Aquarium Services Business Plan

EcoAquatics is the hobbyist business of a high-school sophomore.  Its main goal is to offer its owner a way to pursue an interesting hobby and turn that into a small part-time business to provide her with the economic benefits that other students her age get from less interesting part-time jobs.

EcoAquatics will manage saltwater aquariums for its clients.  We will help every step of the way, from setting up the aquarium, to cleaning it, maintaining it, and feeding the fish.  Depending on the client, they can go step by step along with us, or simply enjoy the finished product.

Our service can be used for a range of needs, from those who have never had an aquarium before and need step by step help, to someone who is an expert but does not have time to do everything.  We will tell our clients the truth and not let them get something that will not thrive in their specific tank environment.

In the early stages of the business, the owner will focus on offering services to family and friends.  Later, the company will expand to offer services to small businesses in the Eugene, Oregon area.  Since this is a small hobbyist business, the start-up expenses are minimal.  Start-up will be funded through an interest-free loan from a family friend.  The loan will be repaid in year three.

As this business plan is written, EcoAquatics is properly registered with the state of Oregon and has been maintaining the aquarium of its first client for four months.

1.1 Mission

EcoAquatics is a hobbyist business intended to give its owner a way to develop environmentally-sound aquariums, sensitive to the potential ecological dangers of the aquarium hobby worldwide, on a small scale appropriate to a high school student’s infrastructure and reach.  It should be fun, rewarding, full of learning, good for the clients, and good for the owner.

1.2 Keys to Success

1. 1. Maintain the vision of a part-time hobbyist business, moving only slowly and appropriately up.

1. Always be up-to-date on the environmental impact of home and office aquariums.

1.3 Objectives

• • For the short term, the main objective is to extend my aquarium hobby by building and maintaining a few aquariums outside my home with selected close-in clients who will work with me in a friendly way.  I don’t want to pretend this a full-time business with completely normal business motivations.

• On the longer term, develop this into a business that can help me support myself through high school and college, generating a part-time income from a part-time endeavor that relates vocation to avocation.

EcoAquatics is starting very small, with the intention that it will be there later on, with a few key reference clients, when it is time to grow.

2.1 Start-up Summary

We have the advantage of a very simple start-up.  There is no equipment needed, no rent, not even a phone line.  Because we are purposely focusing on just a few clients who are friends and family, we don’t need sales literature.  The cost is the registration with the State of Oregon.

2.2 Company Ownership

EcoAquatics is registered in the State of Oregon, Lane County, as a fictitious business name.  The business is owned and operated entirely by Megan Berry, who turned 15 a couple months before it was founded. 

EcoAquatics will manage saltwater aquariums for its clients.  We will help every step of the way, from setting up the aquarium, to cleaning it, maintaining it, and feeding the fish.  Depending on the client, they can go step by step along with us, or simply enjoy the finished product. 

We will help clients make choices that will not harm the environment in any way.  We understand that sometimes this hobby can be damaging to the reefs we are trying to simulate.  One of our main goals is to help our clients understand this, and choose reef friendly inhabitants. 

The client must pay for equipment, supplies, and inhabitants, directly through the supplier, using their credit cards or accounts with local retailers.  We are not going to buy and resell, just direct purchases. 

We will focus on saltwater tanks only.  Freshwater tanks are easier and require less maintenance.  Saltwater takes advantage of what we know how to do.  Furthermore, saltwater tanks are more likely to have features, colors, and visuals that enhance an office appearance. 

We will customize the aquarium to match the client’s budget.  We will help our clients decide whether they want a fish-only or a reef tank, while we have an emphasis on reef aquariums, we can do both.  We will also make sure that all the inhabitants of the tank are compatible with each other, the size of  the aquarium, and the equipment in it.  We can offer advice on the best equipment and find the best deal.  We will discuss what type of equipment and inhabitants are needed, or wanted, and do our best to match both the client’s budget and their expectations of the finished product. 

We typically visit the client’s location four days a week during the start-up process, and once or twice a week afterwards.  We will clean any filters or other equipment, feed fish, watch fish’s health carefully, care for corals, trim any macroalgea in the tank, check water quality, and clean glass on a regular basis. 

During the start-up we will go out and get the equipment and creatures so the client need not do anything except set up the initial account with local retail, or supply the credit card for Internet orders.  Our service can be used for a range of needs, from those who have never done this before and need step by step help to someone who is an expert, but does not have time to do everything.  We will tell our clients the truth and not let them get something that will not thrive in their specific tank environment.

3.1 Market Analysis Summary

Although our immediate market is friends and family, the potential long-term market is businesses in Eugene.  We’re looking eventually at two kinds of offices:

• Chamber of Commerce members.
• University of Oregon offices.

In addition, we’ve left some room for “others” such as school rooms, some private homes, and businesses not members of the Chamber of Commerce.

3.1.1 Market Segmentation

Although our immediate market is friends and family, the potential long-term market is businesses in Eugene.  We’re looking eventually at two kinds of offices:

• Chamber of Commerce members.
• University of Oregon offices.

In addition, we’ve left some room for “others” such as school rooms, some private homes, and businesses not members of the Chamber of Commerce. 

3.1.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

We don’t have immediate capacity to serve more than one or two clients in the beginning.  For the immediate future we focus entirely on word-of-mouth clients, accessible through friends and family.  We move into the Chamber of Commerce as a marketing tool later, when we need more sales. 

3.1.3 Service Business Analysis

Aquarium maintenance and design is by nature a smaller business full of small single competitors.  In Eugene, two aquarium stores offer these services, but only one of them even bothers to advertise in the Yellow Pages of the main phone book.

3.1.3.1 Competition and Buying Patterns

Of course there is competition – there always is – but we don’t see competition as a limiting factor in this small hobbyist business, because we focus on friends and family first and we must maintain low capacity to be true to our underlying objectives. 

The key to my strategy is maintaining a clear hold on underlying objectives.  I want this business to be a part-time business to provide pocket money and confidence that other kids in high school get by doing less interesting part-time jobs.  I want the satisfaction of earning my own money, but like the aquarium business and want to focus it on what I like. 

Therefore I have limited capacity and will build slowly and carefully, with one friends-and-family client to begin with, moving very careful to three clients only later when I have driving privileges. 

4.1 Competitive Edge

• In this business, being young, and a good student, is a competitive edge.  When I need to generate new clients, people will relate positively to a young person working her own business. 
• Knowledge is very important.  I take the time to know what I’m talking about, particularly regarding the environmental-impact of the aquarium hobby. 
• The environmental emphasis is unusual, and is also a competitive advantage.  Many people will prefer to work with an environmentally sensitive aquarium vendor. 

4.2 Marketing Strategy

1. Start first with friends and family companies where I can establish a track record and reference site. 
2. Move slowly, through word of mouth, into a carefully selected few additional sites that I can serve at a very high quality level. 
3. Lever on the Chamber of Commerce, and my competitive edge, to market through personal talks and Chamber events. 

4.3 Sales Strategy

Our selling will be entirely based on word of mouth.  We will build the website for the future.  Later on, as soon as we feel confident to turn on more business, joining the Chamber of Commerce would be sufficient.  We could attend some of their gatherings, get an occasional forum, and build more business that way.

4.3.1 Sales Forecast

We will remain with a single client throughout this first year before expanding in the future.  We need to establish history with one client, and we also need to maintain the constraints on this business as a single hobbyist business. 

During the following year, when we have a drivers license, we can expand to three clients.

4.4 Milestones

The plan involves two additional clients for the summer of 2003, and then a transition during late 2004 in preparation for me to be able to leave clients to attend college.

EcoAquatics will address a long-term interest in environmentally sound aquarium hobbies. 

5.1 Website Marketing Strategy

Low-key marketing will focus mainly on informational value of the EcoAquatics site, for placement at Yahoo! and search results in Google, etc. 

5.2 Development Requirements

EcoAquatics will be a personal project, much like my present and former site at citruscoolkids.com, using Cold Fusion and Flash. 

This is a one-person hobbyist business.  I plan to pay myself 90% of the billings as salary.

6.1 Personnel Plan

The personnel plan is to pay myself 90% of the billings of the services.  This leaves some room for purchase of books, testing supplies, etc. 

The main financial problem is working capital for the first few months before business clients pay, and I support that by not paying myself.  I don’t foresee the kind of client relationships that will cause long-term problems getting paid, but I also have to be able to support their occasional delays because this won’t be important to them.

7.1 Important Assumptions

The following table outlines the general assumptions for EcoAquatics.

7.2 Break-even Analysis

The break-even is based on a very realistic assessment of the present hobbyist nature of this business. 

7.3 Projected Profit and Loss

As the Profit and Loss table shows, we have a small hobbyist business here with very few expenses.  The website hosting is an estimate, because it may actually be free.

7.4 Projected Cash Flow

The cash flow involves a loan from founders, which is essentially equivalent to not paying myself for the first two months plus a smaller loan from parents, to support the working capital requirements.  Otherwise I would show a negative balance. 

Pro Forma Cash Flow
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Cash Received
Cash from Operations
Cash Sales	$0	$0	$0
Cash from Receivables	$2,007	$6,413	$8,705
Subtotal Cash from Operations	$2,007	$6,413	$8,705
Additional Cash Received
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received	$0	$0	$0
New Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
New Other Liabilities (interest-free)	$500	$0	$0
New Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
New Investment Received	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Received	$2,507	$6,413	$8,705
Expenditures	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Expenditures from Operations
Cash Spending	$1,800	$5,400	$6,750
Bill Payments	$478	$1,167	$1,342
Subtotal Spent on Operations	$2,278	$6,567	$8,092
Additional Cash Spent
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out	$0	$0	$0
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$500
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
Dividends	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Spent	$2,278	$6,567	$8,592
Net Cash Flow	$228	($154)	$113
Cash Balance	$228	$74	$187

7.5 Projected Balance Sheet

The balance sheet seems acceptable for a low-key hobbyist business.  The loans carried are mainly the first two months of sacrificed compensation to myself.

7.6 Business Ratios

My guess is that what I am doing is not going to be equivalent to the kinds of real businesses whose numbers were contained in the financial databases shown in the rightmost column here.  Furthermore, I am not intending to seek bank loan or investment.