Fresh Table Meal Prep

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

Executive Summary

Fresh Table Meal Prep is a meal prep and delivery service in Georgia. We cook healthy, portioned meals in a licensed commissary kitchen and deliver them fresh to homes and offices once or twice a week. Customers choose a weekly plan of ten meals from a rotating menu, order family trays for the weekend or sign up their workplace for lunches. Menus include high-protein, vegetarian, low-sodium and gluten-free options.

Busy people want to eat well and do not have time to shop and cook. Delivery apps are expensive and mostly serve restaurant food, and many meal kits still require cooking. A local service that cooks fresh, delivers on a schedule and tailors menus to a family or a team fills a gap. It also builds recurring revenue, because customers reorder every week.

Here is what our numbers show. We expect about 3,200 weekly meal plans (about 62 customers a week), 800 family tray orders and 4,000 corporate lunches in Year 1, which brings in sales of $410,800, growing to $1,426,296 by Year 5. We expect a loss of about $35,700 in Year 1 and a loss of about $400 in Year 2 while we build our customer base, then a profit from Year 3 ($90,300), growing to about $189,100 by Year 5. Food costs and delivery are our biggest costs, so we plan carefully for waste and routes.

We need $200,000 in total. Of that, $140,900 is startup costs (kitchen equipment, a delivery van, the ordering website, licensing and setup) and the rest is cash to cover the first months. I am putting in $50,000 of my own money, and I am asking for a $150,000 SBA loan.

I am Marcus Allen, the owner and head chef, a culinary school graduate with 10 years of experience in restaurants and catering. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this plan, not promises.

Company Description

Fresh Table Meal Prep is a small, independently owned meal prep business in Georgia, planned as a limited liability company (LLC). We rent time and space in a licensed commissary kitchen, and we serve homes and offices within about 20 miles of Atlanta.

Our mission. To make healthy eating easy for busy people and to cook food we are proud of.

What we believe. Good food is fresh, simple and made with care. We cook in small batches, label every meal with ingredients and nutrition and never overpromise on health. We treat customers' dietary needs as a matter of safety.

What we offer:
- Weekly meal plans. Ten meals a week from a rotating menu, with delivery once or twice a week.
- Family trays and a la carte. Larger trays for the weekend, snacks and breakfast items.
- Corporate lunches. Weekly or daily lunches for offices and teams.
- Dietary menus. High-protein, vegetarian, low-sodium and gluten-free options, and allergen labeling.

Who we serve. Busy professionals, families, athletes and offices.

What we do not do. We do not give medical or diet advice, make claims about weight loss or cure conditions or guarantee a nut-free or allergen-free kitchen. We refer customers with medical diets to their doctor or dietitian.

How we are run. I am the owner and head chef. A kitchen manager and a customer service and marketing coordinator join us in Year 2. Kitchen and delivery labor is counted in the cost of each meal. A small advisory group of a dietitian, a restaurant owner and an accountant tells us what is working.

Where things stand today. We have a draft menu, a commissary kitchen lease option, equipment quotes and 60 people who have said they will try the service. Before we begin, our attorney will review the lease and our terms, and we will confirm the health department's rules for commissary and delivery.

Problem & Opportunity

Many people want to eat better and cannot find the time. Grocery shopping, planning and cooking after a long day are hard, and takeout is costly and often heavy. Meal kits still require cooking, and many customers cancel after a few weeks. Fully prepared meal services can be bland, impersonal or expensive.

For a new meal prep business, the challenges are food cost and waste, delivery routes and customer retention. Food safety is critical, because a mistake can harm customers. Packaging and delivery add cost. Customers order weekly, so a business must keep them from churning.

Commissary kitchens and licensing help small food businesses start, and equipment and staffing still need cash. Growth depends on marketing, because most orders come from online ads and word of mouth.

We want to be clear about what we know and do not know. Meal prep is a growing market, and many new services close in the first year because of cost and churn. 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 and stay, so our plan assumes slow growth and tracks retention weekly.

Products & Services

Fresh Table will cook fresh meals in small batches, label them clearly and deliver them on a set schedule.

How it works, step by step:
1. Ordering. Customers choose a plan and meals from the weekly menu by midnight on Wednesday, with dietary filters.
2. Buying and prep. We buy ingredients from local suppliers and prep on Thursday and Friday.
3. Cooking and chilling. We cook in small batches, chill quickly in a blast chiller and portion into labeled containers with a use-by date.
4. Delivery. Drivers deliver on Sunday and Wednesday in insulated bags on planned routes, and customers get a text with a delivery window.
5. Food safety. We follow commissary and health department rules for temperatures, labeling and cleaning, and keep logs.
6. Corporate lunches. We deliver set-menu lunches to offices on a schedule under a simple agreement.
7. Feedback. Customers rate each meal, and we adjust the menu.
8. Quality. We track waste, late deliveries, cancellations and satisfaction.

Why this approach is strong. Weekly plans create recurring revenue, and a rotating menu with real feedback keeps customers. Small batches and a short chain from kitchen to door keep food fresh.

Market Analysis

Who we serve: busy professionals, families, athletes and offices within about 20 miles.

Our primary group is working adults who want healthy meals. Our secondary group is offices and teams. We will use the most recent numbers for our area in our final plan.

How we sized our plan. We plan about 3,200 weekly plans in Year 1 (about 62 customers a week), 800 tray orders and 4,000 corporate lunches, growing to 9,500 plans (about 183 customers a week), 2,200 trays and 17,000 lunches by Year 5. Our Year 1 prices are about $98 for a ten-meal plan, $64 for a tray order and $11.50 per corporate lunch, rising about 3% a year.

Demand data. Sixty people have said they will try the service, which is about one in three of our Year 1 customers. We do not count on any one customer.

We do not take every order. We stay within our delivery area and have an order cutoff each week.

Competitive Landscape

Other choices for prepared food, and what makes us different.

- Meal kits. They require cooking, and we deliver ready-to-eat food.
- National prepared meal services. They have large budgets and ship frozen food. We offer fresh, local food and a human touch.
- Other local meal prep companies. Some are excellent. We compete on quality, delivery and menus.
- Restaurant delivery apps. They are convenient and costly. We offer lower prices per meal for weekly plans.
- Grocery prepared foods. They are convenient and often not fresh. We offer made-to-order meals.
- Cooking at home. Many customers still cook. We help on the nights they cannot.

What makes us different.
- Fresh, small-batch cooking by a trained chef.
- A rotating menu that responds to feedback.
- Dietary options with clear labels.
- Local delivery on a set schedule.

What we do not claim. We are new. Larger services have more marketing money. We plan to earn trust one week at a time.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach customers.

Customers. A simple website with online ordering and a first-week discount, social media with photos and customer stories, partnerships with gyms, trainers and dietitians who refer clients and word of mouth from happy customers.

Offices. We will offer free lunch tastings to office managers and sign weekly lunch agreements.

Referrals. A credit for each friend a customer refers.

Retention. We ask for feedback every week, offer menu choices and reach out to customers who skip a week.

Pricing. About $98 for a ten-meal weekly plan in Year 1, about $64 for a family tray and $11.50 per corporate lunch, posted on the website.

Operations Plan

How the business will run.

Setup (the 3 to 4 months before the first order). We will form the LLC, sign the commissary lease, buy and install equipment, get the food service license and local permits, buy insurance, build the ordering website, test recipes and hire the first kitchen helpers and drivers. We will not sell food until we hold the license.

The kitchen. A leased commissary kitchen with a blast chiller, ovens, kettles and a vacuum sealer. Rent is $4,200 a month in the plan.

Staffing. In Year 1: I serve as owner and head chef. Kitchen helpers and delivery drivers are hourly employees whose pay is counted in the cost of each meal. A kitchen manager and a customer service and marketing coordinator join in Year 2, and a second coordinator in Year 5.

Costs. A ten-meal plan costs about $58.50 to make and deliver in Year 1 (food about $33, packaging about $5.50, kitchen labor about $14 and delivery about $6).

Delivery. One refrigerated van and a few drivers cover two days a week. Routes are planned to limit miles.

Food safety. Staff hold food handler cards, I hold a food protection manager certificate and we keep temperature and cleaning logs, label allergens and keep samples.

Payments. Customers pay when they order, so little is owed to us. Corporate customers pay about 15 days after we bill.

Insurance. We carry general and product liability, commercial auto and workers' compensation insurance. Insurance is about $6,000 a year in Year 1.

Management & Organization

The people who will run Fresh Table.

Marcus Allen, owner and head chef. A culinary school graduate with 10 years in restaurants and catering, including four years as a kitchen manager. He leads menus, cooking, hiring and finance. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Kitchen manager (from Year 2). Runs prep and food safety.

Customer service and marketing coordinator (from Year 2). Handles orders, customer questions and online marketing.

Kitchen helpers and drivers. Hourly employees whose pay is counted in the cost of each meal.

Outside advisors. A dietitian, an attorney, an accountant 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 chef $54,000, kitchen manager $46,000 and customer service and marketing coordinator $40,000. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals and when we plan to reach them.
- Before opening (3 to 4 months ahead): get at least 50 people to pledge to try the service, get letters of interest from at least 2 offices, get equipment and lender quotes, confirm the license and commissary terms, form the LLC, get an EIN and open a business bank account. Buy the van only after the lender's commitment is in hand.
- Year 1: about 62 weekly customers on average, 800 trays and 4,000 lunches; $410,800 in sales and a loss of about $35,700.
- Year 2: about 100 weekly customers, a kitchen manager and a coordinator; $705,384 in sales and a loss of about $400.
- Year 3: about 135 weekly customers; $989,620 in sales and a profit of about $90,300.
- Year 4: about 163 weekly customers; $1,238,675 in sales and a profit of about $166,700.
- Year 5: about 183 weekly customers and a second coordinator; $1,426,296 in sales and a profit of about $189,100.
Growth depends on winning and keeping customers, so treat the later years as goals, not promises.

What we check every week: weekly customers, cancellations, food waste, meal cost, late deliveries, satisfaction and cash in the bank.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total we are raising: $200,000.

How we got that number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds up three things:
- Startup costs of $140,900, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section: $62,000 for used commercial kitchen equipment: ovens, kettles, a blast chiller, a vacuum sealer and prep tables; $24,000 for delivery van, used, with a refrigeration unit; $18,000 for kitchen improvements: hand sinks, ventilation and flooring as required; $6,000 for ordering website, label printers and a route planning tool; $6,000 for opening food, packaging and cleaning supplies; $3,200 for food service license, plan review and local permits; $3,300 for attorney and accountant: lease review, terms of service and setup; $8,400 for commissary lease deposit and first month of rent; $4,000 for branding, photography and menu design; $6,000 for hiring, food safety certification and the first insurance payments.
- The cash the business uses before it breaks even, about $2,644: because the kitchen and van are paid for before the first order and growth takes time.
- A cash cushion of about $42,000: three months of Year 1 operating costs.
- Together that comes to about $185,544, rounded up to the nearest $500: $186,000.
We are raising $14,000 more than that, $200,000 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 $31,500, at the end of Year 1.

Where the money comes from:
- My own money: $50,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan for startup and working capital: $150,000.

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 food business look at the kitchen terms, the license plan and the owner's experience.

How we will pay it back. We expect a loss of about $35,700 in Year 1 and a loss of about $400 in Year 2, then a profit of about $90,300 in Year 3, a profit of about $166,700 in Year 4 and a profit of about $189,100 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 $2,218 a month. That is about $2,218 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 van and the 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 fewer meals, no van and delivery by a local courier, which lowers startup costs.
- Phase 2: once you have steady weekly customers, buy a van and add corporate lunches 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 food safety certifications.
- 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 commissary kitchen lease and health department license application.
- Equipment and van quotes.
- Insurance quotes or proof of insurance.
- Your menu, recipe costs and nutrition labels.
- Your list of pledged customers and office letters of interest.
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):
- Weekly Meal Plans (10 meals): about $98.00 in Year 1, rising to $110; about $58.50 in direct costs, rising to $67.13; about 3,200 in Year 1, growing to 9,500.
- Family Trays and A La Carte Orders: about $64.00 in Year 1, rising to $72.03; about $27.00 in direct costs, rising to $30.98; about 800 in Year 1, growing to 2,200.
- Corporate Lunches (per meal): about $11.50 in Year 1, rising to $12.94; about $5.60 in direct costs, rising to $6.43; about 4,000 in Year 1, growing to 17,000.
- Weekly plan about $98 in Year 1 with about $58.50 in direct costs (food, packaging, kitchen labor and delivery); trays about $64 with about $27; corporate lunches about $11.50 with about $5.60, rising about 3% to 3.5% a year.
- Pay (a full year, per person): owner and head chef $54,000; kitchen manager $46,000; customer service and marketing coordinator $40,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: commissary kitchen lease $50,400, utilities $9,600, insurance: product, liability and commercial auto $6,000, ordering and subscription software $6,000, marketing and customer acquisition $14,400, vehicle operations $8,000, equipment repairs and maintenance $4,800, accounting and legal $4,800, permits and food safety certifications $2,000, payroll taxes and benefits (staff) $8,000. These grow between 3% and 14% a year.
- Startup costs and equipment ($140,900 in Year 1, then $4,000, $4,000, $4,000, $4,000) 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