About this Assignment

Small businesses account for 99.9% of all firms and are directly responsible for more than half of the new jobs created in the United States. In this course, you have learned about small business models, financing, forecasting, accounting, and management. For this assignment, you will develop a 2,000-2,500-word small business plan.

Prompt

To start, you should create a fictional small business. You will then write a paper that incorporates all of the following components:

• Business Description: Summarize your vision for the business. Explain your business model (e.g., direct sales, brick-and-mortar, click-and-mortar, or franchise) and describe the products or services your company will provide.

• Industry Background: Provide a brief description of the background/history of the industry you have chosen for your business.

• Financial Plan: Identify the short-term and long-term financial goals for your small business. Explain your plan to obtain financing for the business.

• Sales Forecast: Provide an immediate (six-month), short-term (two-year), and long-term (five-year) sales forecast for your small business.

• Feasibility Plan: Develop a feasibility plan to determine if your business can meet operating expenses. The feasibility plan should identify the target market for your business, identify and analyze your direct and indirect competitors, identify the organizational competence of your business, and perform a financial analysis to determine the viability and profitability of your company.

• Exit/Succession Strategy: Describe how you will determine if the business is failing and what your exit strategy will be should your business fail. In addition, describe the succession strategy you will use if you decide to exit the business.