Jumpstart Cafe Bistro - Product Strategy, Customer Service - Business Plan Example

JumpStart business plan Table of Contents Product plan 3 Product strategy 3 service plan 4 Marketing plan 4 Market analysis 4 The competition 6 Marketing strategy 6 Management plan 7 Operating plan 7 Locations and facilities 8 Purchase and inventory management 8 Works cited 9 Name of the student Name of the professor Course Number: Date of submission: Product plan The JumpStart Cafe Bistro is a restaurant as well as a cafe which sells both upscale and moderately priced food. The cafe would be located at Malibu in California. The cafe aims to attract both the casual and heavy dining market. The menu will be mainly based on American cuisine. The restaurant would also serve a few European and Chinese dishes. In California there is a huge market for casual dinners. Many people consider going out to cafes and restaurants for breakfast and evening snacks. JumpStart is therefore expected to have a potentially good market. The restaurant will have all necessary licenses and permits. Since the restaurant would be serving alcohol, special permit is required to be acquired. Health and safety needs and insurance related requirements will also be adequately fulfilled (Kuratko and Hodgetts 25). Product strategy The idea for starting this restaurant had risen during the conference held before the Annual California Food Festival. A number of restaurant owners were present at this conference. During the conference many individuals stated that Malibu lacked quality casual dining restaurants and cafes which are not very upscale. The project for developing the restaurant is currently at its introduction stage. The restaurant will mainly be following the product differentiation strategy. Since there are other restaurants present in the same area, it is suitable for JumpStart to use the product differentiation strategy. As per this strategy the restaurant will be offering American as well as other types of cuisine such as Chinese and European. There are not many restaurants located in Malibu offering American as well as other types of cuisine under the same roof. The chefs in the restaurant will not only prepare exquisite American, Chinese and European dishes but also invest time towards discovering new types of dishes. In this respect emphasis will be put upon combining American food with Chinese flavors. The restaurant will be serving high quality beverages which are branded. The restaurant will also be serving coffee manufactured under its own brand name “JumpStart”. The required patents for this have already been procured (Zimmerer, Scarborough and Wilson 75). Customer service plan The employees of the restaurant will be committed towards providing high quality services to the customers. Since the restaurant will have a capacity of accommodating 200 people at any given time, consumers will not be required to spend much time waiting. Adequate number of workers will also be employed to ensure that all tables in the restaurant remain clean round the clock. Special emphasis will be given to health and hygiene factors. Customer’s complaints and grievances will be addressed with high priority. The restaurant also plans at maintaining a record system of its privileged and regular customers. Records will be maintained in respect of customer birthdays and anniversaries. Special greeting will be passed to the customers on such dates (Nah, Lau and Kuang 285). Marketing plan JumpStart aims to attract both high and low ended customers. JumpStart expects to have footfall of both heavy and light dinners as it will function both as a restaurant and a cafe. JumpStart would be located in one of the most populated areas of Malibu and will have close proximity to the beach. The area is expected to have a high footfall of tourists and citizens, especially during the weekends and holiday season. In order to promote the restaurant, JumpStart has considered putting advertisements in newspapers and magazines. It will also provide discount coupons and different offers on lunch and dinner as part of its promotional scheme. The restaurant will also host a ceremony on its opening where it would invite a number of celebrities and a large number of common people. The restaurant will follow an economy pricing model. According to this strategy the firm will price its dishes on the basis of the standard prices existing in restaurant industry. The economy pricing strategy also allows the restaurant to incorporate low prices as well (Stutely 65). Market analysis A successful business plan depends upon the correct identification of the target consumer group. Based upon this identification, a firm constructs its marketing plan. The manner in which a business promotes and markets itself may not appeal to all consumers of the market. Hence marketing tactics are required to be developed in a manner such that the targeted consumers can be attracted in a proper manner. Market analysis therefore involves defining ideal customers. The first criterion of defining target consumers is by their demographics. The demographics considered by JumpStart are by their age and income. JumpStart will not be targeting a particular age group. The restaurant targets to attract all age groups. In respect of income, the restaurant aims to attract the high as well as middle income group. The dishes and snacks served at the restaurant will be such that individuals belonging to all age groups can afford to dine at JumpStart. This is the reason why JumpStart adheres to economic pricing in the first place. The second criterion to consider is the psychographic profile of the consumers. This includes the personality, behavior and the preferences of the consumers. JumpStart primarily aims to target individuals who like American, European and Chinese food. Since the specialty of JumpStart would be American cuisine, individuals who like continental food are expected to visit the restaurant more often. Malibu has a large segment of population who prefer American as well as Chinese food. A mix of American and Chinese food under the same roof is expected to give JumpStart a distinctive competitive advantage. Individuals residing at Malibu are economically stable and majority individuals belong to the upper middle class and higher segments of the society. Hence price elasticity is seen to remain positive. This means that a slight increase or decrease in prices of the items served at JumpStart would not affect consumer behavior to a large extend (Doyle 299). In terms of the risk factors effecting business, both environmental and economic factors must be taken into consideration. Changes in the business environment may affect the restaurant business in a negative manner. For instance changes in the government regulations in respect of taxes and duties may increases the cost of services, leading to a decline in the number of consumers. Changes in the government policies in respect of price of commodities may alter the cash flows of a business. Additionally JumpStart is also required to comply with all health and safety regulations. High inflation rates existing in the economy may impact the excess cash reserves. As a result consumers may not be willing to spend on a having a luxurious lifestyle. Analysis of the business environment reveals that there exists a high potential of growth for JumpStart. The economy of California is quite stable and the growth rate existing in the economy is seen to be positively rising. Before any business plan gets developed it is important for firms to analyze the existing as well as future environmental scenarios. One of the potential threats likely to affect JumpStart is the entry of restaurants in the area. In order to tackle such a situation JumpStart is required to undertake diversification and attract consumers in new and innovative ways. Forecasting of the environment has also revealed that the inflation rates are likely to stay stable, unless there are massive economic crisis. However studies have revealed that even when the economic conditions are negative, Americans continue to spend the same amount for maintaining their lifestyle (Honig 258). The competition The restaurant industry is seen to be a highly essential part of the economy of California. Not only does it generate a substantial amount of revenue annually, the restaurant industry is also responsible for generating a number of employments. Dinning at restaurants is a common trend and every average American is seen to spend a substantial portion of his earnings upon restaurants. This has led to the prosperity of the restaurant business in the nation. The restaurant industry was also impacted less negatively during the financial crisis times. The competitors of JumpStart in Malibu are likely to Gladstone, Chart House and Duke’s Malibu. These restaurants have immense popularity and a large number of loyal customers. Hence drawing consumers from these restaurants is a challenge for JumpStart. The economic pricing policy adopted by JumpStart is expected to draw a number of consumers. Since the competitors of JumpStart are mainly high ended, it is expected that many price conscious consumers would be drawn towards JumpStart (Finch 35). Marketing strategy The marketing and promotional activities will be begun three weeks before the opening of the restaurant. Repeated advertisements in newspapers and magazines will be undertaken in order to promote the business. Special emphasis will be given towards promoting the opening ceremony where a number of celebrities and important government officials are likely to be present. The restaurant is planning to spend a quarter of a million dollars in promotional activities. A budget would also be prepared in respect of the project which allocates the financial resources for the development of the business. The budget would explicitly allocate the financial resources required to be spend upon promoting the business. The restaurant will acquire fresh stock from the neighboring markets. Food products would also be imported from Europe. Since the location of the restaurant easily accessible, bringing in food materials to the restaurant will not be a major issue. Since the restaurant would be following the economic pricing strategy, it is essential that the costs of operations are kept to low. Majority expenses are seen to be incurred in respect of asset and property acquisition. The break-even analysis reveals that the business is required to maintain a per unit price of $10 with an average sales units of 100,000 so as to earn positive break even. At the lower prices, the business will not be able to earn a positive break-even. The credit policies of the business would be to pay off creditors with a lag of 1 month. Accounts receivables would therefore be managed accordingly (Blackwell 40). Management plan The management team of the restaurant would include 5 administrators, 15 managers and 20 assistant managers. The administrators and managers will be responsible for different departments. The administrators would be recruited on the basis of experience and qualification. Managers and administrators are expected to have a strong career background in the hospitality industry. The restaurant will be having three directors, namely Mathew Smith, Andrew James and Richard Dawson. The shares investment in the business is held proportionately amongst these three individuals. Additionally the restaurant will have 30 waiters, 20 chefs and 5 cleaners. The compensation plan for the board members will be explicitly described in the restaurants memorandum. The directors would be liable to receive their compensation from the excess profits on the basis of their share of investment in the organization. The management would follow a permissive style of management whereby managers would be allowed to participate in the decision making processes. Adequate freedom will also be provided to managers for taking decision without remaining dependent upon administrators. The management and employee teams would be motivated through providing them with rewards and recognition when they perform well (Russell, Atchison and Brooks 123). Operating plan Managers will be responsible for maintaining swift flow of function. The management will be required to ensure that there are no lags in services so that customers are not required to wait for long for the food they order. Quality control measures include checking the quality of food materials brought into the restaurant. Locations and facilities The restaurant would be located at one of the most populated areas of Malibu. The restaurant has close proximity to the beach area and other important tourist locations of Malibu. The restaurant would be easily accessible by road for customers. There would also be adequate parking facilities available. The property will be purchased completely without any lease holding. Purchase and inventory management The kitchen supplies would be replenished time to time. Since food products are subject to deterioration with time, their quality would be frequently checked and accordingly replaced. Adequate cooling and heating facilities would be present to ensure the food products, vegetables and fruits used during the cooking process are of standard quality. The restaurant administrators would also focus upon building long term relations with suppliers, as their cooperation with the restaurant is highly important for its success in future (Kotler 132). Works cited Blackwell, Edward. ‘How to prepare a business plan.’ London: Kogan Page Publishers, 2004. Print. Doyle, Peter. "Value-based marketing." Journal of Strategic Marketing 8.4 (2000): 299-311. Print. Finch, Brian. ‘How to write a business plan.’ London: Kogan Page Publishers, 2013. Print. Honig, Benson. "Entrepreneurship education: Toward a model of contingency-based business planning." Academy of Management Learning & Education 3.3 (2004): 258-273. Print. Kotler, Philip. "Reinventing marketing to manage the environmental imperative."Journal of Marketing 75.4 (2011): 132-135. Print. Kuratko, Donald and Richard Hodgetts. ‘Entrepreneurship: A contemporary approach.’ Fort Worth: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001. Print. Nah, Fiona Fui-Hoon, Janet Lee-Shang Lau and Jinghua Kuang. "Critical factors for successful implementation of enterprise systems." Business process management journal 7.3 (2001): 285-296. Print. Russell, Roslyn, Mary Atchison and Robert Brooks. "Business plan competitions in tertiary institutions: encouraging entrepreneurship education."Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management 30.2 (2008): 123-138. Print. Stutely, Richard. ‘The definitive business plan: the fast-track to intelligent business planning for executives and entrepreneurs.’ New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2007. Print. Zimmerer, Thomas, Norman Scarborough and Doug Wilson. ‘Essentials of entrepreneurship and small business management.’ Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002. Print. Read More