Prairie Block Butcher and Provisions

Words in [brackets] are blanks you fill in with your own details when you adopt this sample in Supreme Plan AI.

Executive Summary

Prairie Block Butcher and Provisions is a neighborhood butcher shop in Iowa. We cut fresh beef, pork, lamb and poultry to order, make sausage and bacon in house, smoke meats and sell a small selection of sides and sauces. Customers can ask for a special cut, a roast tied for a holiday or a bulk order for the freezer, and the person behind the counter knows how to cook it.

Many people want to know where their meat comes from and want a butcher who will answer questions. Supermarkets sell pre-cut, pre-packed meat. A good butcher shop offers fresher cuts, fair prices on bulk orders and advice. It earns repeat customers who come every week.

Here is what our numbers show. We expect about 16,000 retail transactions, 7,500 sausage and prepared item sales, 220 restaurant orders and 900 custom and bulk orders in Year 1, which brings in sales of $1,073,600, growing to $2,459,674 by Year 5. A butcher shop has a thin gross margin, about 30% of sales, and spoilage and trim loss take part of it. We expect a loss of about $55,700 in Year 1, then a profit from Year 2 ($48,700), growing to about $215,700 by Year 5.

We need $390,000 in total. Of that, $293,000 is startup costs (cutting room and refrigeration equipment, the build-out, the opening inventory, licenses and setup) and the rest is cash to cover the first months. I am putting in $110,000 of my own money, and I am asking for a $280,000 SBA loan.

I am Greg Hanson, the owner and head butcher, with 14 years of experience as a butcher and meat department manager. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this plan, not promises.

Company Description

Prairie Block Butcher and Provisions is a small, independently owned butcher shop in Iowa, planned as a limited liability company (LLC). We will lease about 2,200 square feet in a small retail strip near homes, with a cutting room, display cases and a walk-in cooler.

Our mission. To sell fresh, well-cut meat and to teach people how to cook it.

What we believe. Good meat starts with good sourcing and ends with care at the cutting board. We buy from inspected suppliers and local farms where we can, keep the cooler clean and cold and tell customers what they are buying.

What we offer:
- Fresh cuts. Beef, pork, lamb and poultry cut to order.
- House-made products. Sausage, bacon, burgers and seasoned meats, and smoked meats on weekends.
- Custom and bulk orders. Whole and half hogs, bulk beef packs and holiday roasts, cut and wrapped to a customer's request.
- Wholesale. A small number of restaurants get regular deliveries.
- Cooking help. Cooking times, recipes and tips at the counter.

Who we serve. Households and cooks in the neighborhood and nearby towns, families who buy in bulk and local restaurants.

What we do not do. We do not slaughter animals on site. We do not sell uninspected meat. We do not make health claims.

How we are run. I am the owner and head butcher. A second butcher and counter staff work with me. A small advisory group of a chef, a farmer and an accountant tells us what is working.

Where things stand today. We have a lease option, equipment quotes, supplier agreements with two inspected processors and a regional wholesaler and letters of interest from five restaurants. Before we begin, our attorney will review the lease, and we will confirm the state's retail food license, inspection and labeling rules.

Problem & Opportunity

People who want good meat have few places to buy it. Grocery meat counters have shrunk, and many stores sell only pre-packed cuts. Meat prices have risen, and shoppers who buy in bulk can save money but need a reliable source and someone to cut and wrap the order.

Small producers and shoppers face gaps. Local farmers who sell animals often cannot find a licensed place to cut and market the meat, and customers who want a local source do not know where to go.

For a new butcher, the business is demanding. Cutting skill takes years to build. Refrigeration, saws and display cases are costly. Meat spoils, and trim loss is a real cost. Margins are thin, and a few mistakes can wipe out a month's profit. Rules for sourcing, labeling and handling are strict.

We want to be clear about what we know and do not know. Demand for a quality butcher is steady in many places, and a good shop with a loyal following can do well. We will use the most recent numbers for our area in our final plan and will not overstate them. We do not know how fast customers will come, so our plan assumes a modest first year, and we control waste closely.

Products & Services

Prairie Block will sell fresh, fairly priced meat cut by skilled butchers, with advice on how to cook it.

How it works, step by step:
1. Sourcing. We buy primal and sub-primal cuts and whole animals from inspected processors and a regional wholesaler, and from local farms through inspected facilities.
2. Cutting. We cut daily in the cutting room, trim carefully and use trim for sausage and burger blends.
3. Display and service. We display cuts in cases and cut to order, wrap in paper and tell customers how to cook it.
4. House products. We make sausage, bacon and seasoned meats in small batches and smoke meats on weekends.
5. Custom and bulk. Customers order a whole or half animal or a bulk pack in advance, and we cut and wrap to their instructions.
6. Wholesale. We deliver to restaurants on set days.
7. Safety. We keep the cooler cold, log temperatures, sanitize every day and follow the retail food code and labeling rules.
8. Waste control. We track yield and trim, mark down meat before it spoils and use trim for house products.

Why this approach is strong. Skilled cutting, house-made products and bulk orders earn better margins than packaged meat, and loyal customers return every week.

Market Analysis

Who we serve: households and cooks within about 15 miles, bulk buyers and local restaurants.

Our primary group is households that cook at home and want better meat. Our secondary group is restaurants and groups that need regular supply. We will use the most recent numbers for our area in our final plan.

How we sized our plan. We plan about 16,000 retail transactions in Year 1 (about 53 a day), averaging about $42; 7,500 sausage and prepared item sales averaging about $16; 220 restaurant orders averaging about $380; and 900 custom and bulk orders averaging about $220. We plan 29,000 retail transactions by Year 5. Prices rise about 3% a year.

Demand data. Letters of interest from five restaurants cover about half the Year 1 wholesale orders. We do not count on any one account.

We do not carry everything. We carry what sells, take special orders and tell customers when something is not available.

Competitive Landscape

Other places to buy meat, and what makes us different.

- Supermarkets. They are convenient and offer pre-packed meat. We offer fresh cutting and advice.
- Warehouse clubs. They sell in bulk at low prices. We offer cuts to order and custom packs.
- Other butcher shops. Some are excellent. We compete on cutting, products and service.
- Farm direct and farmers markets. They offer local meat seasonally. We are open all week.
- Online meat delivery. It offers convenience and frozen product. We offer fresh meat and advice.

What makes us different.
- Skilled butchers who cut to order.
- House-made sausage, bacon and smoked meats.
- Bulk and custom orders priced fairly.
- Cooking advice at the counter.

What we do not claim. We are new. Established stores have loyal customers. We plan to earn trust one cut at a time.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach customers.

Opening. A grand opening with tastings, free samples and a ribbon cutting with the chamber of commerce.

Households. A weekly special, a loyalty program, a newsletter with recipes, local food events and partnerships with farmers markets.

Bulk buyers. A bulk order sheet for holidays and freezer packs, with early order discounts.

Restaurants. Samples for chefs, a weekly price sheet and delivery on set days.

Online. A Google business listing, social media with photos of cuts and a website with pre-orders.

Pricing. About $42 for an average retail transaction in Year 1, with bulk discounts on packs.

Operations Plan

How the business will run.

Setup (the 3 to 4 months before opening). We will form the LLC, sign the lease, build out the shop with floors and drains, install the cases and cooler, obtain the retail food license and pass inspection, sign supplier agreements, hire and train staff and buy insurance. We will not sell meat until the license is in hand.

The shop. About 2,200 square feet with a retail counter, display cases, a cutting room and a walk-in cooler. Rent is $3,500 a month in the plan.

Staffing. In Year 1: I serve as owner and head butcher. A second butcher and about three counter and prep staff work with us. We add a second butcher in Year 3 and counter staff as sales grow. Staff are trained in knife safety and food safety.

Purchasing and costs. Meat cost is about 70% of retail sales (about $29.20 on a $42 transaction in Year 1). The plan budgets $15,000 a year for spoilage and trim loss in addition to cost of goods.

Safety. We keep cooler temperatures logged, sanitize every day, separate raw and ready-to-eat foods and keep knives sharp and guards in place.

Payments. Retail customers pay at the counter. Restaurants pay in about 14 days, and about 4% of annual sales is owed to us. We keep about 5% of annual cost of goods in inventory.

Insurance. We carry general and product liability, property, workers' compensation and spoilage coverage. Insurance is about $8,000 a year in Year 1.

Management & Organization

The people who will run Prairie Block.

Greg Hanson, owner and head butcher. A butcher with 14 years of experience, including six as meat department manager at a regional grocery. He leads cutting, buying, hiring and finance. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Butcher. Cuts, makes sausage and trains staff.

Counter and prep staff. Serve customers, wrap orders and keep the shop clean.

Outside advisors. A chef, an attorney, an accountant, an insurance broker and a free mentor from SCORE or the Small Business Development Center.

Staff pay in this plan is a full year per person: owner and head butcher $52,000, butcher $44,000 and counter and prep staff $28,000 each. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals and when we plan to reach them.
- Before opening (3 to 4 months ahead): get at least 3 letters of interest from restaurants, sign supplier agreements, get equipment and lender quotes, confirm the retail food license rules, form the LLC, get an EIN and open a business bank account. Sign the lease only after the lender's commitment is in hand.
- Year 1: about 16,000 retail transactions and 7,500 sausage and prepared sales; $1,073,600 in sales and a loss of about $55,700.
- Year 2: about 21,000 retail transactions and the first profit; $1,533,052 in sales and a profit of about $48,700.
- Year 3: about 24,500 retail transactions and a second butcher; $1,904,310 in sales and a profit of about $106,600.
- Year 4: about 27,000 retail transactions; $2,200,574 in sales and a profit of about $155,100.
- Year 5: about 29,000 retail transactions; $2,459,674 in sales and a profit of about $215,700.
Growth depends on winning and keeping customers, so treat the later years as goals, not promises.

What we check every week: transactions per day, average ticket, gross margin, trim and spoilage, wholesale accounts and cash in the bank.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total we are raising: $390,000.

How we got that number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds up three things:
- Startup costs of $293,000, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section: $68,000 for cutting room equipment: band saw, grinder, slicer, tenderizer and vacuum sealer; $82,000 for display cases, a walk-in cooler and a freezer; $18,000 for smoker and a small prepared foods setup; $55,000 for shop build-out: floors, drains, walls, lighting and a retail counter; $8,000 for lease security deposit and first month of rent; $38,000 for opening meat, seasonings, packaging and supplies; $4,000 for retail food license, plan review and health inspections; $5,000 for attorney and accountant: lease review and setup; $9,000 for exterior sign, branding and a website with pre-order; $6,000 for hiring, food safety training and the first insurance payments.
- The cash the business uses before it breaks even, about $5,280: because refrigeration and inventory are paid for before the first sale and the shop takes time to build its customers.
- A cash cushion of about $79,500: three months of Year 1 operating costs.
- Together that comes to about $377,780, rounded up to the nearest $500: $378,000.
We are raising $12,000 more than that, $390,000 in all, to cover the loan payments and the extra cash the early years take. With this funding, the lowest year-end cash balance is about $48,700, at the end of Year 1.

Where the money comes from:
- My own money: $110,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan for equipment, build-out and working capital: $280,000.

Kind of funding we are looking for. An SBA 7(a) loan through a bank or community lender, plus our own equity. Lenders look at the owner's experience, the lease, the supplier agreements and the equipment quotes.

How we will pay it back. We expect a loss of about $55,700 in Year 1 and a profit of about $48,700 in Year 2, then a profit of about $106,600 in Year 3, a profit of about $155,100 in Year 4 and a profit of about $215,700 by Year 5. With this funding, the business has money in the bank at the end of every year of the plan. The loan is planned at sba 7(a) loan for equipment, build-out and working capital at 12.75% over 10 years, about $4,140 a month. That is about $4,140 a month in all, and it is already included in our cash flow. We chose these as cautious planning rates; ask the lender for the real rates, which may be lower or higher.

What we are offering the lender: a personal guarantee, a lien on the equipment and inventory and the signed lease.

A smaller first step, if needed. If we cannot raise the full amount right away, we can start smaller and grow into this plan:
- Phase 1: start with a smaller shop and a shorter case, which lowers equipment and inventory.
- Phase 2: once you have steady customers, add smoked meats, wholesale and bulk orders and follow this plan.
To plan the smaller start, make a copy of this plan (use Duplicate) and lower the numbers to match.

All numbers in this plan are estimates. We will update them as real results come in.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach before you send this plan:

- Your resume and a description of your butchery experience.
- A personal financial statement (a list of what you own and what you owe; lenders usually provide a form).
- Business registration papers and your EIN (your business tax number from the IRS, free at irs.gov).
- The lease or lease option and a floor plan.
- Equipment quotes.
- Supplier agreements and your product list.
- Insurance quotes or proof of insurance.
- Your retail food license application and inspection plan.
- Letters of interest from restaurants.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Retail Meat Sales (per transaction): about $42.00 in Year 1, rising to $47.27; about $29.20 in direct costs, rising to $32.86; about 16,000 in Year 1, growing to 29,000.
- Sausage, Smoked Meats and Prepared Items (per sale): about $16.00 in Year 1, rising to $18.01; about $6.80 in direct costs, rising to $7.80; about 7,500 in Year 1, growing to 17,500.
- Wholesale to Restaurants (per order): about $380 in Year 1, rising to $428; about $290.00 in direct costs, rising to $326.40; about 220 in Year 1, growing to 680.
- Custom, Bulk and Holiday Orders (per order): about $220 in Year 1, rising to $248; about $150.00 in direct costs, rising to $168.83; about 900 in Year 1, growing to 1,950.
- Retail transactions about $42 in Year 1 with about $29.20 in meat cost; sausage and prepared items about $16 with about $6.80; restaurant orders about $380 with about $290; custom orders about $220 with about $150, rising about 3% a year. Spoilage and trim loss of $15,000 a year is shown as a separate cost.
- Pay (a full year, per person): owner and head butcher $52,000; butcher $44,000; counter and prep staff $28,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: shop lease $42,000, utilities for refrigeration $24,000, insurance $8,000, licenses and inspections $3,000, marketing and events $8,000, equipment maintenance and blade sharpening $6,000, accounting and legal $5,000, packaging supplies $9,000, spoilage and trim loss $15,000, payroll taxes and benefits (staff) $18,000. These grow between 3% and 10% a year.
- Startup costs and equipment ($293,000 in Year 1, then $6,000, $6,000, $8,000, $8,000) are spread evenly over five years in the plan's books.
- Customers and payers pay about 15 days after service. Income tax at 21%.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and research.

Startup Costs