Cat Cafe Business Plan Template

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cat cafe business plan

Over the past 20 years, we’ve helped over 500 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their cat cafes.

If you are not familiar with creating a cat cafe business plan, you may think that creating one will be a frustrating and time consuming process. for most entrepreneurs it is, but for you it will not be, since we are here to help you. we have the experience, resources, and knowledge to help you create a great business plan.

In this article, you’ll learn some background on why business planning is important. Then you will learn how to write a cat cafe business plan step by step so you can create your plan today.

download our ultimate business plan template here>

what is a business plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your cat cafe as it stands today and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. explains your business goals and your strategies to achieve them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

why you need a business plan

If you want to start a cat cafe or grow your existing cat cafe, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funds, if necessary, and plan to grow your cat cafe to improve your chances of success. Your cat cafe business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your business grows and changes.

funding sources for cat cafes

When it comes to financing, the main sources of financing for a cat cafe are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans, and angel investors. When it comes to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To gain this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to make sure your finances are reasonable, but will also want to see a professional plan. such a plan will give them the confidence that you can operate a business successfully and professionally. personal savings and bank loans are the most common sources of financing for cat cafes.

how to write a business plan for a cat cafe

If you want to start a cat cafe or expand your current one, you need a business plan. The guide below details the necessary information on how to write each essential component of your cat cafe business plan.

executive summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it’s typically the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your executive summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of cat cafe you are running and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a cat cafe you’d like to grow, or are you operating a chain of cat cafes?

provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan below.

provide a brief overview of the cat cafe industry.
talk about the type of cat cafe you’re running.
list your direct competitors. give an overview of your target customers.
provide a snapshot of your marketing strategy. identify the key members of your team.
provide an overview of your financial plan.

company overview

In your company overview, you will detail the type of cat cafe you are operating.

For example, you could specialize in one of the following types of cat cafes:

adoptions: this type of cat cafe has cats that can be adopted. Some cat cafes specialize in rescue cats, while others specialize in pedigree cats. these cat cafes can also have a combination of both.
Permanent Residents: This type of cat cafe has multiple resident cats on the premises. Like adoption cafes, these can be cats that have been rescued or pedigree cats, or both.
Full-service dining room: This type of cat cafe has a full menu of food and drinks for your customers (and sometimes your cats, too).
Themed Cafe: This type of cat cafe is designed around a specific theme. garden themes and whimsical themes are popular.

In addition to explaining the type of cat cafe you will be operating, the business overview should provide background on the business.

includes answers to questions such as:

when and why did you start the business?
What milestones have you achieved to date? milestones could include number of clients served, number of cats adopted, reaching $x in revenue, etc.
is your legal business incorporated as an s corporation? an llc? a sole proprietorship? explain its legal structure here.

industry analysis

In your industry or market analysis, you should provide an overview of the cat cafe industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the cat cafe industry educates you. helps you understand the market you are trading.

Second, market research can improve your marketing strategy, especially if your analysis identifies market trends.

The third reason is to show readers that you are an expert in your industry. By doing your research and presenting it in your plan, you’ll do just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your coffee shop business plan:

How big is the cat cafe industry (in dollars)?
Is the market shrinking or rising?
Who are the main competitors in the market?
who are the key providers in the market?
what trends are affecting the industry?
what is the growth forecast for the industry in the next 5 to 10 years?
what is the size of the relevant market? i.e. what is the size of the potential target market for your cat cafe? you can extrapolate that figure by assessing the size of the market across the country and then applying that figure to your local population.

customer analysis

The customer analysis section of your cat cafe business plan should detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: individuals, schools, families, and corporations.

As you can imagine, the customer segments you choose will have a huge impact on the type of cat cafe you operate. clearly, individuals would respond to different marketing promotions than corporations, for example.

Try to break down your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. regarding demographics, including a discussion of the ages, genders, locations, and income levels of potential customers you seek to serve.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can recognize and define these needs, the better you will be at attracting and retaining your customers.

competitor analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the direct and indirect competitors your business faces, and then focus on the latter.

direct competitors are other cat cafes.

Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to buy that do not directly compete with your product or service. this includes other types of cafes, other types of themed experience providers, and other types of adoption centers. You should also mention that competition.

For each competitor, provide an overview of your business and document your strengths and weaknesses. Unless you’ve ever worked in your competitors’ businesses, it’s impossible to know everything about them. but you should be able to find out key things about them, like

what kind of clients do you serve?
what kind of cat cafe are they?
what is your price (premium, low, etc.)?
what are they good at?
what are your weaknesses?

Regarding the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like best and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. for example:

will it offer a better experience to your customers?
Will you offer products or services that your competition doesn’t?
will it provide better customer service?
will you offer better prices?

Think of ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.

marketing plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: product, price, place and promotion. For a cat cafe business plan, your marketing strategy should include the following:

product – In the product section, you should reiterate the type of cat cafe you documented in your business overview. then detail the specific products or services you will offer. For example, will you offer food and drinks, cat adoptions, or cat souvenirs?

price: Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. essentially in the products and prices subsections of your plan, you are presenting the products and/or services you offer and their prices.

location: location refers to the location of your cat cafe. Document where your business is located and mention how the site will affect your success. For example, is your cat cafe located in a busy business district, retail district, or independent cafe? discuss how your site could be the ideal location for your customers.

promotions: The final part of your cat cafe marketing plan is where you will document how you will attract potential customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

advertising in local newspapers, radio stations and/or magazines
reach websites
distribute flyers
participate in email marketing
advertising on social media platforms
improve seo (search engine optimization) on your website for specific keywords

plan of operations

While the previous sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your trading plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Short-term daily processes include all the tasks involved in running your cat cafe, including answering calls, greeting customers, taking care of cats, collecting payments from customers, etc. .

long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to acquire your x-th customer, or when you expect to reach $x in revenue. It could also be when you hope to expand your cat cafe to a new city.

management team

To demonstrate the potential for success of your cat cafe, a strong management team is essential. highlight the backgrounds of your key players, emphasizing those skills and experiences that demonstrate their ability to grow a business.

Ideally, you and/or your team members have direct experience running cat cafes. If so, highlight this experience and knowledge. but also highlight any experiences you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is missing, consider putting together an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2-8 people who would act as mentors to your business. they would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If necessary, look for advisory board members with experience running a cat cafe or successfully running a small pet adoption operation.

financial plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out monthly or quarterly for the first year and annually thereafter. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statements.

statement of results

an income statement is more commonly called a profit and loss statement or p&l. shows your income and then subtracts your costs to show whether or not you made a profit.

When developing your income statement, you should make assumptions. For example, will your cat cafe accommodate 10 customers at a time and charge by the hour? and will sales grow 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will have a huge impact on the financial forecasts of your business. As much as possible, do some research to try to ground your assumptions in reality.

balances

Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. Although balance sheets can include a lot of information, try to boil them down to the key items you need to know. For example, if you spend $50,000 to build your cat cafe, this will not give you immediate profit. rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a lender writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to return it right away. rather, that is a responsibility that will pay off over time.

statement of cash flows

Your cash flow statement will help you determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and ensure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that they can make a profit but run out of money and file for bankruptcy.

When creating your income statement and balance sheets, be sure to include several of the key costs needed to start or grow a cat cafe:

cost of cat care equipment and supplies
payroll or salaries paid to staff
company insurance
taxes
other start-up expenses (if a new business) such as legal fees, permits, software and hardware

appendix

Attach your completed financial projections in the appendix to your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more convincing. For example, you can include the lease for the cat cafe or photos of your cats.

summary

Writing a business plan for your cat cafe is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, when you’re done, you’ll be a real expert. You will understand the cat cafe industry, your competition, and your customers. You’ll develop a marketing strategy and understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful cat cafe.

cat cafe business plan frequently asked questions

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Since 1999, growink has developed business plans for thousands of companies that have achieved tremendous success.

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