Agriculture Farm Business Plan

Botanical Bounty

Executive Summary

Opportunity

Problem

The health and vitamin industry is growing at a very quick pace. Customers want to have natural and plant alternatives to medication. They are starting to believe the body is a temple. They don’t want to pollute with chemicals. The industry needs botanical plants that are ready to process as well as give to nurseries for the “do it yourselfers”.

Solution

Botanical Bounty is working hard to become a leading producer of botanical plants for the natural supplement industry as well as plant nurseries.

Market

Botanical Bounty has three distinct customers: supplement companies, processors of botanicals for supplement companies, and nurseries that resell the plants.

The first two customers purchase the plants for use in their products which they ultimately sell to the end consumer.

The market for natural supplements is quite exciting. Surveys show that over 158 million consumers (over 55% of U.S. population) use dietary supplements. An estimated 115.3 million consumers buy vitamins and minerals for themselves, and 55.8 million purchase them for other members of their family, including children. Consumer surveys consistently find that nearly half of all Americans now use herbs – a statistic that is particularly remarkable when we realize that today’s herbal products industry is just over a quarter century old.`

Competition

Competition takes two forms, farms similar in size and production capacity to Botanical Bounty and megafarms. The similarly sized farms range in size from 5-30 acres. The number of different herbs grown varies from a handful to upwards of 50. The choice of plants grown is based on owner preference as well as location and the ability of the local growing conditions to support the different plants.

Why Us?

It is Botanical Bounty’s mission to become the leading provider of botanical perennials to the health/vitamin industry. This will be accomplished by providing quality plants at fair prices while exceeding customer’s expectations.

Expectations

Forecast

To finance our growth and full-time production, we need to purchase $35,000 worth of new equipment as long-term assets taking that total up to $53,800. To that end, we are seeking a $100,000 10-year loan. Sales forecasts conservatively indicate that $190,000 revenue will be generated in year two, rising to over 400,000 by year 4.

Financial Highlights by Year

Financing Needed

We need to have a $100,000 10 year loan. We will use our $35,000 of cash from our current operations.

Opportunity

Problem & Solution

Problem Worth Solving

There is a growing trend towards plant cures to common diseases or health issues.Consumers care about getting a natural supplement to make them feel better and take care of their body. Because of this the natural market has grown exponentially in the last few years. The market needs high quality botanicals to keep up  with demand. 

Our Solution

Botanical Bounty has identified three keys that will be instrumental in their success. The first is the implementation of strict financial controls. By having the proper controls, production efficiency will be maximized. The second key will be the never ending pursuit for the industry’s highest concentration levels of botanical ingredients in each plant. The third key is the recognition and implementation of the philosophy that 100% customer satisfaction is required to ensure a profitable business. Profits are a by product of satisfying customers, not the other way around.

Target Market

Market Size & Segments

Botanical Bounty has identified three different target market segments: 

Supplement Companies
This customer group manufactures botanical supplements for their own label products. The companies purchase the plants and extract the active ingredients and transform them into sellable products for their own brand. There are a handful of large companies that operate in this market space. Ten years ago there were many different ones but through consolidation the industry has grown in size but decreased in the number of different players.

Processors
These customers purchase the the plants, extract the botanicals and either sell the concentrated botanicals to the end producers or they themselves produce the supplement and sell the final product to other companies for their private label products. In essence they are the subcontractor for the supplement companies. These companies therefore are one layer within the manufacturing system and do not sell to the end consumer. They act as a supplier/processor for the retail brands.

Other Nurseries/Garden Centers
This customer group purchases the plants which they in turn sell at retail to the individual end consumer. The typical consumer is a health conscious individual who is interested in either extracting the botanical from the plant immediately or growing the plant in their own garden for future use.

Competition

Current Alternatives

As mentioned previously, competition takes two forms, farms similar in size and production capacity to Botanical Bounty and megafarms. The similarly sized farms range in size from 5-30 acres. The number of different herbs grown varies from a handful to upwards of 50. The choice of plants grown is based on owner preference as well as location and the ability of the local growing conditions to support the different plants.

On the other end of spectrum is the megafarm. These farms have a similar range of species cultivated, however they differ greatly in production capacity. These farms are huge, typically not less than 100 acres, peaking at 300 acres. These growers however are few number.

The buying patterns of the different customers are typically based on these variables:

• Price
• Availability
• Ability to deliver consistently on long-term contracts
• Significant % of active ingredients
• Consistency

Our Advantages

Botanical Bounty has a dual competitive edge:

Healthy Plants
The healthier the plant, the faster it will grow, the more botanicals that can be extracted from it. This means an increase in production efficiency due to a larger percentage of plants that are sellable. Other characteristics of healthy plants which are important on the production side is: lower pest counts, more established root structures, and high biomass.

High Concentration of Active Botanicals
This is beneficial to the purchaser because they are buying the plants precisely for the active botanicals. High concentration levels are valuable to Botanical Bounty because they increase the amount of botanicals produced per plant or per acre, increasing the production capacity of a given amount of land, thereby increasing their return on investment and increasing the attractiveness of Botanical Bounty’s plants relative to the competition.

Keys to Success

Keys to Success

Our keys to success are: 

1. Strict financial controls.
2. The never ending pursuit of the highest concentration of botanicals in every plant.
3. Ensuring that all customer’s needs are met and they are satisfied with the purchased products.

Execution

Marketing & Sales

Marketing Plan

The marketing strategy will be based on generating awareness and visibility of Botanical Bounty and their ability to produce the highest percentages of botanicals. The strategy will rely on several different forms of communication. The main form is participation in the numerous trade shows for the industry. The trade shows are where everyone from the industry gathers to meet and transact business. It is a wonderful place to network as well as learn about new developments in the industry. The second form of communication will be the use of advertisements. The main venues for advertisements will be industry trade magazines. The trade magazines are a well read source of information that buyers and sellers refer to for many different transactions.The final form of communication is Social Media. We will be placing expert articles on the website. We will be linking with potential business customers in Linkedin. Our customers will tell us about their favorite natural remedies in Twitter and show pictures on Facebook and Instagram. 

Sales Plan

Botanical Bounty’s sales strategy efforts will focus on identifying qualified leads and turning them into paying customers. The main sales effort that Botanical Bounty will undertake is the reinforcement of the fact that Botanical Bounty’s plants have the industry’s highest percentage of botanicals. This will be quite appealing to the buyers as this is exactly what they want, more botanicals per plant. In addition to selling the buyers on Botanical Bounty’s competitive edge of potent plants, there will be an emphasis on Botanical Bounty’s ability to perform on long-term contracts.

Botanical Bounty recognizes that the transactions should not be thought of as individual sales, but as long-term relationships. This is a reasonable assumption based on the fact that the customers are in the business of utilizing botanicals, that they will continually have the need for the botanicals, and that it is far less expensive to establish a relationship with one vendor than to continually have to find new vendors that can meet their needs.

Operations

Locations & Facilities

Botanical Bounty is a 10 acre farm that concentrates on the growing of botanical medicinals. Botanical Bounty has chosen five plant species that have significant market demand as well being well suited for growth in the Willamette River Valley. Botanical Bounty will feature: Echinacea – an immune system booster; Ginseng – a source of energy; St John’s Wort – for mild depression; Skullcap- for inflammation; and Ginger – a stomach soother.

Milestones & Metrics

Milestones Table

Key Metrics

Our key metrics are: 

1. Sales, cost of sales, expenses, profits, and cash.
2. Production cost of goods. We need to keep them low.
3. Keep current on our competitors botanical concentration and prices.
4. Measure the number of emails and phone calls.
5. Measure the Facebook Page views and Twitter re-tweets. 
6. Measure website searches and inquiries. 

 

Company

Overview

Ownership & Structure

Botanical Bounty is an Oregon L.L.C. owned by David and Susan Nealon. The L.L.C. business formation has been chosen as a strategic way to shield the Nealons from personal liability.

Company History

Botanical Bounty has been in operation for two years. Initially it was started as a hobby where Susan could use her plant biology skills while covering some of the costs. The Nealon’s were able to achieve this lifestyle due to a windfall that David received as a result of exercised stock options. After the second year, the Nealon’s decided that although they had the money to live on for many years, it would be irresponsible to needlessly spend it so they got serious about the business and made a concerted effort to become profitable.

Botanical Bounty has chosen the Willamette River Valley as an ideal place to grow perennials. Botanical Bounty has 10 acres of land which they use for production. During several of the winter months, production is moved into their green house for propagation. Botanical Bounty employs a drip irrigation system for all of the plants.

Team

Management Team

Botanical Bounty will be lead by the husband and wife team of David and Sue Nealon. David brings a wealth of business and project management skills to the company. While working at Yahoo!, David was responsible for the successful launch and market lead capture of Yahoo!s driving directions section. Utilizing these skills, David will be responsible for the business operations of the farm. Sue, with a background of plant biology will be the driving force of the operation, growing the highest active ingredient content plants in the country. Additionally, because of her wealth of knowledge, she will be the leader of the sales department.

Personnel Table

Financial Plan

Forecast

Key Assumptions

Our key assumptions 

1. Our market and customer base are growing and with them the opportunities for sales. 
    
2. The area has wealthy households that can afford to spend money on non essential vitamins. 
    
3. Our customers appreciate our dedication to high quality products and price controls. 
    
4. We will be able to get the 100,000 dollar loan at 8 percent based on our past success and being able to put our property up as collateral. We are a safe investment. If unplanned expenses pop up we have people interested in investing.

Revenue by Month

Expenses by Month

Net Profit (or Loss) by Year

Financing

Use of Funds

We will be using the loan to purchase machines and to expand our farm and our personnel to grow the highest quality botanicals and process them so they can be turned into vitamins or other products that give the  customer a natural cure. 

Sources of Funds

We are leveraging our business to get an $100,000 10-year loan. We will also be using the cash on hand from our current business. 

Statements

Projected Profit & Loss

Projected Balance Sheet

Projected Cash Flow Statement