Business plan template

The ten sections

1. Executive summary: One page covering the whole plan. Write it last; it gets read first.
2. Problem and solution: The customer's problem and how you solve it.
3. Market: Who you'll sell to, how many people or businesses have this problem, and where that number comes from.
4. Competition: How customers solve this today and why they'd switch.
5. Product or service: What you sell and how you make or deliver it.
6. Marketing and sales: How you'll reach customers and where the first ones come from.
7. Operations: Location, suppliers, equipment, processes.
8. Team: Who does what and what experience they bring.
9. Financial plan: Start-up costs, monthly costs, revenue forecast, break-even point.
10. Risks: What could go wrong and what you'd do then.

Simple monthly financial table

Show how you got each revenue figure, for example "40 customers a day × average order". Readers judge the logic more than the number.

Common mistakes

• Market sizes with no source.
• "We have no competitors." There's always an alternative, even if it's the customer's current habit.
• Only a best-case forecast. Add a cautious one.
• A plan nobody updates. Review it every quarter against what actually happened.