Before

? about writing a business plan f? r the size? ndung a car wash, a definition of what a business plan is in order. A business plan is a document, an opportunity to research why this is M? Possibility profitable and identify the necessary steps in order to capitalize on this opportunity. The business plan is a formal document or it can be written to the R? Cover a napkin, but the blo? E act of writing the idea down forces you get the idea from the head and on paper, the find hidden M? ngel Business helps and makes you think you sorgf? validly? about every phase of your business.

creating a business plan is to do what each can, even if you’re not white? t nothing? about economics or finance. Although the business plan is critical? F r always the idea from the ground, z? Like many entrepreneurs when it comes to preparing a written plan. If you do not know anything? About Gesch? Fts or finance, this is the best time to start learning to be successful as the chances of your company will be descr nkt? Without this knowledge. Just as a builder will not begin construction without a blueprint, entrepreneurs should not rzen in new projects st? Without a plan. The old adage that “those who do not plan to fail plan” very relevant when it comes to size? Ndung a company. SBA’s statistics claim? About the H lfte? Of new businesses fail in the first three years and the common factor is poor planning or under-capitalization (which is also poor planning).

First steps The first step in creating a business plan is just getting started. Writing the business plan may at first sight? Berw? Ltigend, but if you plan to break the big e St? Bridge at? S and work on one section at a time does not seem as daunting. Start with what you know first and describe your business and your products or services. Work towards the more difficult topics such as marketing, operations and finance. Do not worry is? About to be perfect now, you use the concepts on paper to expand – and to refine sp? Ter. If you specify a section in the plan? Skip it f? R now and sp? Ter come back, if you have any further information.

Who is your target audience?
When writing your car wash business plan, m? you have to keep in mind who your target audience and why you write the plan. Why? A plan f? R, the bank less interest in the exit strategy and return on investment as an f? R equity investors. Dar? About f is also a plan? R f? S internal use written will seek to be different from a financing, such a bank is not necessarily interested in detailed operations of the company.

Business Structure Pl? ne tend to have many elements in common. Although there is not a format that all business NEN-Pl? Follow, there are generally accepted guidelines that most, like the order in which the topics are not ZUF? Llig Str follow? Determination. The description of the activity T? A business plan, a picture of your company is directed and why this Gesch? Feet will be successful. Marketing, Management and Operations sections are investigated and a strategy on how your company to compete and operate is developed. In the past Gesch? Fiscal year projections show in numbers what the f in the business plan? R distribution and expenditure explain? Rt.

Breaking these three big en sections down even further, a business plan consists of six main components: Executive Summary

Description of Business Marketing Managers & Employees

Operations & Location

.

How long should be your business plan?
The answer that nobody liked in school applies f? r a business plan, that is, “so long as to be it” must. The more complex a company is requested or the more sophisticated investors or funds, the L? length of a plan to erh hen?. An average car wash business plan ore? Hlung should be 4-15 pages plus financials and Annex items.

Business Plan Outline

Executive Summary The executive summary is the first part of the business plan, but is the last be written. It gives the readers a quick? Overview what is your Gesch? Ft proposal and what you want. This part is crucial, since most readers of this section, before deciding whether to scan read on.

The summary should generally about the H? lfte a page long and contain what one pitch in an elevator as Cover:
Erl? you illustrated from the compressed version of the business concept, product or service

This section should set a unique features and benefits to stress that what is currently in the industry or region, aka why would someone buy your product against? over the competition. The demographics of your market

The management team
If the expected start date

How much are you f? r
ask
Concise is the key? keys in the Executive Summary. They will go into more detail sp? Ter in the business plan.

description of the activity T? The purpose of the business? fts Ren description is to objectively describe Waschgesch? ft details and potential for the future go?:

Mission What makes the Gesch?
Description of products and / or services

Information Industry Business Organization
status company (Gr? ndung, expansion or purchasing)
Current and k? nftige goals

/ to note all the figures and facts and sources in the business plan. This information is important, you should ben? CONFIRM to defend your data and assumptions. The description of the T? Activity is when you try to bottom a picture of the potential of your venture along with the facts? Paint Tzen. Try to inject energy and excitement to the reader to get excited about the idea, no? Go overboard nat? Natural.
After describing the Gesch? fts
is to describe it time and PC! wash sold additional products or services in your car. Remember that it is important to show how your products and services are better than the competition. If you do not have a good answer, berdenken than you should your strategy be?. What it is to wash your car, go to the customer? Change Gesch? Fte with the competition get?

marketing is a very important part of your business plan is the marketing department. Regardless expecting the quality of the? T your products and your services, your company will be shown in the confusion of advertising. If you do not know your customers how they will ever find? All this begins with some research.

Customer: Who is your market
The first step is to determine who you are to move through the identification of common characteristics of your market, such as age, income, race , Religion, sell education, interests and / or geographic locations. W? During all want to wash their car products as you want to advertise effectively to all and still make a profit? What you need to do instead is determine the group or groups of people most likely your car wash services and market, they must be used. After all you are trying to generate a positive return on your marketing dollars generate, they sit with caution.

Competition Commissioner in today’s ultracompetitive market place, is going on there to be competition, no matter how creative your Gesch? ftsidee is. The experiment, a part of your car wash can Gesch? Drive ft better than the competition will be a difficult task, it is often better to focus on planning, different and competing with them less directly. K can? They serve a particular niche market like? Older people, which is not considered? K? You to place a unique operations / marketing / sales strategy with a mobile approach? Even if you do not compete directly in your N? He senses someone sell the same, or anything similar products / services, you have f indirect competitors? R the substitute products / services. If you indicate in your plan there is no competition saw that they either f no market? R your product or you have not done your research.

Ideally, you want find information m?? over at least three but not more than five f? competitors. List information is? About who they are, as long as they have in the business? Ft, location, products or services offered, perception? About the pricing, Quality, etc. and compare your advantages and disadvantages. If the information you are looking for is not avail online? Gbar, k? Sun have to do you can m?, You are a customer to get some of this information.

Distribution – How do you get the product to the customers: By looking at your market and the competition is, you will have an idea of how your product to get them . Perhaps through your research you find a strategic advantage? F r customers that do not serve the competition.

researched advertising strategy with the steps above, is the advertising strategy. The advertising strategy is where most entrepreneurs, how they go the blanket statement that, to advertise in the newspaper, radio and / or television without thinking through the process or use the customer does not. The advertising strategy provides a map as you reach your market in the m? Were like an efficient way. Advertising is expensive, vern? Nftig to use.

T?r with sales projections. This figure is likely to be wrong and that’s ok. What m? You like a figure backed up with reasonable data. Just grabbing a number out of the air make you say $ 300,000 will not work. There are too many sources of help that come with this number also:

Trade Journals Groups
Autow? Tion in? Similar demographic areas
< br /> Industry experts Census data

Pricing The effects of pricing play a big role e how your product perceived by the market. Price may be too low compared to the competition and your product k? Nnte as cheap and unreliable? Perceived ssig. Price too high with the features and benefits of your product and some customers come through the T? R. While this is a complex problem, here are a few things to keep in mind.
Make k can? a profit at any price you have to make the sale.
If you m? have want, lower costs and “Get your foot in the T?” r “can it be better to zun discounts or coupons? chst until your company is to provide better known.
Did you f no longer afraid? r your product or service make than the competition, if you have to offer more value.
Pricing is the easiest of the marketing mix to change?. You can find out k? That a big competitor, he under-priced, you are sure you can not make a profit and wash your car goes out of the Gesch? Ft.

Management Staff &
described in this section w? rde who manage the Gesch ft? on a t? resembled base and strategic direction (if positions are separate) is. Each of these people have to m? A brief biography are included as well as a curriculum vitae in the appendix. Try to show how the experience and the education of these people are able to successfully Execute? Lead the strategy and business plan to be successful. Often, the Eigent? Mer not the specific experience f? R Gesch this? Ft, so it is very important to consider their professional experience in others and explain Ren? As f? R making a successful operation. Subsequently? End is a short tang? Herbs of employees is in order, including normal: What positions need to
m? Executed? Filled
When they are executed again? Be filled (this is in the developing? change financial forecasts, as you have some employees m? glicherweise important step needed to start)
How much they daf? paid r (payroll taxes, and you calculate sch and keeping your 15% if not sure)

It is also recommended that the f and professional consultant? r your business. These people go Ren?
Board

Consultants Accountants Rechtsanw? Lte

Bankers mentors

Operations & Location
The operations and location section of the plan shows how to make yourself or buy your product and information? about your location.

Operations – explanation? Ren you how and where your products or services get be taken?. A couple of points that works in your plan include
How to operate your car, wash the steps in your service are?
Who are your suppliers?
What f the conditions and lead time? for this product have?

Location – Location is where you will ftst Gesch? of activity. If you are in the classic, I can not my position until I have a loan so I can not finish my business plan scenario list of what you are looking for in a building of flats, together with the average prices or rents and number pad features get a little only f? r the case. A few things hinzuzuf? Conditions:
Department of Transportation traffic count – most states have to show this information online, how many cars pass each day your location.

Specifications How big? is

where there are specific size? f nde? r this property
N? he lies to suppliers, street en fen, airports?, railroads and transit centers, etc .

Zoning Average Utilities – Make sure you get the last 12 months by the Electric Company when the Submit of flats had been occupied. This will be k? nnte an expensive lesson from a dishonest landlord. If you have it? Opening a new location, try it with other car wash operators in a non-wettbewerbsf? To speak HIGEN space to a Sch? For Tzung
Add pictures? Gene to the plant < br /> F? gene a floor plan of the plant
purchase price or rent / lease
go ? ren sale / rent / lease agreement in the plant
If construction or renovation m? you must hrungszeichen Beg?-year since this is one area, the h f? frequently? r the cost diff? protected.

Financial Projections Financial projections are placed at the end of your business plan before the system but a very critical St? ck on the plan. The three “must-have financial statements are a cash flow statement, a profit and loss statement and a balance sheet. The information provided accord already in the narrative part of the business plan must be to the financial projections?. Most of the financial projections for three years. It is a good idea to have a Notes & Assumptions Financial Projections page, both go? to help ensure Ren that all your numbers come through and provide a detailed list to clear f? r offer the reader.

Notes & Assumptions Financial Projections

loans Break out any loan (charges building, equipment, inventory)

Amount Interest Rate
L? length
And each monthly costs not in the business plan narrative
cost of goods / inventory

Advertising Employee L? hne

License & Insurance overcharges discussed

Miscellaneous fees rent / property taxes
Repair & Maintenance

Supplies Telephone Utilities Vehicle costs etc.

All what others have in the financials that are not in the ore? hlung

Financial Projection sections

Startup Expenses – These expenses are all explain? rt, you will emerge before he wash? opening of your car. It is recommended that quotes for Verf? tion or are in the system f? r the gr? are? eren parts included. It is also recommended that your numbers, as some pad always unexpected expenses that were not recorded will be.

sources and uses of funds – This section describes how the loan money will be used (inventory, Autow? tion, repairs and improvements, working capital, etc) and the provision of IT (bank, investor or Eigent? mer). You will probably m? need to 20% of injecting your own money and maybe more, depending on risk assessment of the company and the PERSONAL finances.

Cash Flows – The cash flow statement is one of the most important parts of your business plan. It shows a schedule f? r the money comes in the Gesch? fte and expenses that are paid and whether you have enough money to have the Gesch? acquired ft sustainable w? during the warm months, the cost w cover? during the winter months m? have to. Every part of your business plan is important, but nothing it is one thing, if you from the Cash Run. Should this number be negative, one must either increase revenue, reduce costs and more money. your cash flow statement is usually three years, with the first year analyzing the monthly figures and sp? Teren years by quarter. RESTRICTED Not be with the cash flow statement? chtert, since it only to look to a future in your checking account.

Profit & Loss – This statement, although ? Similar presented the cash flow statement, but j in year examined the impact of non-cash expenses such as depreciation and amortization on a balance sheet? overview over the operations of the Get Your Speed? ft.

; balance – The balance sheet is a summary of the value of all Verm? asset value, debt and equity f? r a company at the end of each year. A balance sheet is often described as a “snapshot” of a company’s financial performance and shareholder value over time show.

Personal Financial Statement – If you are looking for financing at the bank any person who is a 20% or more than Eigent? merstellung m have to? is a personalized financial? provide overview to show how effective they are at managing your money. This statement shows your Verm? conditions (Pr? Fung & savings accounts, cd’s ira, 401K, valuables, home car, etc) and Verm? assets ( mortgage, credit card bills, installment accounts, etc)

plant equipment items are various pieces of information that will help your case to make. details, and studies in your business plan used, for example:
quotes f? r article? about $ 500
Lebensl? UFE the F? hrungsteams

Industry Research demographic data and trends />
leases and treaties? ge
Letters Supporting of

There is a lot to creating your business plan but is definitely your Gesch? ft st? Amplifier. While it may seem easier to have someone write your plan, there is no substitute, to write it yourself. This is your Gesch ft? and by writing it you yourself a better understanding? ndnis f? r Your Speed? ft and strategies f? have r success. There are also lots of free business plan templates and workbooks avail on the web? facilitate gbar you started. You can k? this started to get help creating your business plan and then? you change it f? r Gesch wash your car? ft.

F? r f more free articles and resources? r the size? ndung a car wash at www. StartingACarWash. com . Dar? out about k? business plan can help at www. TheBusinessPlanFactory. com

Free Car Wash Business Plan for Loans

Obtaining Business Financing

When obtaining a business loan for a car wash business, it is imperative that you have a properly structured business plan that will assist you in showcasing how you intend to operate your Car Wash, how the business will operate, how you intend to market the business, the anticipated financial results of your company, and how you intend to repay your debt obligations. This sample loan business plan will provide you with the framework that you need in order to acquire a business loan for starting or expanding this type of business.

Executive Summary

Introduction

When obtaining a business loan for a car wash, it is imperative that your business plan has a clear and concise executive summary that provides an outline of what are seeking to accomplish, how much capital you are seeking to raise, the management biography of the business owner, and an overview of the anticipated profit and loss statements of the business. Here is an example of how the title paragraph should be written:

Car Wash, Inc. (“the Company”) is seeking a business loan of $100,000 in order to launch the operations of a car wash that will be based in San Francisco, California. The Company was founded in (Insert Year). The business was founded by Mr. John Doe.

Products and Services

In the next segment of the business loan and business planning document, you should showcase the products and services that you will be providing to the general public. For instance:

The Car Wash will provide customers with the ability to quickly have their cars exteriors and interiors cleaned by the Company’s professionally trained staff. The business will not have an automated drive through car wash, but rather individuals will wash and clean the car by hand. The business will generate revenues through the services rendered by the Company’s staff as well as through the sale of car care products.

Business Loan Terms

Now it is time to discuss the anticipated terms of the business plan that you are seeking. An example paragraph of how this is stated:

At this time, Mr. Doe is seeking a conventional business loan in the amount of $100,000. The interest rate, loan terms, and loan covenants are to be determined during negotiation. However, this business plan assumes that the business will receive a seven year business loan with a seven percent interest rate due on the outstanding principal balance.

Management Biography

Now that the summary of the business has been provided, it is time to provide a brief overview of the owner of the business. An example paragraph summing up the owner is as follows:

Mr. Doe is a highly experienced business person that has years of experience regarding the direct ownership and management of business. He will be able to effectively bring the operations of the Car Wash to profitability while ensuring that the business loan’s payments and its covenants are met at all times.

Financial Statements

The most important thing to your lender when applying for a business loan is how you intend to repay the bank. In this section of the business plan, you should provide an overview of the finance’s of the business discussing the anticipated revenues, expenses, and profits/losses. You can also discuss the applicable collateral within the business plan that will be used to secure your business financing.

Expansion Plans

One of the most important aspects of your business plan is how you intend to expand the business over a three to five year period. Banks and finance companies always want to see that the business will experience a moderate to strong level of growth. This is especially true in business lending because as your business grows the cash flow that secures your business loan will decrease proportionality against your monthly credit obligations. An example of how this is stated is as follows:

The Car Wash will continue to expand through organic means including increasing the Company’s advertising budget via the reinvestment into the after tax cash flows of the business. Additionally, if the business is highly successful then the Company may seek to establish additional Car Wash locations after the third year of operations.

The Financing

Use of Business Loan Proceeds

In this section of the business plan you should focus on how the proceeds of the business loan will be used. An example of this would be as follows:

Car Wash Establishment – $50,000
Car Wash Equipment and FF&E – $10,000
Working capital – $40,000

Management Equity

In this section of the business plan you should discuss the percentage ownership of the business among the owners of the business. For example:

Mr. Doe will own 100% of Car Wash, Inc.

Board of Directors

When applying for business financing, the bank will also want to know who serves as the board of directors. For small businesses, usually the owner serves as the director of the business. An example of how this is worded:

Mr. Doe will be the sole director of Car Wash, Inc.

Exit Strategy

Any bank or financing company is also going to want to know what you intend to do with the business over a set period of time. Many business owners will develop and expand a business with the intent to sell the company to a third party at a later time. When drafting this part of the business plan you should focus on what you intentions are in regards to potentially selling the business. This is often worded as:

Mr. Doe would most likely sell the Car Wash to a third party for a significant earnings multiple. Car wash businesses usually sell for approximately one to three times earnings given the financial strength of the business. In this event, the business would be sold by a business broker and the business loan sought in this plan would be repaid according to the covenants of the business loan agreement.

Products and Services

When developing a business plan that is appropriate for obtaining a business loan or other business credit facility you need to clearly showcase the services or products that you will be offering to the general public. An example of how this section is worded goes as follows:

As stated in the executive summary, the Car Wash will provide general car cleaning (of both the interior and exterior of a vehicle) to the general public within its San Francisco based market. The business will generate significant high margin revenues from these services.

Additionally, the business will generate additional streams of revenue from the sale of car care products that customers can use at home.

Industry and Market Analysis

The Current State of the Economy

It is important to let your financial institution know that you are well apprised of the financial situation of the general economy when you are applying for a business loan. This is especially true in today’s environment where lending has become more difficult and will remain more difficult in the foreseeable future. Specifically, you should gear this section of the business plan analysis towards the industry that you are operating within. For example:

The current economy has remained difficult over the past few years. However, Car Wash businesses typically operate with a strong state of economy stability as these businesses provide a broad level of car cleaning services with a relatively low pricing point. As such, the Car Wash will be able to remain profitable and cash flow positive at all times despite the current state of the economy.

The Car Wash Industry

In addition to providing your business loan officer with an understanding of the general economy, it is important that you showcase that you have an equal understanding of the industry in which you are operating within. As such, you will need to provide you business loan institution of a brief overview of your industry and any potential changes that may affect the way that your company does business. An example of how an industry overview is as follows:

There are over 13,600 car washing establishments in the United States. These businesses produce over $4 billon dollars a year in gross receipts. Additionally, the business employs over 124,000 people, and generates payroll figures of $1.2 billion dollars a year. The industry has experienced a tremendous rate of growth over the last ten years. The car washing industry from 2000 to 2005 experienced growth of more than 18% over the five year period. This industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the United States.

Target Market

In this section of the business loan application and business plan analysis, you should focus on the demographics of your localized market (or national market if applicable). This section should discuss how many people live in your area, the anticipated number of people that would require the use of Car Was businesses, the median household income of people living in the area, poverty line statistics, and any applicable laws that would apply to your operation of the Car Wash.

Competition

Many people that are developing new businesses or expanding existing businesses often feel that their business does not have any competition or limited competition at best. However, this is almost never the case. Unless you have re-invented the wheel – you will have competition. When applying for a business loan, you should clearly showcase your competition in your business plan. This is especially important to your banker as they will be able to gauge your ability to be successful in your targeted market. Many business loan underwriters will aggressively confirm that competitive nature of your local market and your local industry.

When drafting this section of the plan you should heavily discuss the competitive advantages that you intend to have over your competition.

Marketing Plan

In addition to all of the above information that we have covered, your business loan officer is also going to want to know how you intend to market your business to the general public. Most people do not quite understand how to effectively market their business outside of prominent signage or flyer distribution. When applying for a business loan (again in this difficult lending climate), your banker is going to want to see that you have a clear methodology of how you intend to market your services or products to the general public. In this section of the business plan – we will overview how to showcase your services/products to the general public.

Marketing Overview Example

The Car Wash will place prominent signage on the facility to draw a significant amount of foot traffic.
The business will maintain listings in the Yellow Books.
The Car Wash will also maintain an internet website that showcases the Company’s operations, hours of operation, and relevant contact information.

Marketing Strategies Overview

Additionally, you will be required to further drill down (in your business plan) how you intend to implement your strategies when you launch or expand your business’s operations. In this section of the business loan and business plan documents, you should amplify the bullet points from the section above. For instance:

The Car Wash, Inc. intends to use a number of strategies that will create instant traffic and customer flow to the Company’s location. These strategies include not only using prominent facility and road signage, but also distributing flyers to people that fall into he Company’s targeted demographics. The business will also regularly take out advertisements in localized newspapers that showcase the Company’s hours of operations, car washing services, and specials that are occurring within the Car Wash’s location on a regular basis..

The business will also maintain a highly informative website that showcases the Car Wash’s services, its hours of operation, service information, licensure information, and other relevant information in regards to the Company’s services. This website will be listed on major search engines such as Google as many people now use the internet to locate local businesses.

The Financial Plan

Beyond any other part of your business loan application or business plan, the financials section of these documents are what matters most when applying for a business loan or any other type of credit facility. Ultimately, this section of the business plan showcases not only what your anticipated profitability will be, but also how you intend to repay the funds that you have borrowed through your business financing facility. An example of how this section is structure is as follows:

Assumptions

Car Wash, Inc. will have an average annual growth rate of 10% per year.
Mr. Doe will acquire $100,000 through a business loan in order to launch the operations of the business.

Proforma Financials for a Business Loan

Now it is time to showcase how you intend to repay your loan, generate a profit, and increase the book value of your business over a three to five year period. BusinessPlansForLoan.com has developed an easy to use financial model that you can use when drafting out the financial model for your business plan and business loan application. Through your business loan application, you will be required to have the following:

Profit and Loss Statement for your Car Wash
Cash Flow Analysis for the Car Wash
Balance Sheet for the Car Wash
Business Loan Amortization Tables

Before embarking on writing a business plan for starting a car wash, a definition of what a business plan is in order. A business plan is a document to identify an opportunity, research why this opportunity is profitable and the steps needed to capitalize on the opportunity. The business plan can be a formal document or it can be written on the back of a napkin but the mere act of writing the idea down forces you to get the idea out of your head and on paper which helps find hidden business flaws and makes you think carefully about each phase of your business.

Creating a business plan is something anyone can do, even if you don’t know anything about business or finances. Even though the business plan is critical to getting the idea off of the ground, many entrepreneurs procrastinate when it comes to preparing a written plan. If you don’t know anything about business or finances, this is the best time to begin learning as the chances of your business being successful will be limited without this knowledge. Just as a builder won’t begin construction without a blueprint, entrepreneurs shouldn’t rush into new ventures without a plan. The old saying that “those who fail to plan, plan to fail” is very relevant when talking about starting a business. SBA’s statistics claim over half of new businesses fail in the first three years and the common factor is poor planning or under-capitalization (which is also poor planning).

Getting Started
The first step in creating a business plan is just getting started. Writing the business plan may seem overwhelming at first, but if you break the plan down to bite sized pieces and work on one section at a time won’t seem as daunting. Begin with what you know first and describe your business and your product or services. Work towards the more difficult subjects such as marketing, operations and financials. Don’t worry about it being perfect now, just get the concepts on paper – expand and refine later. If you get stuck on a section in the plan, skip it for now and come back later when you have more details.

Who is your audience?
When writing your car wash business plan, you need to keep in mind who your intended audience is and why you are writing the plan. Why? A plan for the bank will be less interested in the exit strategy and return on investment than one for equity investors. Additionally, a plan for written for internal use will be different than one looking for financing as a bank is not necessarily interested in detailed operations of the business.

Structure
Business plans tend to have a lot of elements in common. While there is not a format that all business plans follow, there are generally accepted guidelines that most follow as the order in which the subjects flow are not random. The Business Description of a business plan is aimed at painting a picture of your business and why this business will be successful. The Marketing, Management and Operations sections are researched and a strategy of how your business will compete and operate is developed. Last financial projections show in numbers what you explained in the business plan for the sales and expenses.

Breaking these three major sections down even further, a business plan consists of six key components:

Executive Summary
Business Description
Marketing
Managers & Employees
Operations & Location
Financial Projections
In addition to these sections, a business plan should also have a cover, title page and table of contents.

How Long Should Your Business Plan Be?
The answer that nobody liked in school applies to a business plan which is, “as long as it needs to be”. The more complex a business or the more sophisticated investors or funds requested will increase the length of a plan. An average car wash business plan narrative should be 4-15 pages plus financials and appendix items.

Business Plan Outline

Executive Summary
The executive summary is the first part of the business plan but is the last to be written. It gives the reader a quick glance of what your business proposal is about and what you are asking for. This part is critical as most readers will scan this section before deciding whether to read further.

The executive summary should typically be about one-half of a page in length and include what you would cover in an elevator pitch such as:
Explain the condensed version of the business concept
Product description or service proposition
This section should emphasize any unique features or benefits that what is currently in the industry or area, aka why would someone buy your product over the competition.
The demographics of your market
The Management team
When the anticipated start date is
Your equity position
How much are you asking for

Concise is the key in the executive summary. You will go into more detail later in the business plan.

Business Description
The purpose of the business description is to objectively describe the car wash business details and future potential include:
Mission
What the business does
Description of products and/or services
Industry information
Business Organization
Status of the business (start-up, expansion or purchasing)
Current and future goals

Any facts or figures should be noted and sources included in the business plan. This information is important should you need to defend your data and assumptions. The business description is where you are trying to paint a picture of the potential of your business along with the facts to support it. Try to inject energy and excitement to get the reader enthusiastic about the idea, without going overboard of course.

After describing the business, it is time to describe and additional products or services your car wash is selling. Keep in mind that it is important to show how your products and services are better than the competition. If you don’t have a good answer than you should rethink your strategy. What is it about your car wash that is going to get the customer to change doing business with the competition?

Marketing
A very important part of your business plan is the marketing section. Regardless of the quality of your products and your services, your business will be lost in the clutter of advertising. If you don’t know your customers, how will they ever find you? All of this begins with doing some research.

Customers: Who Is Your Market
The first step is to determine who you are going to sell to by identifying common characteristics of your market such as age, income, race, religion, education, interests and/or geographic locations. While everyone will want to wash their car product how are you going to effectively advertise to everyone and still make a profit? What you need to do instead is determine the group or groups of people who are most likely to use your car wash services and market to them. After all you are trying to generate a positive return on your marketing dollars, so use them wisely.

Competition
In today’s ultracompetitive marketplace, there is going to be competition, no matter how creative your business concept is. Attempting to run a portion of your car wash business better than the competition may be a difficult challenge so it is often better to focus on planning on being different and competing with them less directly. Can you serve a particular market niche such as the elderly that isn’t being looked at? Can you identify a unique operations/marketing/distribution strategy with a mobile approach? Even if you don’t have direct competition in your area meaning someone selling the same or similar products/services, you will have indirect competition for replacement products/services. If you indicate in your plan there is no competition it will be viewed that there is either no market for your product or you have not done your research.

Optimally you will want information on at least three but no more than five competitors. List information about who they are, how long they have been in business, location, products or services offered, perception on pricing, quality, etc. and compare your advantages and disadvantages. If the information you are looking for is not available online, you may need to pretend you are a customer to get some of this information.

Distribution – How Will You Get the Product To The Customer: By looking at who your market and competition is, you will have an idea of how to get your product to them. Perhaps through your research you will find a strategic advantage to serve the customer that the competition does not.

Promotional Strategy
With the above steps researched, the promotional strategy follows. The promotional strategy is where most entrepreneurs fail as they use the blanket statement that they are going to advertise in the newspaper, radio and/or television without thinking through the process or the customer. The promotional strategy provides you a map of how you are going to reach your market in the most efficient manner possible. Advertising is expensive, use it wisely.

Sales Projections
On of the more difficult areas of the business plan is coming up with sales projections. This number is probably going to be wrong and that’s ok. What you want is a figure backed up with justifiable data. Just grabbing a number out of the air saying you will make $300,000 won’t work. There are many sources to help come up with this number including:
Industry journals
Trade groups
Car washes in similar demographic areas
Industry experts
Census data

Pricing
The effects of pricing play a large role on how your product is perceived in the marketplace. Price too low compared to the competition and your product could be perceived as cheap and unreliable. Price too high with the features and benefits of your product and few customers come through the door. While this is a complex issue, here are a few things to keep in mind.
Make sure you can make a profit at whatever price you are selling at.
If you want to have lower costs and “get your foot in the door” it may be better to offer discounts or coupons initially until your business is better known.
Don’t be afraid to charge more for your product or service than the competition if you have something of more value to offer.
Pricing is the easiest of the marketing mix to change. You may find that a large competitor will under price you to ensure you can’t make a profit and your car wash goes out of business.

Management & Employees
In this section you would describe who is going to manage the business on a daily basis as well as provide strategic direction (if these positions are separate). Each of these people need to have a brief biography included as well as a resume in the appendix. Try to show how the experience and education of these people will be able to successfully execute the strategy in the business plan and succeed. Many times the owner may not have the specific experience for this business, so it is very important to pull their other professional experience in and explain how it will make for a successful operation. Next, a brief explanation of the employees is in order including:
What positions need to be filled
When they need to be filled (This is important in developing financial projections as you may have some employees come on after you start)
How much they get paid (Be sure to calculate payroll taxes as well, estimate 15% if not sure)

It is also recommended to add the professional and advisors to your business. These people include:
Board of directors
Consultants
Accountants
Attorneys
Bankers
Mentors

Operations & Location
The operations and location section of the plan illustrates how you are going to make or acquire your product and information about your business location.

Operations – Explain how and where your products or services are made. A few points to include in your plan
How does your car wash operate, what steps are in your service?
Who are your suppliers?
What are the terms and lead time for this product?

Location – Location is where you will be doing business out of. If you are in the classic, I can’t get my location until I get a loan so I can’t finish my business plan scenario, list what features you are looking at in a building along with average prices or rents and pad that number a little just in case. A few things to add:
Department of Transportation traffic count – most states have this information online to show how many vehicles pass your location each day.
Building description
What is the size
Where is it located
Specific reasons for this property
Proximity to suppliers, roads, airports, railroads, and shipping centers, etc.
Zoning
Average utilities – Be sure to get the last 12 months from the electric company if the building had been occupied. This could be an expensive lesson from a dishonest landlord. If you are opening a new location, try to talk with other car wash operators in a non-competitive area to get a estimate
Add pictures to the appendix
Add a floor plan to the appendix
Purchase price or monthly rent/lease
Include sales/rent/lease agreement in appendix
If building or renovating be sure to include quotes as this is an area frequently underestimated in costs.

Financial Projections
Financial projections are placed at the end of your business plan, before the appendix but it a very critical piece to the plan. The three must-have financial statements are a cash flow statement, a profit and loss statement and a balance sheet. The information already provided in the narrative portion of the business plan must match the financial projections. Most financial projections are three years in length. It is a good idea to include a Notes & Assumptions to Financial Projections page to both help make sure all of your numbers come through and provide an itemized list to provide clarity for the reader.

Notes & Assumptions to Financial Projections
Loans
Break out each loan (building, equipment, inventory)
Amount
Interest rate
Length
And any monthly costs not discussed in business plan narrative
Cost of goods/inventory
Advertising
Employee wages
Insurance
License & fees
Miscellaneous
Professional fees
Rent/property taxes
Repairs & maintenance
Supplies
Telephone
Utilities
Vehicle expense
Etc.
Anything else that needs to be explained in the financials that is not in the narrative

Financial Projection Sections

Startup Expenses – These are all expenses you will incur prior to opening your car wash. It is recommended to have quotes available or in the appendix for the larger items. It is also recommended that you pad your numbers some as there will always be unexpected expenses that were not accounted for.

Sources and Uses of Funds – This section details how the loan money will be used (inventory, car wash equipment, repairs and improvements, working capital, etc) and who is providing it (bank, investor or owner). You will likely need to be injecting 20% of your own money and maybe more depending on the risk assessment of the business and your personal finances.

Cash Flows – The cash-flow statement is one of the most important pieces of your business plan. It shows a schedule of the money coming into the business and expenses that need to be paid and whether you have enough cash to sustain the business gained during the warm month to cover the costs during the winter months. Every part of your business plan is important, but none of it means a thing if you run out of cash. Should this number be negative, you either need to raise sales, reduce expenses or have more cash. Your cash flow statement will typically be three years in length with the first year analyzing the monthly figures and later years by quarter. Don’t be intimidated with the cash flow statement as it is merely a future look into your checking account.

Profit & Loss – This statement, while similar to the cash flow statement but illustrated annually looks at the effects of non-cash charges such as depreciation and amortization to get an accounting overview of the operations of your business.

Balance Sheet – The balance sheet is a summary of the value of all assets, liabilities and equity for an organization at the end of each year. A balance sheet is often described as a “snapshot” of a company’s financial condition and will show the value of the business over time.

Personal Financial Statement – If you are looking at bank financing every person who will have a 20% or more ownership position will need to provide a personal financial statement to show how effective they are at managing your money. This statement will show your assets (checking & savings accounts, cd’s ira, 401K, valuables, home, vehicle, etc) as well as assets (mortgages, credit card bills, installment accounts, etc)

Appendices
Appendix items are various pieces of information that help make your case. Include details and studies used in your business plan; for example:
Quotes for items over $500
Resumes of the management team
Industry research
Demographic data and trends
Maps/floorplans/blueprints of location
Leases and contracts
Letters of support

There is a lot to creating your business plan but will definitely make your business stronger. While it may seem easier to have someone else write your plan, there is no substitute to writing it yourself. This is your business and by writing it yourself you will have a better understanding of your business and strategies for success. There are also many free business plan templates and workbooks available on the web to help you get started. You can use these to help get started creating your business plan and then modify it for your car wash business.

For more free articles and resources for starting a car wash are available at www.StartingACarWash.com.

Additionally, business plan help can be found at www.TheBusinessPlanFactory.com