2. Product or service?

In the next segment of the business loan and business planning document, you should showcase the products and services that you will be providing to the general public. For instance:

 The Dry Cleaner will provide the outsourced cleaning of clothes to the general public and to other dry cleaners that solely operate in a drop store capacity. The business will generate substantial revenues from these services. In regards to maintaining a competitive advantage, the business will provide regular drop off and delivery of clothes that need to be dry cleaned on a regular basis to residents within the Company’s targeted market of San Francisco, California.

3. Market analysis

 The Current State of the Economy

 It is important to let your financial institution know that you are well apprised of the financial situation of the general economy when you are applying for a business loan. This is especially true in today’s environment where lending has become more difficult and will remain more difficult in the foreseeable future. Specifically, you should gear this section of the business plan analysis towards the industry that you are operating within. For example:

 The current economy has remained difficult over the past few years. However, people that are employed in offices will always require dry cleaning services. As such, the Dry Cleaner will be able to remain profitable and cash flow positive despite any deleterious changes in the economy. Additionally, the business generates substantial gross margins from its services and as such – the Dry Cleaner will be able to service its debt obligations in any economic environment.

 The Dry Cleaner Industry

 In addition to providing your business loan officer with an understanding of the general economy, it is important that you showcase that you have an equal understanding of the industry in which you are operating within. As such, you will need to provide you business loan institution of a brief overview of your industry and any potential changes that may affect the way that your company does business. An example of how an industry overview is as follows:

 Within the United States, there are approximately 13,000 businesses that operate one or more dry cleaning locations. Each year, these businesses generate more than billion of revenues while providing jobs to more than 50,000 people. In each of the last five years, aggregate payrolls have exceeded 0 million.

 

4. Strategy

Any bank or financing company is also going to want to know what you intend to do with the business over a set period of time. Many business owners will develop and expand a business with the intent to sell the company to a third party at a later time. When drafting this part of the business plan you should focus on what you intentions are in regards to potentially selling the business. This is often worded as:

 Mr. Doe would most likely sell the Dry Cleaner to a third party for a significant earnings multiple. Dry Cleaners usually sell for approximately one to three times earnings given the financial strength of the business. In this event, the business would be sold by a business broker and the business loan sought in this plan would be repaid according to the covenants of the business loan agreement.