Hill Country Irrigation

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

Executive Summary

Hill Country Irrigation is a sprinkler and irrigation company in Texas. We design and install sprinkler systems for new and existing yards, keep them working through seasonal maintenance contracts, repair broken heads, valves and controllers, convert systems to water-saving drip and smart controllers, and test backflow preventers as the local water utility requires. We also install systems for small businesses, HOAs and churches.

Water is expensive and often restricted, and a sprinkler system that is poorly designed or never checked wastes thousands of gallons. A system that runs on a schedule set years ago can overwater in the rain and underwater in a drought. A reliable local irrigation company that is licensed, shows up and fixes problems can earn a customer for life, and maintenance contracts provide steady income.

Here is what our numbers show. We expect about 45 installations, 90 maintenance contracts, 300 repair visits, 5 commercial projects and 220 backflow tests in Year 1, which brings in sales of $463,600, growing to $2,105,596 by Year 5. We expect a loss of about $33,900 in Year 1 and a loss of about $29,700 in Year 2 while we build a crew and a customer base, then a profit from Year 3 ($86,400), growing to about $214,400 by Year 5.

We need $220,000 in total. Of that, $102,000 is startup costs (a truck, a trailer and trencher, tools and testing equipment, the license, software and opening marketing) and the rest is cash to cover the first months. I am putting in $80,000 of my own money, and I am asking for a $140,000 SBA loan.

I am Carlos Reyes, the owner, a licensed irrigator with 10 years of experience in landscape irrigation, including five as a service manager for a large lawn company. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this plan, not promises.

Company Description

Hill Country Irrigation is a small, independently owned irrigation company in Texas, planned as a limited liability company (LLC). We serve homes and small commercial properties within about 35 miles of our yard.

Our mission. To use less water and keep yards healthy with well-designed, well-maintained irrigation systems.

What we believe. Irrigation should be designed for the soil, the plants and the water supply and checked every season. We follow the state's irrigation rules, explain what we do and give customers a clear controller schedule. We save water and the customer's money.

What we offer:
- New system installation. Design, permits and installation of sprinkler and drip systems.
- Maintenance contracts. Spring start-up, mid-season checks and a fall winterization visit, with repairs billed at set rates.
- Repairs. Heads, valves, pipes, wiring and controllers.
- Water-saving upgrades. Drip conversions, smart controllers and rain sensors.
- Backflow testing. Annual tests of backflow preventers, with reports to the water utility.
- Commercial systems. Systems for small businesses, churches and homeowner associations.

Who we serve. Homeowners, small businesses and HOAs.

What we do not do. We do not do landscape design, sod or large civil work, and we do not install systems without a license. We do not guarantee that a lawn will survive drought or watering restrictions.

How we are run. I am the owner and licensed irrigator and work on the crew. A part-time office coordinator, an estimator and sales representative and a crew lead join in Year 2. Field labor is counted in the cost of each job. A small advisory group of a landscape architect, an accountant and an attorney tells us what is working.

Where things stand today. We have a draft service agreement and warranty, supplier quotes and letters of interest from eight homeowners, two landscapers and a small HOA. Before we begin, our attorney will review our agreements, and we will confirm the state irrigator license and backflow tester certification.

Problem & Opportunity

Water is a growing concern in many places, and irrigation uses a large share of it in summer. Systems that are old, poorly designed or neglected waste water. Heads break, valves stick and controllers run at fixed times regardless of the weather. Homeowners often do not notice until a bill arrives or a lawn dies.

Many customers have trouble finding a reliable provider. Large lawn companies bundle irrigation as an add-on and send a new technician each time. Small operators may not be licensed or insured. Homeowners want a person who explains what is wrong, quotes a price and returns.

For a new company, the barriers are the license, equipment and building a route of recurring customers. The business is seasonal, with spring start-ups and summer repairs, and cash is tight in winter.

We want to be clear about what we know and do not know. Demand for irrigation service is steady where lawns and landscaping are common, and maintenance contracts provide recurring work. 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 sign, so our plan starts with installations and builds maintenance contracts each year.

Products & Services

Hill Country will design and install efficient irrigation systems, keep them working with seasonal service and test backflow devices as the utility requires.

How it works, step by step:
1. Site visit. We measure the yard, check the water pressure and flow and talk with the homeowner about plants, sun and goals.
2. Design and quote. We prepare a layout with zones and a written fixed-price quote, using drip for beds and efficient heads for lawn.
3. Permit and installation. We pull permits where required, trench, install pipe, valves, heads and a smart controller and test coverage. A backflow preventer is installed as the local code requires.
4. Walk-through. We show the homeowner how to use the controller, give a written watering schedule and a warranty.
5. Maintenance contract. We offer three visits a year: spring start-up, mid-season tune-up and fall winterization, with repairs at set rates and priority scheduling.
6. Repairs. We respond to service calls within two business days, diagnose and give a price before work.
7. Backflow testing. A certified tester tests each preventer and sends the report to the utility.
8. Quality. We track callbacks, response time, water use changes where customers share bills and satisfaction.

Why this approach is strong. Maintenance contracts and backflow testing create recurring revenue, and a system that works well produces referrals.

Market Analysis

Who we serve: homeowners, small businesses and HOAs within about 35 miles.

Our primary group is homeowners with irrigated yards. We will use the most recent numbers for homes and lot sizes in our area in our final plan. Our secondary group is small commercial properties and HOAs.

How we sized our plan. We plan 45 installations, 90 maintenance contracts (account-years), 300 repair visits, 5 commercial projects and 220 backflow tests in Year 1, growing to 145, 760, 1,350, 17 and 1,350 by Year 5. Our Year 1 prices are about $5,200 per residential system, $480 per maintenance year, $185 per repair visit, $22,000 per commercial project and $95 per backflow test, rising about 3% a year.

Demand data. Letters of interest from eight homeowners, two landscapers and an HOA cover about a fifth of the Year 1 installations. We do not count on any one referral.

We do not take every job. We decline projects outside our scope or where the water supply cannot support a system.

Competitive Landscape

Other choices for property owners, and what makes us different.

- Large lawn care companies. They offer irrigation as an add-on. We specialize and keep the same technician on a customer.
- Other irrigation companies. Some are excellent. We compete on responsiveness, explanation and water savings.
- Landscapers. They install irrigation with landscapes. We work with them and take their referrals.
- Handymen. They are low cost and often unlicensed for irrigation. We are licensed and insured.
- Doing it yourself. Some homeowners fix their own heads. We help with larger repairs and design.

What makes us different.
- A licensed irrigator on every job.
- Water-saving design and smart controllers.
- Maintenance contracts and backflow testing in one place.
- A written warranty and clear prices.

What we do not claim. We are new. Larger companies have more trucks. We plan to earn trust one yard at a time.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach customers.

Homeowners. A Google business listing and reviews, a simple website with online requests, yard signs with permission and neighborhood groups. We will offer a free spring system check.

Landscapers and builders. We will meet landscapers, builders and property managers and offer wholesale pricing on installations.

HOAs and commercial. We will meet HOA managers and offer a proposal for a full-property irrigation audit.

Utilities. We will tell the water utility we offer backflow testing and ask to be listed as a certified tester.

Pricing. About $5,200 per residential system, $480 per year for a maintenance contract and $185 per repair visit in Year 1, quoted in writing.

Operations Plan

How the business will run.

Setup (the 2 to 3 months before the first job). We will form the LLC, get the state irrigator license and backflow tester certification, buy the truck, trailer and trencher, open supplier accounts, buy insurance and set up scheduling and estimating software. We will not install a system until we hold the license and insurance.

Staffing. In Year 1: I serve as owner and licensed irrigator. Crew members are employees, and their cost is counted in each job. A part-time office coordinator, an estimator and sales representative and a crew lead join in Year 2, and a second crew lead in Year 4.

Costs. Direct costs are about $3,750 per residential system, $250 per maintenance year, $105 per repair visit, $16,600 per commercial project and $38 per backflow test in Year 1, including crew labor, parts and fuel.

Payments. Residential customers pay a deposit and the balance at completion. Commercial customers pay in about 30 days. About 8% of annual sales is owed to us at any time.

Safety and compliance. We call before we dig, follow OSHA trench and ladder safety rules, state irrigation rules and local permit requirements.

Seasons. Installations peak in spring and fall. Maintenance and repairs run through summer, and winter is used for design, sales and equipment service.

Insurance. We carry general liability and completed operations, workers' compensation and commercial auto insurance. Insurance is about $12,000 a year in Year 1.

Management & Organization

The people who will run Hill Country Irrigation.

Carlos Reyes, owner and licensed irrigator. A licensed irrigator with 10 years of experience in landscape irrigation, including five years as a service manager. He leads design, installation, hiring and finance. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Estimator and sales representative (from Year 2). Prepares quotes and sells maintenance contracts.

Crew lead (from Year 2). Runs installation and repair crews.

Office coordinator (part-time, from Year 2). Handles scheduling and billing.

Crew members. Employees whose cost is counted in each job.

Outside advisors. 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 licensed irrigator $58,000, estimator and sales representative $52,000, crew lead $50,000 and part-time office coordinator $28,000. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals and when we plan to reach them.
- Before opening (2 to 3 months ahead): get at least 5 letters of interest from homeowners, landscapers or an HOA, confirm the state irrigator license and backflow tester certification, get insurance and truck quotes, form the LLC, get an EIN and open a business bank account. Do not install a system until you hold the license and insurance.
- Year 1: 45 installations, 90 maintenance contracts and 220 backflow tests; $463,600 in sales and a loss of about $33,900.
- Year 2: 75 installations, 240 maintenance contracts and a crew lead; $866,848 in sales and a loss of about $29,700.
- Year 3: 100 installations and the first profit; $1,281,573 in sales and a profit of about $86,400.
- Year 4: 125 installations and 600 maintenance contracts; $1,708,202 in sales and a profit of about $156,700.
- Year 5: 145 installations and 760 maintenance contracts; $2,105,596 in sales and a profit of about $214,400.
Growth depends on winning and keeping customers, so treat the later years as goals, not promises.

What we check every week: installations, maintenance contracts and renewals, repair response time, gross margin per job, callbacks and cash in the bank.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total we are raising: $220,000.

How we got that number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds up three things:
- Startup costs of $102,000, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section: $36,000 for work truck, used and inspected; $22,000 for trailer, trencher and pipe puller; $9,000 for hand tools, flow and pressure gauges and a backflow test kit; $3,000 for yard deposit and first month; $2,000 for state irrigator license, backflow tester certification and local registrations; $4,000 for scheduling and estimating software and tablets; $4,000 for attorney and accountant: service agreements and setup; $6,000 for truck lettering, a website and opening marketing; $8,000 for opening pipe, fittings, heads and controllers; $8,000 for safety training and the first insurance payments.
- The cash the business uses before it breaks even, about $47,766: because crews and materials are paid for before customers pay and the first months have few contracts.
- A cash cushion of about $36,275: three months of Year 1 operating costs.
- Together that comes to about $186,041, rounded up to the nearest $500: $186,500.
We are raising $33,500 more than that, $220,000 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 $17,800, at the end of Year 2.

Where the money comes from:
- My own money: $80,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan for startup and working capital: $140,000.

Kind of funding we are looking for. An SBA 7(a) loan through a bank or community lender, plus our own equity. Lenders for a trades business look at the owner's license and experience, the signed contracts and a plan for the seasons.

How we will pay it back. We expect a loss of about $33,900 in Year 1 and a loss of about $29,700 in Year 2, then a profit of about $86,400 in Year 3, a profit of about $156,700 in Year 4 and a profit of about $214,400 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 startup and working capital at 12.75% over 10 years, about $2,070 a month. That is about $2,070 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 and a lien on the truck and equipment.

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 repairs, maintenance contracts and backflow testing, which need less equipment, and subcontract installations.
- Phase 2: once you have a route of contracts, add installations and a crew 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, irrigator license and backflow tester certification.
- 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).
- Insurance quotes or proof of insurance.
- Truck and equipment quotes.
- Your service agreement, warranty and quote forms.
- Letters of interest from homeowners, landscapers and an HOA.
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):
- Residential Sprinkler Installations (per system): about $5,200 in Year 1, rising to $5,853; about $3750.00 in direct costs, rising to $4303.21; about 45 in Year 1, growing to 145.
- Annual Maintenance Contracts (per account-year): about $480 in Year 1, rising to $540; about $250.00 in direct costs, rising to $286.88; about 90 in Year 1, growing to 760.
- Repairs and Seasonal Service Visits: about $185 in Year 1, rising to $208; about $105.00 in direct costs, rising to $120.49; about 300 in Year 1, growing to 1,350.
- Commercial Installations (per project): about $22,000 in Year 1, rising to $24,761; about $16600.00 in direct costs, rising to $19048.88; about 5 in Year 1, growing to 17.
- Backflow Tests (per test): about $95.00 in Year 1, rising to $107; about $38.00 in direct costs, rising to $43.61; about 220 in Year 1, growing to 1,350.
- Residential systems about $5,200 each in Year 1 with about $3,750 in parts, crew and fuel; maintenance about $480 per year with about $250; repairs about $185 with about $105; commercial projects about $22,000 with about $16,600; backflow tests about $95 with about $38, rising about 3% to 3.5% a year.
- Pay (a full year, per person): owner and licensed irrigator $58,000; office coordinator (part-time) $28,000; estimator and sales representative $52,000; crew lead $50,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: yard rent and utilities $18,000, insurance $12,000, vehicle operations and fuel $14,000, marketing and referral program $22,000, scheduling and estimating software $3,600, licenses, training and continuing education $2,500, accounting and legal $5,000, tool replacement $4,000, payroll taxes and benefits (office staff) $6,000. These grow between 4% and 14% a year.
- Startup costs and equipment ($102,000 in Year 1, then $4,000, $4,000, $5,000, $5,000) are spread evenly over five years in the plan's books.
- Customers and payers pay about 29 days after service. Income tax at 21%.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and research.

Startup Costs