If you have difficulty setting up a business plan, you could check out the LivePlan platform.

2) Structural Frame

Now, have considered many notions in building your plan, you should end up with a well-defined business structure. You should know if it is a sole proprietorship, partnership, or venture capitalist. This would help you know the taxation plan your business falls into.

3) Launching and Marketing

Once the business has been born into the online beds from the wombs of imagination, then a heavy sigh can be heaved; though what is left is the marketing of products. This is done via advertising through social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and whichever you want.

The launching of a business is one of the entrepreneur’s critical moments because this is when he exposes his product to the purview of the general public.

This should be done strategically, for instance, you could create a forum for a community of users of your product to promote your product, or you could make up a mailing list of potential clients and send them emails using software like MailChimp.

4) Website structure and Aesthetics

Deeply sensitive is the face of the blog that it could be a source of customer turn-offs as much as it could be a point of attraction for your customers. It should have the necessary features in its finest quality. The domain name and site location is also an important consideration.

5) Your Products

You must structure your business to suit your product. Products could, in this sense, be physical or digital (wherein in such cases you could jointly use Shopify and Fetch add-on). You should also get bar codes for your product.

6) Inventory

You should set up an inventory for your business online, one that is easily accessible for customers. In this regard, you should consider setting up a physical warehouse , whose address or P.O. Box should be public enough for customers to see.

This would go a long way in building customer trust and reliability. But if you do not intend to, or perhaps do not have the means to, you could reach business terms with warehousing firms to do storage at a more cost-efficient rate.

Note that your pictures should be pictorially displayed online in a dynamic and eye-catching way.

7) Set-up an efficient Shopping

The simplicity of the website would do much for your online retail business, and one such benefit is the ease of navigation through your inventory.

Most customers are too impatient to search through an entire blog for available products, so it pays the retailer more to loosen the shopping knot by adopting approaches like creating the possibility for customers to add items to the shopping cart as well as check out with ease. Make the process of ordering goods simple, so it could be done with a few clicks. 8) Planned Sustenance

Haven built a software retail business online, it doesn’t end there; you must have a well-baked plan on how to manage and grow your online retail business opportunities, much like any other business. How you intend to update your inventory, customer service, and site maintenance.

You must also consider promotional techniques to ensure that you keep customers constantly dangling back towards your end.

Maintenance is crucial to the continued survival and growth of an online retail business startup and it must not be overlooked as most amateur entrepreneurs do.

RETAILING COMPANY BUSINESS PLAN EXAMPLE

Here is a sample business plan for starting an offline or online retail business.

Most entrepreneurs find writing a business plan all by themselves very difficult.

But with the help of a good BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE , you could find the process very easy and even exciting; which is why I have prepared this retail BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE for you to help you easily write a good business plan for your retail company.

BUSINESS NAME:  Everyman’s Taste Retail Company.

Executive Summary

• Our Products and Services

Vision Statement

Mission Statement

Business Structure

• Market Analysis
• Sales and Marketing Strategy
• Financial Plan
• Sales Forecast

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY   

Everyman’s Taste Retail Company is a registered and licensed retail company that will be located in Brooklyn, New York, United States , and which will be focused on offering its customers quality retail products such as groceries, baby products, clothes, beauty products, etc.

Everyman’s Taste Retail Company will be owned by Steve Roberts, a former manager at one of the most reputable retail companies in Las Vegas, United States. He will be the CEO and owner of the retail company, bringing in his wealth of experience.

From our detailed study, we have been able to come up with a total startup capital required to start up our retail company in Brooklyn, New York. This startup capital amounts to $600,000, which will be sourced from the owner, as well as from the owner’s bank.

OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Everyman’s Taste Retail Company is a business in the retailing industry which will be focused on offering a wide range of durable and non-durable goods, and providing its services to customers not only in Brooklyn, New York, United States but in all of the major cities in the United States.

Our stores will be retailing the following:

• Sports equipment
• Beauty products
• Children’s toys
• Home Furnishing
• Baby Products
• Home Appliances, etc.

VISION STATEMENT

Our vision in the retailing industry is to be renowned as the number one consumer choice in the United States for all retail products. We want to establish a retail company that will not only be renowned in Brooklyn, New York but all of the major cities in the United States.

MISSION STATEMENT

Everyman’s Taste Retail Company’s mission is to become a retailing company that will be committed to making available a broad range of durable and non-durable quality goods from leading manufacturers in the world to our customers in all the major cities in the United States such as Brooklyn, Ohio , etc.

BUSINESS STRUCTURE

Everyman’s Taste Retail Company will be a standard retail company, unlike any other in Brooklyn, New York. We will become a reputable retail company that will be able to stand the face of competition in the United States.

Owing to this, we will make sure to recruit only capable employees, committed, honest, and who share our vision and goal of building a standard and reputable retail company.

The following are the positions to be occupied in our business organization, in no particular order:

• Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
• Merchandise Manager
• Store Manager
• Accountants / Cashiers
• Information Technologist
• Sales and Marketing Executive

MARKET ANALYSIS Market Trend

Although the retailing industry has always existed, it is nonetheless still growing; especially with the advancement in modern technology and online store retailing which has restructured the industry. Nowadays, one would likely find retail companies who are making use of technology in enhancing sales, maximizing profits, and minimizing costs.

Target Market

Our target market comprises each person on earth. This is because retail products are needed by every person on earth for survival. However, we have defined our target market to include the following:

• Business people
• Corporate Executives
• Pregnant Mothers
• Sports People

SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

The following is how we intend to take a hold of the market in the United States:

• The first thing we will do after startup is to promote our retail company by introducing it to residences, and business organizations, with the aid of our introductory letters.
• We will be swift in bidding for contracts.
• We will not hesitate to promote our retail company in newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations, etc.
• We will not forget to also use the internet and its tools to our advantage. We will promote our retail company on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• We will make sure to enforce direct marketing.

Before we arrived at the above sales and marketing strategies, we carried out a detailed market survey and feasibility study to enable us to see how we will be able to penetrate and take a hold of the market. Also, we contacted sales and marketing experts who were instrumental in helping us come up with the above strategies.

FINANCIAL PLAN Source of Startup Cost (Budget)

We will require a total of $600,000 to be able to launch Everyman’s Taste Retail Company in Brooklyn, New York, United States. This total startup capital will be obtained from the owner’s contribution from his investments and savings, and also from the bank.

Up until now, the owner has been able to gather a total of $400,000 towards the startup capital, while the remainder is to be borrowed from the owner’s bank.

SALES FORECAST

First Fiscal Year                    $250,000 Second Fiscal Year                $500,000 Third Fiscal Year                   $750,000

Above is the sales forecast for Everyman’s Taste Retail Company. This sales forecast is for the first three fiscal years of the business after its launch.

This sales forecast is a calculated estimate based on several data available in the industry. It should be noted that this sales forecast has not given attention to any risk factor.

This retail BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE bears the business name, ‘Everyman’s Taste Retail Company’. The company will be a retailing company that will be located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.

The company will be committed to offering a wide range of both durable and non-durable products to customers in the United States. To start the company, a total of $600,000 is what will be required.

SMALL RETAIL BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE

A retail business is a business that anyone can get involved in. This is because you do not need any special skill to own a retail business in the United States and other parts of the world. A retail business might be considered an easy task to pull. That does not mean it does not require a high level of hard work as well as understanding.

An in-depth understanding of how the retail business works and an understanding of the niche that you intend to service are needed.

Well, you might not need a particular skill to start a retail business. However, you will need a business plan. Contained in this article is a retail business plan sample. This will be of great importance to anyone that is looking to start a retail business.

Sample Retailing Business Plans:

• Warehouse business plan
• Grocery store business plan
• Thrift store business plan
• Consignment store business plan
• Vending machine business plan
• Grocery delivery business plan
• Convenience store business plan

That said, below is a retail business plan sample.

Business Name:  KK Retail Business

Competitive Advantage

KK retail business will be owned by Toby and Sarah Cobbs. This business will be not just be run by only family members for the first year of existence, it will also employ only family members.

However, after the first year of running, the business must have expanded to absorb more people. KK retail store will be located in the central business district of Atlanta and will occupy the ground floor of the tallest building in that environment. The facility that will be made use of by this retail store has a bathroom and a parking space for over 50 cars.

Some of the items that will be sold in this retail store include papers, sticker notes, pens, books, and other stationery.

This retail store will be financed both from personal savings, cash from friends, and bank loans

Although KK is a new retail store, we are looking to grow rapidly and expand in the nearest future.

The basic aim of going into business is to make a profit. KK’s aim of starting a retail store does not differ from this in any way. However, beyond making gains, we also want to make quality goods and commodities available to those in our environment.

As a retail store, we are not just interested in winning our locality. We are also very much interested in winning over our state.

Some of the goods that we will make available to the public include;

• Stationery (books, pens, jotters, diaries, etc.)
• Edibles (chocolates, candies, cookies)
• Kitchen utensils.

Our vision in the retail store business is to establish a retail store that will be rated as one of the best in our environment and also in the state at large

Our mission at KK retail store is to make available to our customers all the basics for running a home as well as living a comfortable life. We are committed to this and we will leave no stone unturned to make sure our potential customers get the best possible service from us.

The retail business is one that does require much skill. This makes it a very easy one to go into.

As a result of this, there is high competition in this business. Being fully aware of this, we are already putting structures in place to help us stand out from the crowd.

Some of the structures we are putting up include excellent customer care, ample parking space, and a reduced price for our regular clients.

Market Analysis Market Trend

It is a norm for most individuals to patronize retail stores. This has been the trend for a very long time and has not changed much. This trend creates a huge market for individuals in the retail business. Also, the fact that most things that are sold in retail stores are the basic needs of individuals further makes this business very viable

The market for retail stores is very broad. As a result of this, providing quality services for every single individual might not be very feasible. As a result of this, we have come up with a group of people that we intend to render our services to. They include;

• Stay at home moms
• Pregnant women

We are a new business and are relatively unknown. We are very aware of this and have come up with strategies to help us get popular among our potential clients. Some of our sales strategies are written below.

• We will offer a discount on our first set of customers
• We will make sure we have a strong internet presence
• We will drop our handbills in public places such as banks and schools.

Financial Plan Source of Startup Capital

A retail business is not one that requires so much capital. 50,000 is needed to start this business. We have been able to come up with 40% of the needed amount. The other amount will be sourced from the bank.

We have one of the largest parking lots in the entire state. This will surely help us to attract more customers. Also, our customer service is excellent and can be rivaled by just very few retail businesses.

This is a retail business plan sample for KK retail store. It will be run strictly by members of the Cobbs family for the first year.

If you are looking for a sample retail store BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE , here is a business plan for starting a children’s supply, beauty supply, or clothing retail store.

SMALL RETAIL STORE BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE

A retail store business is one of the businesses that can be set up by virtually anybody. The amazing thing about this business is that it can be set up on any level. You can decide to set it up on a very large scale or a small scale. The scale at which a retail business is set up is chiefly dependent on how much capital you have.

Although a retail store business might be one of the easiest businesses to set up, if you must make the best out of it, then you should have a business plan. This article contains a top-quality retail store business plan sample. With this sample, you can easily come up with the perfect retail store business plan that is needed to kick-start your business

Business Name:   T and T Retail Store

T and T’s retail store is a registered retail store that will be located in Dallas, Texas. Already, we have gotten a facility in a choice location. The comfort of our prospective customers matters a lot to us. As a result of this, we have gotten a facility that comes with a restroom as well as a parking space for up to 30 cars.

T and T retail stores will be operated by just one person until the business grows and the need arises to employ extra hands to make the business run smoothly. We have already made the necessary arrangements for the supply of the products that we will be selling. Some of the products that will be sold in this store are stationery, foodstuffs, and toiletries.

Products and Services

At T and T retail store, the well-being of our prospective customers is something that we are very particular about. As a result of this, we are not all about profit. We will ensure that all the products that are gotten at our store are of high quality and will give our prospective customers all the satisfaction that they desire.

Some of the products that we will be made available to our clients are

• Toiletries (Toilet papers, tubes of toothpaste, deodorants, bathing soaps)
• Kitchen equipment
• Electrical appliances.

Our vision at T and T retail store is to set up a retail store business that will become a household name in our environment and will meet the basic demands of our prospective clients.

At T and T retail store, our mission is to make sure that our prospective customers have access to all the products that they need to make their lives comfortable. We will go to any length to make sure that our customers get services of the highest quality from us.

The retail store industry is one that has nothing complex associated with it. Despite this, there is a lot of work to be done on our part if we must achieve our mission.

Now, the fact that this business is very easy to start makes the level of competition in this industry very high. This simply implies that make it to the top will not be as easy as it is in some other industry.

As a result of this, we have put some structures in place to make our mission a reality. Some of the things that we have put in place are a large parking space for over 30 cars, discount price for our regular customers, and great customer service.

The retail store business is not in any way new. The truth remains that the retail store industry is perhaps one of the oldest industries. The fact that the retail store industry is quite old means it is not a mystery to anyone interested in setting it up. As a result of this, there is a high level of competition in this business that only seems to be getting more intense as the years go by.

Sales and Market Strategy

It is only normal for a new business to have a little drawback while trying to make it to the top. We have carried out a detailed study and have come up with some strategies to help us make it to the top in this business very easily. Our sales and marketing strategies are;

• We will have a website for our retail store. This will help create awareness about the existence of our retail store business.
• We will also sell at cheaper prices than our competition.

The market for retail store businesses is inexhaustible. To make the best out of this business, we have selected a few people to make our products available to them. Those in our target market include

• Expectant Mothers
• Business executives

This business will be started at $20,000. This amount will be used to get the right facility as well as the goods that are required to start this business. We have been able to raise 60% of this amount from friends, family, and our savings. The remaining amount will be sourced from the bank.

With one of the biggest parking spaces owned by any retail store business in our possession, we are certain to attract more customers than our competition.

This is a retail store business plan for T and T retail stores. This business will be located in Dallas, Texas.

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Retail Business Plan

A retail business plan is a document that gives you and your potential investors a roadmap on how your new retail business intends to get started and deliver its business goals over its initial few years (usually 5 years).

It is usually broken down into sections about the company, the industry it operates in, the competition it will face and a plan that covers marketing, financials and operations over the first few years in business.

Also check out this one-page Business Model Canvas for a retail business .

Retail Business Plan Template

You can download this free retail business plan template from the link below. You will be able to edit the word file and export it into PDF format afterwards.

In the coming sections, we will explain the different components that go into the retail business plan, which you can then apply to your own plan when completing the template.

Check out more free downloads .

Executive Summary

We recommend writing the executive summary at the end of the process, after you have filled out all the other sections in the retail business plan template.

In the executive summary you will cover the following points briefly:

• Types of products sold at the store
• Customers served by the store
• Company mission & vision
• Market share to be captured

You will also mention the total amount you will need to start this business, backed by the financial plan you prepared as part of this business plan.

The total amount that you want to borrow or have invested in your business will be the sum of pre-opening costs (initial inventory, equipment, rent,..) and the maximum negative cash flow as per your cash flow plan.

If you are writing this retail business plan for a financial institution to get a loan, mention how you expect to repay the loan, and you should have already included the loan installments in your financial plan.

If you are writing this plan for investors, mention how much equity they will receive in return for this investment and the expected return on investment, and expected cash distributions (dividends) based on your financial plan.

For example

An investment of 100,000$ in the business will result in the investor receiving 20% equity. We plan to distribute 50% of the profits every year, and based on our financial projections this will be a xx,xxx$ in the first year, xx,xxx$ in the second year, and xx,xxx$ in the third year,..etc.

Company Overview

Here you will write about your business and give a brief overview about the type of store you will be starting.

You can cover the following points:

• Store category (e.g. beauty store, toy store)
• Store location and brief description of the area
• Product categories carried
• Company legal structure

Industry Overview

Write an overview about the industry (retail/ecommerce) as a whole and the most recent trends specific to this industry.

Cover areas such as:

• Total retail sales
• Contribution of your retail category to the total sales (size of the market)
• Online vs. Brick & Mortar trends
• Recent industry trends and shifts in terms of products you are selling

You can find the most recent insights about retail in our Retail Statistics page.

Read Also: What is Retail ?

Target Market

Write about your target customers that you know will be interested in your products. Mention demographic and psychographic details in this section. This will help afterwards in drafting your marketing plan.

You can cover the following details:

• Age bracket
• Income level
• Educational level
• The specific needs that your products will fill for them

FOUNDATIONS OF MARKETING

• Learn the fundamentals of marketing
• See how they apply to buying, merchandising & pricing
• Real-life case studies and examples

Competition

List the current competition in the market that are serving your target customers. Mention your top 3 competitors in your area.

You can also include indirect competition, such as online stores or marketplace sellers, if you think this might affect your business.

Cover information about:

• No. of stores
• Size of stores
• Product categories they sell
• Pricing level
• Sales per day estimates
• Strengths & Weaknesses

You can also create a summary table like the one below

Competitive Advantage

What will make customers leave the competition and come to you? Use the weaknesses areas that you mentioned about the competition in the previous section, and mention how you will improve on them.

This could be by:

• Superior quality
• Better prices
• Convenience
• More variety
• Better shopping experience

Marketing Plan

Describe your marketing strategy for your store and which channels you are going to use.

Cover the following areas:

• Brand Positioning
• Branding Strategy (Persona, tone, language,..)
• Product Strategy (Key products and product features that will attract your customers)
• Pricing Strategy
• Promotional Strategy
• Marketing Channels

Operations Plan

Write how you will operate your store and include details about your manpower plan.

This will include the management that you will hire for the store, visual merchandisers, sales staff and cashiers.

Cover the following:

• Management structure (store manager, supervisor,..)
• Staff plan (3 sales associates, 2 cashiers, etc.)
• Brief role descriptions
• Compensation structure

Read Also: Retail Scheduling

RETAIL OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT

• Managing Store Operations
• Areas of Responsibility
• Assessing & Managing Performance

Financial plan

List estimates for the capital you will need to start and financial projections for the following years.

Capital Needed

Start with how much capital you will need to start the business

This will include:

• Initial rent
• Initial product order (Inventory)
• Initial staff salary
• Store fixtures
• Store equipment

Read Also: How Much Capital You Will Need For a New Retail Store?

Financial Projections

Include a 5-year financial projection for the business based on your forecasted sales and costs.

• Monthly income statement (P&L) for the first year
• Yearly income statement for the following 4 years
• Monthly cash flow projection for the first year

Learn how to create a sales budget for a new store, and 3 years financial projections in our Retail Budgeting Course

RETAIL BUDGETING & PLANNING

• The step by step retail budgeting process
• Set monthly targets adjusted to seasonality
• Templates download & practice exercise

Break Even Point

Include a snapshot of the 5-year P&L plan here and mention the SPD (sales per day) you need to breakeven, based on your P&L numbers.

We have created a sample table with retail data in the business plan template, and you can fill it with your own numbers.

Key Assumptions

Mention the assumptions you used for creating your financial projections.

For example , you assumed that sales per day for the first year will be 1000$ and then will grow by 20% in the second year, 15% in the third year and 10% in the fourth year, etc.

Retail Business Plan Tips

Sales projections.

We recommend being very realistic about your initial sales per day projections, as your entire financial plan will be directly affected by it.

When you then forecast your growth for the coming years, you should also be realistic about how much you will grow year-on-year.

From our experience, retail stores typically see higher growth after the first year and then this starts to level off from the third year onwards.

Having said that, there might be other growth drivers that can affect your business and accelerate your growth in the following years. This could be for example that your new store is in an area that is still under development and will be fully developed by the third year.

What we want to say is, do your due diligence thoroughly and based on that set realistic expectations.

Inventory Projections

The biggest asset you will hold and the biggest part of the investment/loan you will need to start your retail business will go for inventory.

So it is important to calculate your inventory needs correctly.

This will be based on your sales forecasts and the inventory turnover rate you expect or the forward stock cover you intend to maintain.

For example, if your inventory turnover target is 2, this means you maintain a 6 months cover. If your inventory turnover is 3, you maintain 4 months stock cover,..and so on.

We recommend checking out the benchmarks we have listed for different retail categories for inventory turnover and reading our complete Open to Buy guide to get started with calculating exactly how much inventory you will need.

Good luck in your new venture!

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More resources.

Thank you for reading this article on Retail Business Plan. We recommend the below free resources as well:

• Retail Management
• Starting a Retail Business
• Buying a Retail Business

Join the academy and get all access to all our resources, which will help you manage your retail business more efficiently.

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CONNECT THE DOTS

Learn how to manage a retail business end-to-end.

We’ve put together a curriculum, specifically designed for retail owners or retail professionals who want to advance into senior management roles.

Learn how to connect the dots of the business and take the basic knowledge to the next level of application . 

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Online Store Business Plans

Published Aug.22, 2013

Updated Apr.23, 2024

By: Noor Muhammad

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Table of Content

Do you want to start Online Company business plan?

If you are thinking of having an online store business, now is a great time to have one since the increased use of the internet during the pandemic has boosted online sales. Starting an online store business doesn’t require you to have a huge initial investment or a proper office to start from. You can start it at any scale and can expand or narrow down your offerings whenever you want. The most amazing thing about this business is that you can start an online store in whatever niche you like. Be it a grocery, clothing, or tech gadgets.

Although setting up this venture is relatively easier, it is still essential to follow the proper procedure of starting a business. First, you will have to make a business plan for online store. To learn how to write a business plan for online store, you can take help from this sample. Here we’ve provided a detailed online retail store business plan developed for ‘Technojar’.

Executive Summary

2.1 the business.

Technojar will be an online tech store owned by Simon Stalin. The business will provide technical products and gadgets to various consumer groups across Queens and Brooklyn. A wide range of products will be offered from smartphones and tablets to laptops and PCs. Hence, Simon will be using a diverse business plan online retail store for Technojar.

2.2 Management of Online Company

To ensure that all aspects of the business are coherent, you must prepare unique retail business plans for the services that you offer. In your online retailer business plan you should evaluate the technical, financial, and human resources you have at your disposal. And then construct a way to utilize and manage these resources in the best way possible.

Here, you will find guidance on how to make a business plan for an online store. We are providing a business plan for online store pdf acquired by Technojar to help you in devising an online retailer business plan for your startup.

2.3 Customers of Online Company

Our customers will work in different sectors and belong to different social groups since technology is used by everyone these days and hence, everyone requires technological assistance. From IT specialists to healthcare workers, Technojar carters to everybody using different kinds of software. However, our potential and recurring customers are identified as follows:

• Individual Consumers
• Banks & Schools
• Commercial Businesses
• Institutions & Organizations

This business plan sample online store devised for Technojar helps address the demands for all of the above consumer groups.

2.4 Business Target

Our target is to become the most trustworthy and reliable choice for our target customers whenever they need assistance with any technological problem, that too with the ease of reaching us online.

You must have a comprehensive business plan for investors to make your business financially sustainable. Our financial targets to meet for the first three years of our launch are demonstrated below:

Company Summary

3.1 company owner.

Simon Stalin will be the owner of Technojar. Simon has completed his Bachelor’s in Software Engineering from Arizona State University a few years back. After his stellar academic career, he worked as a software engineer at Microsoft for two years. However, he left his job to pursue his dream of running his own business. This online store business plan pdf will help you set up a business in case you have a vision like that of Simons’.

3.2 Why the Online Company is being started

Simon noticed that the there are simpy not many online tech stores in the US. In addition to that, the process of buying tech gadgets is unnecessarily complicated in some of the existing online stores. Simon realized that he could bring innovation in existing modes through his intellect and management knowledge. Therefore, he decided to start his own online tech store to fully implement the ideas he possessed.

3.3 How the Online Company will be started

Step1: Plan Everything

The first step before starting an online business is to come up with a business plan online store. To help you in creating a business plan we’re providing an online store business plan template. Simon decided to offer software solutions for various sectors and applications. Hence, you can have an idea of how a SaaS business plan package for various applications.

Step2: Define the Brand

The next step is to get recognized by defining your business’ services and values. During this time, you will have to develop and brand your policies so that your customers can identify your unique selling point and choose you over your competitors. For that, you will have to have a unique online store business plan sample.

Step3: Establish Your Corporate Office

Simon decided to rent an office in Brooklyn. Computers, a stable internet connection, and a team of web developers and engineers are what that’s needed at the office.

Step4: Establish a Web Presence

Provided that it is an online business store, Simon made sure that his start-up has a website with an interesting interface that is user friendly. He decided to promote his business through different social media platforms.

Step5: Promote and Market

The last step is to develop and execute a marketing plan to promote your services. Efficient marketing and promotion can help you position your business in the marketplace in a successful manner. This business plan template for online store will guide you on how to market your business efficiently.

Before starting any business, you must decide what services you want to provide your customers. The same goes for your online store. The business plan of online store for tech gadgets will be different than a business plan for a video game company because both require different expertise.

Since Simon decided to offer a wide range of services, the business plan developed for his business can be adopted for various online store business plan. You can take help from this business plan online store pdf for your online store business.

Technojar’s primary products will be technological gadgets, including laptops, PCs, tablets, and smartphones. Besides that, the startup will allow its customers to buy any kind of smart device including fit bits and smart home components as well.

• Embedded Devices

Embedded computers and devices are used by various institutions including hospitals. The unique software, used in these computers, helps doctors with getting clearer images, with the option of getting them in 3D. The following are the features of the computers:

• An audio interface
• Clear, coloured imaging
• Computer Parts

Today, computers are used by all institutions and businesses to host the databases of customer accounts and extensive data. Due to excessive comuter usage, computer parts are always in demand. That’s why we’ll be offering them on our online tech store.

• Gaming Equipment

Technojar will also sell all kinds of gaming equipment as well as all their components. As these are popular among children and enthusiastic adults alike, it is expected to regularly be in demand.

Technojar will offer free return services to its customer if any of its products are faulty in any way.

Marketing Analysis of Online Store Business

You must have an in-depth knowledge of your target market before starting a business. The ideal way of knowing your customers and competitors is to do the market analysis in your business plans for online store. The market analysis should also study the previous, existing, and forecasted market trends.

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excellent work, competent advice. Alex is very friendly, great communication. 100% I recommend CGS capital. Thank you so much for your hard work!

If you don’t know the components of detailed marketing analysis, you can take help from this online store business plan sample pdf free of cost.

5.1 Market Trends

According to Statista, retail e-commerce sales produce about $4.28 trillion yearly. In general, the demand for online store businesses, especially for those about technological devices, has been growing exponentially. The ongoing pandemic has shifted most of the business activities to operate virtually, and hence e-commerce store market has the potential to grow further.

5.2 Marketing Segmentation

As per this business plan for online store pdf, Technojar will have the following groups of potential customers:

Business plan for investors

5.2.1 individual consumers.

Our biggest customer group will be the individual consumers including kids, teens, and adults, who will be buying smaprthones, latpops, PCs, tablets, and gaming equipment from our online store. They’d form the major chunk of our sales.

5.2.2 Banks & Schools

Our second target customer will be banks and schools who require a variety of technical gadgets and systems for day-to-day functioning.

5.2.3 Commercial Businesses

This will be our third target group of customers. Whether they are a developing business or an established one, we will help provide them with the technology they need to make their products and services available to all of their customers easily.

5.2.4 Institutions & Organizations

All kinds of institutions and organizations, including hospitals and research labs, require technology to build their technical and data infrastructure. As technology is changing every day, we expect them to be our regular customer.

If you have a business model similar to that of Technojar, this online store business plan template pdf will help you identify your potential customers.

5.3 Business Target

• To become the number one technology solution provider in Brooklyn and Queens
• To expand our services in the Bronx
• To earn a net profit margin of 10% in the upcoming fiscal year
• To achieve and maintain a CSAT score above 90%

5.4 Product Pricing

Our prices are similar to what our competitors offer. However, as per our sample online store business plan discounts are offered to new customers to establish customer loyalty.

Marketing Strategy

To become prominent amidst a huge competition, you need to come up with a distinguished unique selling point. Moreover, you also need to develop a strong marketing strategy so that more and more people recognize you.

In this online store business plan sample pdf we’re providing the sales strategy of Technojar. You can learn a lot from this free online store business plan. This sample business plan for online store adopted by Technojor will adopt the following strategies:

6.1 Competitive Analysis

• We have excellent customer care service. We’ll record customers’ feedbacks to provide them improved services every time they make an order from us.
• We will have return policies that are less complicated and efficient.
• Discounts will be offered to new customers, which will help acquire a greater market share.

6.2 Sales Strategy

• We will advertise our services through Google Local ads service and social media.
• We’ll offer a 30% discount on new businesses to promote the use of technology in startups.
• Introductory packages and incentives will be provided to small-scale IT businesses.

6.3 Sales Monthly

6.4 Sales Yearly

6.5 Sales Forecast

Personnel plan

The online store business depends heavily on efficiency, technological expertise, and time management. Simon knew the importance of hiring collaborative and skilled employees. Therefore, he created a list of required employees along with selection criteria as he wrote the online store startup business plan.

7.1 Company Staff

As per this sample business plan online store, Technojar will employ for the positions:

• 1 General Manager
• 1 Customer service manager
• 5 Customer Support Individuals
• 2 Supply Chain Executives
• 1 Accountant
• 1 Digital Marketer
• 2 Web Developers

7.2 Average Salary of Employees

Financial Plan

A sole focus on increasing sales does not ensure that your business has become successful and is yielding profits. To earn profits, it is essential to manage your operations timely and efficiently. To make sure that your business is not going into a loss, you must carry out a detailed financial analysis while you design your online store business plan doc.

In your financial plan, you must identify when and how you’ll be able to cover your investment amount with the earned profits. Moreover, you should also analyze your yearly expenses to find out the possibilities of reaching an economy of scale.

Here we’re providing an online store business plan example designed for Technojar. It is quite elaborate, hence will suffice for in-depth guidance.

8.1 Important Assumptions

8.2 Break-even Analysis

8.3 Projected Profit and Loss

8.3.1 Profit Monthly

8.3.2 Profit Yearly

8.3.3 Gross Margin Monthly

8.3.4 Gross Margin Yearly

8.4 Projected Cash Flow

8.5 Projected Balance Sheet

8.6 Business Ratios

• How do I write an online business plan?

You can learn how to write a business plan for online store by following this template. It has all the necessary details you need to draft your sample.

• How do you plan an online store?

The first step to planning any business is to read a business plan example for online store to use as a reference.

• How do I write a business plan for e-commerce?

You can write a business plan for e-commerce by looking at a free business plan for online store for guidance.

• How do you write a successful business plan for an online startup?

Writing a successful business plan can be hard when you are just starting but you can find business plan online store sample which you can then follow to develop a strong business plan for your company.

Download Online Store Business Plan Sample in pdf

OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.

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FREE 3+ Retail & Online Store Business Plan Samples in PDF

 3+ Retail & Online Store Business Plan Samples

An online store is a website where customers may make purchases . It might be a tiny local shop, a large retailer, an e-commerce business, or an individual selling projects on a third-party site. Business-to-consumer, business-to-business, and consumer-to-consumer are all possible business models for an online store. Businesses may offer items or services to individuals all over the world through these online storefronts, which use delivery services to get things to clients. Like traditional businesses, you still need a solid business plan to ensure its continuity and success. Need some help with this? We’ve got you covered! In this article, we provide you with free and ready-made templates of Retail & Online Store Business Plans in PDF and DOC format that you could use for your benefit. Keep on reading to find out more!

Retail Online Store Business Plan

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Your business strategy is essential to your success for several reasons. First and foremost, your business strategy gives a solid foundation upon which to build without losing momentum while you figure out what to do next. Second, while presenting your firm to potential investors , you must have a well-written business plan. A Business Plan is used to identify, characterize, and analyze a firm opportunity or an existing business, as well as to assess its technological, economic, and financial feasibility. A strong business plan will walk you through every step of beginning and running your company. Your business plan will serve as a road map for how to establish, operate, and develop your new company.

Writing a business plan is still a smart idea since it may help you get a higher credit limit on your credit card or create a business account as your company expands. A Retail and Online Business Plan Template can help provide you with the framework you need to ensure that you have a well-prepared and robust plan on hand. To do so, you can choose one of our excellent templates listed above. If you want to write it yourself, follow these steps below to guide you:

This part of your business plan summarizes the goals and mission of your company. It’s essentially a synopsis of your company and the challenges you’ll be trying to solve for your customers. Talk about your reasons and business objectives. After you’ve described everything else, it’s best to write the Executive Summary last.

Describe your company from your own perspective and outline your plans for expansion. Describe how you plan to make money. Describe the kind of clients you’ll be targeting and how your products or services will benefit them especially.

Demonstrate that you’ve properly researched the market you’re targeting and that the product or service you’re delivering is in high demand. Include details on the size of your market, how many clients you anticipate, and how many will be repeat customers. Discuss your competitors and how your company will differentiate itself.

This is a crucial area for your personal planning as well as for attracting investment. Create a cash flow projection to show your expected monthly revenue and expenses, a break-even analysis to show how many sales you’ll need to encompass your initial costs and make more profit, a sample profit-and-loss statement using anticipated values, and a balance sheet to show your company’s current assets, liabilities, and equity. These are the types of financial data you’ll need to gather every year around tax time, when you’ll have actual figures rather than estimates to deal with.

There are basically four different sorts of business plans. Mini-plans, presentation decks, working plans, and what-if plans are all examples of very brief plans.

Yes, being an internet merchant is profitable! It’s the same as any other business or field in which you must take chances and learn on the job.

Credit cards are, by far, the most secure and safe payment option available while shopping online.

A strong business plan not only assists entrepreneurs in focusing on the exact procedures required to make their business ideas successful, but it also assists them in achieving short- and long-term goals. To help you get started, download our easily customizable and comprehensive samples of Retail and Online Business Plans today!

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• Sample Business Plans
• Retail, Consumers & E-commerce

Retail Store Business Plan

Retail store is a competitive business as competition is intense in this segment. Moreover, many big giants are investing more in e-commerce and digital marketing, making this business even tougher day by day.

Having a physical retail store that offers a shopping experience along with products is a dream for many. It is not only because of the size of a business but the potential and opportunities such a business offers.

And if you are an individual who likes to interact with people, constantly improve your way of doing business, and form communities that work towards something, then you might have thought of having your retail store business.

Now, a retail store has great potential for success, but it is also a very competitive business. You’ll need a retail store business plan to help you stand apart from your competition and have a thriving business.

Industry Overview

Research suggests total retail sales in the United States were projected to amount to 6.03 trillion U.S. dollars in 2022, up from around 5.4 trillion U.S. dollars in 2018, according to the National Retail Federation .

Retail businesses come in many forms such as grocery stores, restaurants, and bookstores. There are around 4 million retail businesses in the United States alone.

The domestic retail market in the United States is very competitive, with many companies recording strong retail sales. Walmart, a retail chain giving low prices and a wide selection of products, is the front-runner in the United States. Amazon, The Kroger Co., Costco, and Target are a selection of other notable U.S. retailers.

Now, to have any genuine hope of getting noticed in such a jammed industry, you need a solid business plan to get success.

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Things to Consider Before Writing Your Retail Store Business Plan

Build a brand image.

A brand image goes a long way for any business, especially for a retail store. It is crucial to pay attention to what people think about your store, what emotions they associate your brand with, and how they perceive your products in general. Above all, what qualities make you different from your competitors?

Pick the right location

A retail store’s location can make or break the deal. Hence, it is very important to pick a location that is both convenient and accessible for your customers. As people are always running short of time, they prefer a store that is on the way and takes less time to get to. It can also act as your USP over the bigger retail stores.

Plan a good store design

A good store design that follows the major principles of consumer psychology is essential for a retail store. The strategic placement of products influences a customer’s buying decisions. Hence, you need to pay attention to it and design your store in a way that maximizes your sales.

Build communities that promote your brand

Building communities that stand by and promote the idea of your brand can be extremely beneficial for your retail store. Hence, ensure that you work towards building one. These communities can be driven by anything from a common belief to a certain cause that your brand stands for.

How Business Plan Can Help?

Regardless if you’ve been operating for a long time already, by writing up a business plan for your retail store, you can get an overview of what you want to achieve with your business, and guidelines for how you’ll achieve your goals.

A retail business plan is a solid foundation for the success of your business, whether you seek funding or not. It helps you see clearly what your business looks like and how it’s positioned in your target market.

If you need to get funding, your retail business plan will work as proof that you and your business are good for investment. Studies suggest you can double your chances of securing a loan with a business plan and grow your business.

How to Write a Retail Store Business Plan?

Writing a retail store business plan requires a good amount of research, a thoroughly competitive and customer analysis, and a little bit of extra help.

You can get help for writing your plan either through a premade template on the internet or through an online business plan software which will help you write a customizable plan anywhere and at any time.

Before you start writing your business plan for your new Retail store business, spend as much time as you can reading through some examples of retail & e-commerce-related business plans .

We have created this sample business plan for you to get a good idea about how a perfect retail store business plan should look like and what details you will need to include in your stunning business plan.

Retail Store Business Plan Outline

This is the standard business plan outline which will cover all important sections that you should include in your business plan.

• Company Profile Summary
• Market Research Summary
• Marketing Summary
• Finance Summary
• Business Overview
• Company History
• Legal Structure Vision & Mission
• Industry Profile & Market Size
• Local Market
• Target Market
• Competitor Analysis
• Keys to Success
• Customer Survey Summary
• SWOT Analysis
• Products and Services
• Pricing Strategy
• Marketing Strategy
• Primary Marketing Activities
• Positioning Statement
• The Sales Process
• Strategic Alliances
• Location(s)
• Legal Issues
• Insurance Issues
• Human Resources (Or Team)
• Process/Production
• Risk Assessment
• Startup Funding & Capital
• Start-Up Costs
• Sales Forecast
• Projected Profit & Loss

What to include in a Retail Store Business Plan?

A retail store business plan consists of several different aspects. The major ones are as follows:

1. Executive Summary

The executive summary gives an overview of what your business stands for the reader. It should be written in such a way that even an outsider could get an idea of what your business is all about.

This section mainly comprises your business summary, your vision and mission statement, and your financial summary.

2. Company Profile

The company summary or company profile section of your business plan would consist of everything about your company, ranging from its location to information about your team.

While the executive summary section consists of information about the functional aspects of your business, a company summary consists of information about the structural aspects of your business.

While writing a company summary, it is a good practice to take suggestions from your team, as this section represents you as a team of individuals more than representing you as a brick-and-mortar company.

3. Market Research

Conducting market research helps you understand what you are getting yourself into. It helps you understand your target market, your competitors, and the working of the industry in general.

You can conduct thorough market research by using tools like PESTEL analysis or SWOT analysis . These tools help you conduct research specific to your business and prevent you from wasting your time on vague data.

4. Marketing Plan

As a retail store, it is your primary job to let your customers know about your existence. And to retain them once they start coming to your store.

A good marketing plan would help you do just that.

Based on the information you have gathered about your target audience through market research you can design your marketing campaign and promotional offers that’ll appeal to your customer base.

5. Operations

As a retail store, a proper operations plan can prevent your business from turning into a chaotic mess. An operations plan consists of your business’s logistic and functional information. It helps an outsider see what a typical day at your business looks like.

It also consists of your long-term and short-term goals. As well as the milestones you’ll have to reach for achieving them.

As a retail store business, your operations plan would consist of your supply renewal cycles, your backup distributors, a plan for the working of your store, your daily sales targets, and your long-term expansion goals, etc.

6. Financial Plan

A financial plan ensures that your business sails smoothly through tough times and also generates maximum profits.

It would consist of your funding requirements, cash flow projections, and profit forecasts.

As a retail store financial plan would consist of the funding requirements for setting up your store, buying supplies, and hiring people. It would also consist of your projected profits and break-even analysis.

Download a sample retail store business plan

Need help writing your business plan from scratch? Here you go;  download our free retail store business plan pdf  to start.

It’s a modern business plan template specifically designed for your retail store business. Use the example business plan as a guide for writing your own.

The Quickest Way to turn a Business Idea into a Business Plan

Fill-in-the-blanks and automatic financials make it easy.

Retail Store Business Plan Summary

In conclusion, a retail store business plan helps you organize and manage your store better. It takes care of everything that goes behind the scenes of running a retail store, so you can greet your customers with a smile.

From angry customers to poorly stocked supplies, a business plan can save you from all of it.

After getting started with Upmetrics , you can copy this retail store business plan template into your business plan and modify the required information and download your retail store business plan pdf or doc file.

It’s the fastest and easiest way to start writing your business plan.

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About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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