Ironwood Self-Defense and Safety Academy

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

Executive Summary

Ironwood Self-Defense and Safety Academy is a self-defense and safety training studio in Richmond, Virginia, owned by Derek and Maya Collins. We teach adults, women, kids and teens practical safety skills, with a focus on awareness, boundaries and de-escalation, and run programs for workplaces and schools.

Why this fits. Many people are looking for practical safety training, and workplaces and schools want programs for staff and students. Small classes, certified instructors and a respectful approach help students feel confident.

Here is what our numbers show. In Year 1 we plan about 600 adult member-months, 300 workshop participants, 20 corporate and school sessions and 300 kids and teens member-months. That brings in sales of $105,400, growing to $374,940 by Year 5. We expect a loss of about $1,100 in Year 1, a profit of about $15,100 in Year 2, a profit of about $32,700 in Year 3 and a profit of about $71,400 by Year 5. The studio lease, instructor pay and the mats and equipment are our largest costs, and the plan counts all of them.

We need $64,000 in total. Of that, $39,000 is startup costs (mats and flooring, pads and training gear, mirrors and lobby furnishings, licensing and insurance, a lease deposit and launch marketing), and the rest is cash for the first months. We are putting in $14,000 of our own savings and asking for a $50,000 SBA 7(a) loan.

We are Derek and Maya Collins, owners of Ironwood Self-Defense and Safety Academy. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this plan, not promises.

Company Description

Ironwood Self-Defense and Safety Academy will be a limited liability company (LLC) in Richmond, Virginia, owned and run by Derek and Maya Collins. Derek is a certified self-defense and martial arts instructor and former security professional. Maya is a licensed counselor who designs the safety and awareness curriculum and handles the business.

What we do:
- Adult self-defense classes with a focus on awareness and de-escalation.
- Women's self-defense and safety workshops.
- Kids and teens confidence and safety classes.
- Corporate and school safety programs.
- Private lessons and small group seminars.

Who we serve: Adults, parents, teens, workplaces and schools in the Richmond area.

Licensing and insurance. We will register the LLC, carry general liability and professional liability insurance, require instructors to hold recognized certifications, first aid and CPR and background checks and have students sign health and waiver forms. We follow local laws on training and teach students the legal limits of self-defense.

Our promise. Practical skills, calm confidence and respect for every student.

Where things stand today. The business plan, class schedule and price list are written. The next steps are the lease, the equipment and the first students.

Problem & Opportunity

Many people feel unsafe in everyday life and do not know what to do in a threatening situation.

What customers run into:
1. Fear of walking alone or traveling.
2. Classes that focus on fighting and not on awareness and escape.
3. Parents worried about bullying and online safety.
4. Workplaces with no safety training.

Why it matters. Most self-defense is about awareness, boundaries and getting away. Training builds confidence and clear thinking under stress.

Products & Services

Ironwood will be the Richmond academy where people learn to stay safe and feel confident.

What makes us different:
1. Awareness and de-escalation first, physical skills second.
2. Small classes and gentle progression.
3. Trauma-informed instructors.
4. Programs for women, kids and teens.
5. Clear explanation of the law.

How a first class works:
1. A new student books an intro class and completes a health form.
2. We teach awareness, boundaries and basic skills in small groups.
3. Students practice in realistic, safe drills.
4. We check progress and offer next steps.

Why customers stay. Students stay for the confidence and the community, and many bring friends.

Market Analysis

Who we serve:
- Adults who want practical safety skills.
- Women and students who want confidence and boundaries.
- Parents of kids and teens.
- Workplaces and schools that want safety training.

How we sized the market. Our Year 1 plan is about 50 monthly members, 300 workshop participants, 20 corporate and school sessions and 25 kids and teens members, a small share of the people in a metro area this size. Replace this estimate with your own count of adults, schools and employers near you.

Why now. Many people are looking for practical safety training, and workplaces and schools want programs for staff and students.

Competitive Landscape

What customers can do today:

1. Martial arts schools. Strong and focused on sport and belts.
2. Gyms with self-defense classes. Convenient and occasional.
3. Online videos. Cheap and not hands-on.
4. One-time workshops. Helpful and short.
5. Doing nothing. Common and leaves people unprepared.

Where we fit. Ironwood will be the local academy that teaches practical safety in a respectful, welcoming way.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How customers will find us.

Before opening:
- Offer free intro workshops at gyms, libraries and workplaces.
- Meet school administrators and HR managers.
- Set up a website and a Google Business Profile.
- Offer founding member rates.

After opening:
- Ask every student for a review.
- Offer referral credits.
- Host monthly workshops.
- Partner with schools and employers.
- Share student stories with permission.

What we will measure. How students heard about us, how many intro classes become memberships and how many members stay month to month.

Operations Plan

How the business will run.

Season and schedule. The academy offers classes every weekday evening and weekend mornings, with the busiest months in fall and spring. Corporate and school sessions fill the daytime.

Team. Derek and Maya teach most classes in Year 1. A certified instructor joins in Year 2, and we add instructors as members grow.

Quality and safety. Every student completes a health form. Classes use padded gear, progressive drills and clear safety rules, and instructors stop any drill that becomes unsafe. We keep first aid supplies and an emergency plan.

Equipment. We will buy mats and flooring, pads and training bags and gear, mirrors and sound and lobby furnishings.

Paperwork and money. Members pay monthly by card, and workshops and programs are paid at booking. We follow up on anything unpaid after one week. We keep the books in simple accounting software and set aside money for taxes and insurance every month.

Management & Organization

The people who will run Ironwood Self-Defense and Safety Academy.

Derek Collins, owner and head instructor. He teaches classes and trains instructors. Maya Collins, owner and curriculum and business lead. She designs the safety curriculum and keeps the books. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Team. One certified instructor from Year 2, growing to four, each background checked and CPR trained.

Office. Maya handles the office with part-time help as members grow.

Outside advisors. An accountant, an insurance broker, an attorney who reviews contracts and a free mentor from SCORE or the Small Business Development Center.

Staff pay in this plan is a full year per person: owner / Head Instructor $44,000; instructor $32,000. 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 months ahead): register the LLC, sign the lease, buy the mats and equipment, set up insurance and run free intro workshops.
- Year 1: about 1,220 member-months, participants and sessions with Derek and Maya teaching; $105,400 in sales and a loss of about $1,100.
- Year 2: about 1,880 and an instructor; $167,300 in sales and a profit of about $15,100.
- Year 3: about 2,540 and a second instructor; $232,640 in sales and a profit of about $32,700.
- Year 4: about 3,200 and a third instructor; $301,550 in sales and a profit of about $51,800.
- Year 5: about 3,860 and a fourth instructor; $374,940 in sales and a profit of about $71,400.
Growth depends on winning and keeping customers, so treat the later years as goals, not promises.

What we check every week: members, class attendance, workshops and sessions booked, unpaid invoices and cash in the bank.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total we are raising: $64,000.

How we got that number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds up three things:
- Startup costs of $39,000, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section: $12,000 for mats and flooring, $6,000 for pads, training bags and gear, $4,000 for mirrors, sound and lobby furnishings, $1,800 for LLC filing and attorney review of waivers, $2,700 for general and professional liability insurance, first payment, $6,000 for security deposit and first month's rent, $3,000 for signs, branding and website, $2,000 for launch marketing, $1,500 for certifications, first aid and background checks.
- The cash the business uses before it breaks even, about $0. Sales cover the daily costs once the doors open, so the cash we need up front goes mostly to startup costs.
- A cash cushion of about $22,500: three months of Year 1 operating costs.
- Together, the cash used before break even and the cushion come to about $22,500, and the three pieces add up to about $61,500, rounded up to the nearest $500: $61,500.
We are raising $2,500 more than that, $64,000 in all, to cover a slower first season than planned. With this funding, the lowest year-end cash balance is about $38,300, at the end of Year 1.

Where the money comes from:
- Our own money: $14,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan: $50,000.

Kind of funding we are looking for. An SBA 7(a) loan from a lender that finances small businesses, backed by our savings and the equipment as collateral.

How we will pay it back. We expect a loss of about $1,100 in Year 1, a profit of about $15,100 in Year 2, a profit of about $32,700 in Year 3, a profit of about $51,800 in Year 4 and a profit of about $71,400 in Year 5. With this funding, the business has money in the bank at the end of every year of the plan. Our loan is the SBA 7(a) loan at 10.5% over 10 years, $675 a month. That payment 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: the equipment and a personal guarantee.

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: open with the main training space and the adult program, which lowers the startup costs and the loan.
- Phase 2: once the first members are steady, add the kids program and corporate sessions 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 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).
- Your instructor certifications and proof of insurance.
- A sample class schedule and waiver.
- Your lease or letter of intent.
- Quotes for mats and equipment.
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):
- Adult Memberships (per month): about $99 in Year 1, rising to $111; about $5 in direct costs, rising to $6; about 600 in Year 1, growing to 1,800.
- Workshops and Seminars (per participant): about $45 in Year 1, rising to $51; about $6 in direct costs, rising to $7; about 300 in Year 1, growing to 900.
- Corporate and School Programs (per session): about $350 in Year 1, rising to $394; about $40 in direct costs, rising to $45; about 20 in Year 1, growing to 60.
- Kids and Teens Programs (per month): about $85 in Year 1, rising to $96; about $4 in direct costs, rising to $5; about 300 in Year 1, growing to 1,100.
- A monthly adult membership averages about $99, a workshop participant about $45, a corporate or school session about $350 and a kids membership about $85 a month.
- Prices rise about 3% a year.
- Equipment ($22,000 in Year 1) covers mats and flooring, pads and training bags and gear and mirrors, sound and lobby furnishings, and later years ($2,000, $3,000, $2,500 and $3,000) replace and add equipment.
- Pay (a full year, per person): owner / Head Instructor $44,000; instructor $32,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: studio Lease and Utilities $30,000, insurance $3,500, software and Marketing $8,000, supplies $2,500, admin $2,000. These grow between 4% and 18% a year.
- Customers and payers pay about 15 days after service, so at the end of Year 1 about $4,216 is still owed to us. Income tax at 21%.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and research.

Startup Costs