We couldn’t leave you with just one set of tips for creating your bagel business plan, so we’ve made a part two. Below you’ll read seven more tips and tactics that will help you create a strong bagel business plan.
Be Aware of Your Competition
In any business, you’ll find yourself with a handful of competitors. It’s absolutely crucial to know a lot about them. Not only will you want to know who your competition is, but you’ll want to be able to look at them from an unbiased point of view to be able to see the differences between your bagel shop and theirs.
When it comes to owning a business, you’ll likely want to be the best of the best. This is another reason why it’s important to know who your competition is. They may be doing something unique with their business that you could benefit from doing yourself.
Before you open shop, feel free to visit your competing bagel stores to see their prices, what types of bagels they serve, what drinks and sides they may have and even what promotions they may have going on at the time.
After doing this you’ll be much better able to work on making your business stand out from the competition.
Make Honest Claims
When you’re making a bagel business plan, you’re making a lot of promises and aspirations public. Something you need to make sure you do is make sure you can complete these promises and aspirations.
If you have a recipe that you claim will blow everyone’s socks off and it’s mediocre, do you think that patron is likely to return to your bagel shop? Probably not. This applies to staff as well. If the public is under the impression that you have a wonderful staff, all of whom are capable of serving them to high standards, your staff better be on top of their game.
Think about investors when it comes to the claims you’re making. These people are giving you their money to invest because they believe in you and your business. They believe you’re going to do what you set out to do, and possibly even promised. Make sure you’re able to hold up your end of the deal.
Make Conservative Financial Projections
The main reason many people get into business is to make money. Just like most other businesses, there is a cost to owning a bagel franchise. When you’re thinking about how to start a bagel business, you need to be realistic with your financial estimates and projections.
Unfortunately, money doesn’t grow on trees and it’s often the main reason that new businesses don’t succeed past the first year. This is another area where you want to have evidence for any claims you’re making.
If you think you’ll be able to capture 60% of the market within your first you, you’ll need to be able to back it up. If you can’t do that, change your financial goals to be more conservative. Cut the number in half and see if that’s more possible and go from there, your investors and patrons will thank you.
Be Aware of the Available Resources
One thing that can suck your wallet dry when starting a business is not being aware of what resources you have available. This can happen when people are overly optimistic. They think that they can handle more work than they can, or are capable of more than they actually are.
This is why it’s important to be realistic with your resources. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is to always assume something is going to take about 15% longer than expected. So if you think you’ll meet a goal within 10 weeks, aim for closer to 12 weeks.
Make Sure You’re Organized
One of the best tips to having a successful business is to stay organized. Being organized can help improve nearly all aspects of your bagel shop. It will help with smaller tasks each day, like what needs to be done during opening and closing shifts, to larger tasks like doing your taxes.
You can stay organized by having a to-do list to complete each day, having files in their proper places, paying attention to numbers during inventory and keeping all staff information in one spot. It can be intimidating at first, but your future self will thank you.
Have a Top Notch Management Team
Something else that can make your business soar or sink is the leadership. When you’re hiring future management, you want to make sure they have experience, are good with people and can handle stressful situations.
If you want, you can have someone interview with multiple people so you get a better idea if the candidate is qualified for the position. On the topic of staff, be careful hiring friends or family. It can be fun to work with people we love, but mixing business with personal life often turns sour.
Pay Close Attention to Investors
Lastly, pay attention to your investors. While some investors just want to stay behind the scenes and watch the money roll in, others want a hands-on experience. They may want a spot on your board of directors, or may even want to volunteer at the shop once in awhile to see where their money is invested.
No matter if the investor wants to be heavily involved or not, all of them will want to know the rate of return for their money and when they’ll be able to get it back. It’s typical that investors want their money back within five years. Are your financial goals realistic enough to meet these expectations?
Don’t be nervous to be open and honest with investors, they want to help you, and you likely need their support. A lot of investors are willing to give you advice and help you navigate the beginning stages of starting your business. This may not always be for free, it often comes at a cost, but can be worth it to many entrepreneurs.
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