Financial sustainability, what are the different sources thebusiness will tap to generate income?
Option 3. Enterprise Business Plan
What Is A Business Plan?
A business plan communicates the risks and opportunities of a proposed business venture (Evans,
2011). It allows potential backers to assess:
• Market demand
• Competition
• Strategy
• Resources
• Financials and forecast
• Risk and sensitivity
Adopting Porter and Kramer’s 2006 concept of shared value, the FMP Business Plan option asks you to
develop an 8,000-10,000-word business plan for an innovative fashion start-up i.e. one that considers
and balances environmental, social and financial sustainability with financial reward.
Your new business venture can be product or service focused and the business plan will outline the
concept, context and rationale for how you will meet identified consumer needs and wants.
You should consider how your proposal addresses the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/?menu=1300. You should also refer to the Business Model
Canvas, Graduate Futures (Enterprise) Start-up and Social Canvas, and/or Sustainability Canvas, to
consider:
• What is the problem/opportunity?
• What is your solution and value proposition?
• What is your purpose, social impact & sustainability?
• Who are your competitors?
• Who is the target customer?
• What compliance, regulations & accreditations should you consider?
• What are your networks?
• How will you gain credibility?
• What are your requirements for funding, resourcing & managing?
• How will you generate income?
• How have you shown your idea is desirable, feasible and viable?
• Consider your resilience & risk.
As a formal academic document, your business plan should be written in the 3rd person, be x1.5-x2
spaced and follow the Harvard Referencing Convention.
The Business Plan Structure
SECTION KEY FEATURES / INDICATIVE CONTENT
TITLE PAGE
Not included in word count
Business name, your name, course, student ID, date, word count.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Not included in word count
Thanks to those who helped you in the process of your Business
Plan e.g. your supervisor.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Not included in word count
but a maximum of one A4
page
This is the opening section of your business plan, summarising
what your business is and what you will do. As the first section any
reader will see, this section will need to be clear, concise, be
as impactful as possible, and make the reader want to learn more.
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Your executive summary should include:
• What your idea is
• Why it is important
• A brief summary of the financials
Tip: write this last, expanding on your conclusions.
CONTENTS Contents pages (Table of Contents, List of Tables, List of
Figures)
CHAPTER 1
Business Concept, Vision
and Value
Approx. 1000 words
A description of the business concept including vision, value and
mission statement.
This section outlines:
• What is the fashion product/service you are proposing?
• What is your goal/purpose/mission?
• What is your social and/or sustainability impact?
• What is your USP?
• What are you going to do/sell and why?
• What values does your business hold?
• What are your specific objectives?
CHAPTER 2
Research Methodology
Approx. 1000 words
This section explains your methodological approach to research.
You should mention:
• Your research approach and strategy
• Research ethics
• The data collection and selection methods you used
• Details of how you conducted your research
• Your sampling strategy
• Any limitations you have identified and how you mitigated them
• Any additional tools or materials you used
• Evaluation for the methods used above
• Research terminology
This section should be fully referenced to demonstrate the key
texts and theories that have informed your methodological
approach.
The results of your research should support your decisions and be
included in the relevant business plan chapter.
CHAPTER 3
Definition of the Market
Approx. 2000 words
This section explains in the context your business will operate in. It
can include:
• The industry context
• The gap in the market
• A profile of the market segmentation in which your business
will operate.
• A summary of your market research
• Figures showing the size of the market and past growth rates
• Forecasts and/or current/predicted trends
• Your competitors (this could be illustrated using a perception
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positioning map)
• Your target consumer(s)
• The problem or opportunity your business solves.
• The unique selling point of the product or service you’re
offering.
• Your key suppliers
• The market share you anticipate gaining
• Opportunities, their likelihood and impact, and how you will
adapt to ensure opportunities are more viable.
This section must be discussed from the perspective of the target
customer group and be informed by secondary and primary
research undertaken to identify and understand the
problem/opportunity, who they are and why they want to buy your
product.
CHAPTER 4
Products and/or Services
Approx. 500 words
This section explains, in detail, what your business will do/sell.
It can include:
• The key activities the business will perform or offer
• Your selling prices (if applicable)
• A range plan, category plan, brand pyramid, etc (if applicable)
• Images, diagrams and/or mockups of the product or service
• The value being created (and for whom)
• Any trademarks, patents, design registration or memberships
you may need.
• How you have tested and developed the product/service
• The identification of any new areas that that your business may
move into as you scale.
CHAPTER 5
Operations and Logistics
Approx. 1000 words
This section outlines the details of how your business will operate
from day to day.
It can include:
• Your business location
• The systems and processes you will need
• How your goods or services will be supplied or
manufactured (your supply chain)
• How the work/tasks flow in your business
• The customer journey
• A service blueprint
• The business day to day key activities
• A summary of your production, suppliers, delivery, payment,
transport, premises, and staff processes.
CHAPTER 6
Management Plan
Approx. 1000 words
This section outlines the human resource that you have and will
need to get your business started.
It can include:
• A description of the legal structure of your business
• A brief biography of the key people in the organisation,
including their skills, and the role(s) they will fulfil
• Your involvement within the business
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• A description of anyone else you need to recruit, including the
skills/experience you want them to have, the role(s) they
will fulfil, why you need them, and how you will recruit
them (this might also include freelancers and/or work you will
outsource)
• How much you will pay all employees (including yourself)
• The organisational structure and/or hierachy
• How do you envision your organisation scaling (and a time
scale)?
CHAPTER 7
Marketing and Sales
Strategy
Approx. 1000 words
This section outlines why your customers will buy from you over
your competitors.
It can include:
• Your marketing and communication strategy
• Your sales strategy
• How you will obtain a competitive advantage
• Your channel(s) of distribution
• How you will contact your customers and develop relationships
• A communications schedule or calendar
• How would your marketing and sales strategies change/adapt
if you were to scale your business?
This section must include both the primary and secondary
research findings. Your strategic positioning should be justified
using strategic models and frameworks such as Porter’s generic
strategies, ANSOFF’s, VRIO, Porter’s Value Chain etc.
Where possible all models and frameworks should be shown
visually.
CHAPTER 8
Financial Plan
Approx. 1000 words
This section outlines your cost structure, selling prices and overall
financial stability and viability of your business. It should indicate
how your business will generate revenue showing revenue model,
gross operating margin and lifetime values for the first three years.
It must include a summary and analysis of the information in your
separate Excel submission:
• Three years of sales forecast statements
• Three years of cash flow projection statements – showing
sales, distribution channels and margin and indicating the
breakeven point and sensitivity analysis
• Three years of profit and loss statements
• Three years of balance sheets
• An estimate of your initial startup costs
• An explanation of how you will raise the money to startup
You might also want to consider:
• What are the key elements of the business costs? For
example, customer acquisition costs, staff costs, distribution
costs, web hosting costs, etc.
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• Financial sustainability, what are the different sources the
business will tap to generate income?
• How will you generate enough revenue to survive the first three
years?
• Including an explanation for any anomalies or unusual figures.
CHAPTER 9
Contingency Plan and
Risk
Approx. 500 words
This section identifies any possible risks using relevant risk
management theory and plan(s). You should state how these risks
will be mitigated once identified.
• You should include a visual representation of your risk strategy
• You may want to mention your exit strategy in this section.
CHAPTER 10
Conclusion and Future
Development
Approx. 1000 words
This section should summarise your business’ impact, and justify
why it is worth backing (i.e. investing in/starting).
It should include:
• A summary of the main findings and analysis presented in the
report
• Justification for the feasibility, desirability and viability of your
business idea
• A summary of your business objectives/KPIs
You may want to briefly reflect on your learning journey, and
include next steps for you/your business.
If your research has identified that your current business idea is
not desirable, feasible or viable at the present time then you should
outline a plan for continued testing and development.
References Harvard format. All text sources to be listed together. Images are
to be referenced separately.
Appendices You can use your appendices to include relevant information to
support your business plan. This might include further details of
information you have summarised in your main report.
You must include:
• A table of contents for your appendices
• Your ethics form signed by your supervisor
• Signed participant consent forms
• Your FMP digitisation consent form
• Primary research results and analysis. This should include
transcripts and coding.
You might want to include:
• Images of prototypes and details, results and analysis of your
prototype testing
• Full product details and images
• Pricing and profit calculations
• Detailed range plan
• GANTT chart(s)
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• Business model canvas
• Your SimVenture Validate portfolio
• Product/service lifecycle
• Detailed marketing mix
• Communication schedule
• Detailed competitor SWOT analysis
• Possible stakeholder/contact/relationship details
• Tables and quantitative data used to create any charts and
diagrams included in the main text
Each section in your Appendix should be labelled, for example:
Appendix A – Launch Plan GANTT Chart
Appendix B – Product Details
All appendices must be directly referenced within the main body of
your business plan e.g. (Appendix D).
Appendices must not contain large sections of copied and pasted
text from your secondary research.
There is no word limit for Appendices, but all information included
should be concise and relevant.
Desirability, Feasibility and Viability
You are expected to understand and use the terms desirability, feasibility and viability to analyse
and justify your business idea.
Desirability
A product/service your customer really wants/needs.
• Do other people want to buy/use your idea (customers/retailers)?
• Are they willing to spend money on your idea?
• Are you offering value to your customer?
• Is your business the solution to your customers’ problem(s)?
• Do you have primary and secondary research to support this?
Feasibility
A business idea you could actually do.
• Is your idea realistic?
• Do you have the necessary resources/support/team/environment/contacts etc. to make this
business happen?
• Have you considered how it will work in real life?
• Have you considered all potential risks and limitations?
• Will it work?
• Do you have primary and secondary research to support this?
Viability
A business that could financially sustain itself.
• Could your idea operate as a successful business?
• Is it financially sustainable?
• Do your figures make sense?
• Have you demonstrated how you will raise the funds to start?
• Have you balanced environmental, social and financial sustainability with financial reward?
• Do you have primary and secondary research to support this?
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analysis and on the transcripts in the appendix you should assign a label to them (e.g. Manager 1 from
company A). When citing extracts from the interview within the text you can refer to the appendix and
to a particular page/ page and line number. For example: In an interview with Informant X, Supply
Chain Manager at Company Z, it was reported that ‘Quote’ (Appendix 3:92).
A summary transcript in English should be included of any interviews conducted in a foreign
language.
Evidence of your coding approach and any content analysis of your interviews should be included in
the appendix.
Questionnaires and data analysis
A copy of your questionnaire should be included in the appendix of your project.
Evidence of your data analysis and any statistical tests (e.g. SPSS) should also be included in the
appendix.
Numbering figures and tables
A figure is anything in pictorial, diagrammatic or chart form. For example, a pie chart, bar chart, or
diagrammatic model is a figure. You should number figures consecutively within the text by chapter.
Thus, for the first figure in Chapter One it would be labelled Figure 1.1, the second figure in the same
chapter would be 1.2 and subsequent figures 1.3, 1.4 and so on. If it were the third figure in Chapter
Four then it would be labelled, Figure 4.3. You should always provide the reader with the title of your
figure/image and its source (e.g. author, year) or, if the figure is your own the source(s), of information
upon which it is based. It is suggested that you label figures with the figure number at the top left and
the source immediately below the figure also ranged left. The font size for the source can be reduced
to 9pt.
Tabular information may contain numerical data or words. Tables should be numbered in similar
fashion to the way in which figures have been explained. For example, Table 1 in Chapter 6 would be
labelled Table 6.1; once again the source(s) should be given immediately beneath the table aligned to
the left. Here, it is advisable to reduce the font size to 9pt.
SUBMISSION OF YOUR FINAL MAJOR PROJECT
You must hand-in the following items:
Option 3: Fashion Business Plan. A detailed fashion business plan 8 – 10,000 words plus supporting
visuals and finances submitted on a separate excel document, in the following format:
• An electronic copy of your project, A4 size, to be submitted via Moodle.
And
• You will prepare a digital A1 exhibition poster for the Graduate Showcase Exhibition.
The College/University may decide to include your work in a library display or exhibition of work, either
in its original electronic form, to allow future or prospective students access to examples of good
practice and to learn from the work that you have done. Please sign the digitisation consent form in
the Student Forms Document, include it in your Business Plan appendix.
