ChApter 9 | EDITING AND FINALIzING YOUR BUSINESS PLAN | 163Antoinette’s Dress Shop
Business Plan Summary[In her summary, Antoinette puts her best foot
forward and tries to answer any questions the
lender may ask.]
Th is business plan requests a loan of $110,000
to open a dress shop catering to working and
professional women in New City.
Today, many women identify themselves as
“professionals.” Th is is part of an evolution in
work force patterns and no local store caters
to this group’s needs for moderately priced,
stylish work clothing—including carrying the
three most popular labels: Narak, YYY, and
Pag. Antoinette’s will fi ll this gap. We will sell
stylish, good quality, and moderately priced
clothing to upwardly mobile women, provide
free alterations, and help our customers dress
well at a reasonable cost.
Financial projections show fi rst year reve-
nues of $450,000, with a profi t of $35,000
before loan payments and a nominal personal
draw. Second year revenues rise to $540,000
and profi ts increase to $46,000. Profi ts are
adequate in both years to service the loan and
provide me with a draw. To secure the loan, I
will consider a second trust deed on my home,
which has equity of about $200,000.
I will combine loan proceeds with $50,000
in savings to provide a $160,000 cash fund. Th e
fund will be allocated as follows: furniture,
fi xtures, and leasehold improvements
$110,000, rent deposit $7,500, opening
inventory $30,000, and contingency $15,000.
Cash fl ow forecasts show a positive cash
fl ow from opening, so no allocation is made
for working capital.
My qualifi cations include three years of
experience as a clothing buyer and assistant
merchandise manager for the local Rack-
a-Frax department store. I was able to
show a 35% sales increase in my principal
area of responsibility, the Designer Dress
Department. During that time, I developed
many industry contacts which will be
invaluable at Antoinette’s.
Sally Walters will be my assistant
manager. She has fi ve years’ experience in
the fi eld, the last three as assistant manager
of the dress department at Glendale’s. We
plan to open Antoinette’s by Labor Day in
the downtown shopping mall and have an
informal commitment from the shopping
center manager to lease space to us. We will
both continue our activities in New City
service clubs, especially those that feature
women members.Dated
Antoinette Gorzak