DREAMS Wedding Consultants Business Plan - Assignment Example

DREAMS Wedding Consultants Wattle Street, Sydney DREAMS Wedding Consultants Business Plan Prepared on: 08/04/2016 The Business Business details Products/services: Dreams is a wedding planning and consultancy group that offers the following services to its clients: grooming lessons, setting up of events, confirmation of vendor services, attendance and coordination of rehearsals, supervision of both ceremonies and reception setup and budget planning. Our services consist of weddings planning, honeymoons set ups, anniversary consultations and planning, and receptions, budget planning as well as complete service referrals to florists, hair dressers, musicians and entertainers. Registration details Business name: DREAMS wedding consultants Trading name: DREAMS wedding consultants Location registered: Sydney Business structure: partnership Licenses & permits: Events permit, liquor and wine license permits, food business license Business location The company is based in Sydney Australia, along Wattle Street. There are other bridal and wedding firms within the area such as Nightingales Weddings and Couture Wedding Planning. Our strategic business location is meant to capture the audience already looking for wedding and bridal services. DREAMS thus intends to hit a very large customer base within the first months of operations. Organization chart Management & ownership The Chief executive officer of the company has experience in Events Organizing and has previously worked for 3 leading events organizing companies in Australia (Love 2 Love, Forte and Couture Wedding Planning). His experience is meant to bring on board a diverse and unique management style. The Deputy Chief Executive Officer has more than 5years experience in Events Organizing and Planning. Having a three year experience her position in management is a plus to DREAMS bid to success. The Fleet Manager will be in charge of the company’s fleet and car-hire services. The Chief Accountant of the corporation holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Master’s degree in Business Administration-Accounting option from University of Murdoch. She has over 3years experience and will be in charge of keeping the company’s book of accounts. The management of DREAMS is a well-rounded sort of management with personnel from diverse professional backgrounds which guarantees the Organizations success. Current staff Job Title Skills or strengths EVENTS MANAGER 10 years experience in events organizing having worked in 3 leading events companies. Bachelor’s degree in Events Management and Masters in Project Management. OPERATIONS MANAGER 3 years experience in outdoor catering and a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management. FLEET MANAGER 7 years experience at Pollmans Tours and a Bachelor’s degree in Fleet Management. CHIEF ACCOUNTANT Bachelor’s degree in finance and Masters Degree in Business Administration Personnel, Number and Duties At inception, DREAMS will recruit a limited number of employees majorly in its service and car hire business which are major and support services respectively. As the company grows, it will continually hire personnel on a need basis. With an experienced management team in place, Deams initial employees will be junior staff, i.e. 3 drivers for its starting car hire fleet, 2 cooks, 4 Events Assistant whose duties and responsibilities will be; Duties and Responsibilities of a Cook; To store and prepare food based on safe food handling techniques To plan for and purchase all the necessary supplies that is needed for the preparation of food. To keep daily documentation of menus. To maintain a kitchen that is safe, based on the international requirements for safety and hygiene Duties and Responsibilities of a Driver Pick passengers up and drive them to destinations in Dreams fleet. Assist passengers in carrying their luggage and in boarding the vehicles Keep records of transactions Keep the Fleet Management unit informed of all operations Clean, repair and service vehicles when needed Enlighten clients by providing information about the local area Duties and Responsibilities of an Events Organizer Organize quotations for catering / audio visual and any other special requirements. Collate information for delegate packs. Oversee function rooms and ensure that all set ups are correct. Collate absolute information, including agendas, guest list, speaker presentations and sponsor information. Collate all income and invoices relating to the event in order to produce a financial summary. Collate all delegate questionnaires and follow-up on any specific comments. Liaise with the printers on production and arrange delivery of packs. Recruitment, Training and promotion There is the need to hire and keep good employees so that the company can increase employee productivity through investing in the expansion of their skills (Robbins, 2013). Training is frequently well thought-out for new employees only. DREAMS will seek to correct this assumption by training existing employees to help them adjust to swiftly shifting occupational requirements in the industry. Rationale of Training and Development To improve employee morale and enhance the company’s competitive position through encouraging a team which is more efficient, effective and greatly motivated. To guarantee the expansion into new programs through ensuring that there is adequate human resources. To train the staff to be sufficiently knowledgeable thus enhancing the company's capability to assume and use new innovations in technology. To provide for the need for replacements in the case of human resources who may depart or move up in the organization. Benefits that can be accrued from training and developing employees include A boost in productivity. Decline in worker turnover. Increased efficiency which leads to gains in the organization. A decrease in the call for for supervision. Identifying Training Needs Dreams will perform an inventory of skills to establish the employees’ area of expertise in general. This inventory will facilitate the organization with the information to establish what skills are accessible in the present and what skills are needed for prospective development. Based on the current global market driven economy, Dreams will emphasize on seeking the opinion of customers so as to determine where the focus of training should be. Individual employees will have to operate based on the standard procedures put in place and will be evaluated as such. The existence of discrepancies between the actual and anticipated skill levels serve to identify a training need. Selection of Trainees The ability of employees to learn during training needs to be put into consideration in order to effectively design the training programs (Robbins, 2013). The employees additionally need to be motivated by the training experience. Dreams will carry out a careful evaluation of the employees to decide who to specifically train in what area than also carry out general training. Training Goals Through an assessment on the need for training, the goals for the training program can thus be developed. The objectives need to state the behavior and skills to be changed after the training. The goals will include the setting of milestones to assist the employee move from their current position to where the organization wants to be in future. Training Methods Dreams will utilize the following training methods. On-the-job training: the employees will be trained while they carry out their standard jobs so that time wastage is reduced. A plan needs to be developed for what needs to be taught then information should be passed onto the employees. Establishment of a timetable is vital to keep employees updated. Periodic evaluations also need to be carried out to in from employees on their progress. On-the-job techniques take account of orientations, training using job instructions, apprenticeships, job rotation and coaching and internships and assistantships among others. Orientations are usually carried out for new employees. For a new employee, the first days on the job are very important. Orientation training need to focus on the following topics: The mission of the company and its history The key members in the business. The key members in the different sections, and how the department helps realize the mission and goals of the company. Set of laws and regulations governing personnel in the organization. Presentations vary in different organizations from oral presentations to written presentations. Some have both. These orientations assist the newcomer to understand their new work place. Lectures are used to present training material verbally. The goal of lectures is to deliver a great deal of material to a lot of people (McKeachie, 2013). Training of an individual is less cost effective as compared to training a number of people. Given the fact that lecturing occurs one way, it is argued that it is one of the least effectual ways to instruct as the facilitator cannot measure the rat of attention or absorption of content (McKeachie, 2013). The challenge comes in when trying to ensure that the target audience understands what is being taught at the same level. Despite this, it is one of the most cost effective ways to deliver training. Role playing and simulation involve training methods that attempt to create a situation where the trainee has to make real life decisions (Robbins, 2013). The problems most likely to occur and their solutions are discussed. Role playing and simulation gives the employee experience and this is helpful to the trainee to come up with solutions so that in the case of the real problem occurring he or she is ready. The cost effectiveness of this technique has made it influential for use in marketing and management training. Job rotation involves moving an employee through a series of different jobs within the organization and/or among the different branches of the organization (Robbins, 2013). The strategy is vital as it means that one employee can handle various jobs effectively in case of absenteeism or when there is the need to move workers around for motivation. Apprenticeships involve an employee working under an experienced worker for quite a period of time. This training is helpful especially in nurturing production skills. The apprentice learns first hand from the skilled worker thus horning their skills to effectiveness. Internships and assistantships combine what the intern has learned theoretically in the classroom and what is in the real industry. Interns get hands on experience and additionally get to prove if what they have learnt in the classroom is correct and make alterations where necessary. Products/services Product/Service Description Price Wedding Planning Complete plan of the wedding food and drinks, entertainment, styling and the venue Standard : $5000 Other packages are based on time, activities and utilities Anniversary Consultation Advice and ideas on anniversary planning $ 1000 Grooming Lessons Instructions on etiquette, courtesy and grooming $ 300 per session Car Hire Transportation to various destinations and hire on wedding events. (car hire during a wedding is covered under the wedding planning price) Dependent on place and duration, lowest $500 Unique selling position Based on the market research, clientele anticipate the wedding planning services to be priced exorbitantly (Emel, 2014). Most of them therefore plan their budgets based on this information. Low prices are more often than not associated with services that are of poor quality. By providing a complete array of wedding services under one umbrella, DREAMS will present its customers the ease of getting all services in one area. These unique features provided by DREAMS are meant to justify the pricing of its services and products. Pricing Strategies Being at the startup stage, DREAMS will price its services in accordance to its maturity stage in order to attract customers. Some of the unique pricing strategies we intend to implement are; Penetration pricing Penetration pricing involves setting a deliberately low price to gain the interest of customers and thus put in a strong entry to the market (West, 2015). At first Dreams will utilize this method to gain the attention of customers. Premium pricing This type of pricing is where the prices of products are kept artificially high in order to get the niche of customers who prefer to buy services at a high price based on quality (West, 2015). Given the reputation of wedding planning and consultancy services to be high, Dreams intends to utilize this pricing method after gaining entry into the market. Growth potential: Entry and Growth Strategy Most wedding services have a limited line of services, choosing instead to outsource services from florists, hairstylists and caterers. Dreams intends to supply the full variety of services related to the wedding planning and execution as DREAMS. DREAMS is going to use the four controllable marketing categories to launch their business operations in the market. Product Price Place (distribution) Promotion During the initial stages of DREAMS operations, the 2nd (Price) and 4th (Promotion) will be varied significantly in order to hit high customer levels and achieve a short payback period on the Investment. In the Entry stage, there will be a Low price and high level promotion strategy. The low price is meant to attract customers and the high level of promotion to market and appeal to those probable clients in our target market. As our services enter into the Growth stage, there will be high level of pricing and low level of promotions. This is because the market is aware of our service and the pricing is meant to take advantage of the high number of sales resulting from the high promotions carried out during the entry stage. The low number of promotions is meant to ensure that the business does not incur too many expenses in marketing; the costs are directed towards other Investments in the company. This trend will persist on until the desired level of sales is attained and maintained by management. Research & development (R&D)/innovation activities Research and development is vital in a company to assist the actively changing environment of business where practices are dynamic (Cummings, 2014). Dreams plans to carry out research and implement various business ideas emergent in the market even in the form of test runs to evaluate customer response and thus plan for future company activities Risk management Risk Likelihood Impact Strategy Natural disaster Unlikely High Insure the company against risks Finance Unlikely High Carry out regular audits on the financials to ensure all reports are up to date and that the financial functions are carried out accordingly Employee uncertainties Likely Medium Motivate employees and ensure proper signing of contractual agreements between the management and the employees Technological risk Highly Likely High Research and development on new technological software and equipment to keep the organization up to date technologically Legal considerations The business will be required to have a business number for the organization, the goods and services tax consideration, a tax file number for the organization and a pay as you go withholding. These are the business considerations that are legally required in Australia to start a business. The permits required are Food business license liquor and wine license and an events permit. Insurance Workers compensation: [Provide details if you have workers compensation insurance? This is mandatory if you have employees.] Public liability insurance: [Provide details if you have public liability insurance? This covers any third party death or injury.] Professional indemnity: [Provide details if you have professional indemnity insurance? This covers any legal action taken out as a result of your professional advice.] Product liability: [Provide details if you have product liability insurance? This covers any legal action taken out as a result of injury, damage or death from your product.] cannot trade because of a particular event and are unable to make money?] Operations Production process Provide quality services; offer them on time and with finesse. Dreams has aligned its strategies with the company vision to make it an industry leader in the events market. Suppliers Our suppliers will include tent providers, chair companies, florists, dressmakers, venue coordinators, stylists and entertainers. Dreams intends to establish a perfect rapport with the suppliers to ensure that business runs smoothly. Trading hours Our trading hours are from 8 am to 5pm. During the events however, our hours are flexible to allow our clients to choose the time they want to have their event done. Communication channels Customers will be able to contact the company through our website dreams.org, where all contacts have been listed. Customers can contact us through the telephone, emails and fax. Payment types accepted Dreams will receive payment in various forms such as cash, credit cards and cheques. Sustainability plan Environmental/resource impacts Given the evolutionary nature of events, the current and most common theme in recent times are garden events (Benn, 2014). As such Dreams is faced with the challenge of exploiting green venues for their events. The continuous use of such ground encourages erosion as grass and vegetation wears away with time. Community impact & engagement Dreams as a company will assist the community in terms of employment thus giving the families income and a chance to better themselves, their children and their future. Strategies Dreams will implement the following strategies to minimize the impact to the environment form their activities. Recycling of water Use of less toxic cleaning agents in their operations Advocating for green events The Market Market research Target Market Segment Strategy DREAMS will tailor its services to brides and grooms to be and their immediate families. With competent personnel who have experience form previous companies, dreams will place itself as a commendable supplier of wedding planning services. As opposed to its competitors, Dreams will provide the complete range of wedding services at one place, a decision made entirely for the convenience of the customer. Market Needs In the wedding market, customers have the desire to have a completely perfect and unique wedding (Massimi, 2014). Most of the segment is with brides and grooms to be and family members who plan for the wedding as early as year before the event. More often than not these plans are hindered by differing opinions, and end up costing more than anticipated. The customers thus seek professional opinions to ensure that all expectations regarding the wedding are met and provided for accordingly (Bowie, 2013). Environmental/industry analysis Our Business is covered under the hospitality industry in Australia which is a booming industry in the country. Wedding consultancy is one line of business that has not been fully exploited. The industry potential is enormous with many companies only concentrating on wedding planning (Mullins, 2012). By virtue of our extended line of Business and services, Dreams is meant to cause a wave to the industry players. Most brides and grooms would want to wed over the holidays and during the warm seasons due to availability of people and the chance to exploit more on their wedding in terms of activities. Customer demographics Key customers Our key customers will be brides and grooms and their families Customer management We intend to gain the loyalty of our customers through providing them with a wide range of services from one location and which are tailored to their individual needs. S.W.O.T. analysis Strengths High quality and differentiated products and services provided in one single location. Good pricing with an assortment of packages to suit the different needs of customers. Strategic location with malls, near residential areas and thus bound to attract a lot of potential clients. Weaknesses The company is new in the region The nature of the industry makes it hard to provide a sample of services thus customers have to rely on word of mouth and media from previous events. Opportunities There is potential for growth in the industry due to increased numbers of people having their nuptials Threats Conservatism to certain ways of handling weddings which causes conflict between the clients and the service providers Competition from companies that have been practicing for a while. Competitors Being at its infancy stage, Dreams is yet to gain a competitive edge in Sydney and the company plans to rectify this by using the penetration strategy for pricing. Secondly, Dreams is offering a unique wedding package for both the bride, groom and the family which will ensure that the services are tailored according to their needs and thus gain customer loyalty. Competitor details Competitor Established date Value to customers Strengths Weaknesses Nightingales Weddings 1994 Unique quality Large market share Exorbitant prices Audrey and Angus Weddings and Events 2015 Convenience Strong relationships and partnerships with wedding vendors in Sydney Limited access to wedding vendors in Sydney Forte Catering and Events 1995 Unique quality Large market share Provision of similar types of services Advertising & sales Advertising & promotional strategy The goal of advertising is to promote a company’s product and services so that its sales go up (Shimp, 2013). Advertising additionally creates and further builds a brand identity for the product and/ or services. In addition, changes in products or introduction of new products are done through advertisements. The importance of advertisements has over the years increased and companies usually set aside funds to purely deal with the cost of advertising (Useem, 2014). The following are some of the reasons for advertising that Dreams will adopt: Dreams will use advertisements to increase sales of is wedding planning services The company will create and maintain its brand identity through adverts When there is the need to change a service package or introduce new services Dreams will substantially use advertisements. Various media in existence are used for the purposes of advertising. Dreams will utilize the following media: Print Advertising – this includes promotion of services and the brand through newspapers and magazines with the inclusion of brochures (Katz, 2014). The company will have to acquire the services of magazines and newspapers that are highly read to capture a huge audience. Outdoor Advertising – this includes promotion of services and the brand through billboards, tradeshows and events (Rosenberger, 2013). Wattle Street is that there are many billboards for hire thus Dreams will incorporate this as a tool for advertisement. Broadcast advertising – this includes promotion of services and the brand through television, radio and the internet (Stevens, 2013). Dreams will mostly use television and the internet to market given the high percentage of Australians using the internet and watching television. The use of graphic and sound pictures will create an attractive sample of the wedding experience for potential customers to buy into. Dreams will use the three methods mentioned above to advertise their services to their consumers. The Future Vision statement To be the leading wedding consultancy firm in Sydney and Australia at large. Mission statement To provide consumers with expansive and quality weddings, honeymoons, receptions, anniversary consultations, budget planning and grooming lessons. Goals/objectives To provide a pleasurable and memorable wedding experience for our clients To tailor our services to the specific couple needs of our clients Keys to Success 1. We will see to our client needs with promptness and efficiency. 2. We intend to sustain exceptional working interaction with vendors such bridal shops, marquee providers and florists. 3. We will strive to keep a professional image at all times to create an identity for ourselves Action plan Since DREAMS is fully a service providing company, this chapter describes the kinds of facilities required to render our service(s). It outlines the key features of the DREAMS kind of service, the regulatory requirements, compliances and approvals that will affect your operations. Operational Plan We will provide our services uniquely by treating each client as a special guest and award them our undivided attention. Dreams will equally offer consultation services at one single location for the convenience of the clients. Besides our major activity, DREAMS Weddings will also be involved in Car-hire business. This is majorly targeted to our clients who have no ride on their big occasion, Wedding. It will be managed by the Fleet manager, who from time to time will supplement the company’s income through secondary leases to other customers, who won’t necessarily be Bridal clients. Operational Facilities and Capacity Our operation plans will be managed by the Operations manager. This activities will range from the grooming advice, event scheduling, vendor confirmation, rehearsal attendance, car hire services and the capacity to serve in the initial stages will be to a maximum of 10 weddings per week, given our limited number of staff and facilities ( tents, seats and ability to supervise and schedule the events). The Finances Break-Even Analysis The following table summarizes the break-even analysis for Dreams. Pro Forma Cash Flow Projected Balance Sheet References Benn, Suzanne, Dexter Dunphy, and Andrew Griffiths. Organizational change for corporate sustainability. Routledge, 2014. Bowie, David, and Francis Buttle. Hospitality marketing. Taylor & Francis, 2013. 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