Tea Shop Business Plan

Tea is a universally favoured beverage and is the second most loved beverage in the world. In India, tea has a cult status of its own. Tea is a companion for individuals at every situation and for every mood. Tea is had first thing in the morning by several and afternoon tea is a tradition in every household in the country. Tea is consumed to help elevate the mood and to energise when feeling low or tired or just to unwind. Even when the weather is good or when in the mood to celebrate the small joys of life, tea is the preferred companion. Many conversations are incomplete without ‘chai pe charcha’. All of this points out to the fact that tea is an essential in the country and a tea shop business is a sure shot hit business idea.

From a business point of view too, a tea shop is easy to set-up, requires low investment and is profitable too. Thus, aspiring entrepreneurs can definitely go ahead with the tea shop business. However, before starting any business, the first step is to have a business plan in place and therefore a tea shop business plan is also a necessity while starting the business. 

Tea Business Plan

A business plan is a written document that outlines the details of the business, such as-

• The vision and mission of the business
• The exact nature of the business
• The way the business will be operated
• The approximate deadline of the business, etc

The business plan thus acts as a roadmap which helps show the end goal to be achieved by the business, the road (steps) to be followed for reaching the goal and the estimated time and investment required to reach the goal. 

Advantages Of Business Planning

A business plan has several advantages and is a vital starting point for every business, including the tea shop business. One of the foremost advantages of a business plan is that it helps to document the vague business idea into a solid plan by having it in a written format. While writing the business plan, the entrepreneurs can realise if the business idea is valid as well as feasible. Entrepreneurs can further check the viability of their business plan by opting for Business planning and idea validation service  to ensure that the business starts on a positive note, paving the way for future successes. Other benefits of having a business plan in place for the business idea includes-  

• Setting Priorities
• • • A business plan helps to keep track of the priorities for the business, putting the most important things on top. And this setting of priorities helps the entrepreneur set aside time, efforts and resources accordingly for the business.
• Strategic Planning And Focus
• • • Small businesses, such as the tea shop business, require focusing on their target markets, the niche specialities, and the products or services being offered. A business plan helps the business focus on these factors.
• Managing Distribution Of Responsibilities
• • • A business plan helps the entrepreneur chalk out all the various responsibilities of the business. Knowing the responsibilities clearly can help with distributing them accordingly and therefore the business plan helps with better management of the business. The business plan further helps maintain accountability within the business owing to the distribution of responsibilities.
• Applying For And Obtaining Funding
• • • A business plan gives a detailed outline of the entire business. This document thus provides the perfect description of the business which can be submitted to loan approval officers in order to apply for loans. The officers too can get a better understanding about the business owing to the business plan and they can make a well informed and faster decision regarding the approval of the loan. A business plan thus helps expedite the loan approval process.
• Setting Timelines And Reminders
• • The business plan helps businesses set a timeline for achieving its various goals and milestones. Also, the clear demarcation of tasks, responsibilities and their timelines helps keep track of them in the long run. The business plan thus helps ensure that a  definite time limit is set for tasks and also keeps track of the deadlines.

Apart from these, a business plan helps a business manage its cash (outflow and inflow) efficiently, while managing various tasks and any changes too along with carrying out strategic alignment of the business.  

 A business plan is thus beneficial and vital for every business and so is the tea shop business plan.

Essentials To Consider While Making A Business Plan 

• Mission
  • • • Deciding the mission of the business is crucial to the future success of the business. A mission is defined as the company’s exact business (selling tea in this case), its objectives and its approach to reach those objectives. 
• Vision
  • • • The vision or vision statement is the next important element of the business plan. It describes the desired future position of the company. 
      • The mission and vision statements are often combined to provide a statement of the company’s purposes, goals and values and form an integral part of the business plan, such as the tea business plan. 
• Market Research
• • • Conducting research and surveying the present market is an important aspect of every business, including the tea shop business. 
    • Need Of Market- before preparing the tea shop business plan and actually starting the business, it is important to understand what exactly does the market need. Do they require a tea shop selling just tea and related products like tea powder, etc. Or are customers looking for a cafe like atmosphere for having tea.
    • Survey- Conducting a survey of the customer’s requirements such as will they visit a tea shop? How often in a week? How much will they pay for a cup? Are there any tea shops in the neighborhood? What items do these shops sell? What are the marketing strategies that are effective, etc. are some of the questions for which answers can be found out by carrying out a market research and survey.
    • Competition- studying the existing competition is an important aspect of market research. It helps the entrepreneurs understand what is working for the competitors, how are they marketing the business, how are they pricing the tea, why are the customers visiting the competitors and how can changes be made in their own business to improve it and stand against the competition.

Vital Aspects To Keep In Mind

Along with the essential details that are a must to note down while framing a tea business plan, there are certain aspects pertaining specifically to the tea business which need to be considered and mentioned in the business plan. 

• • The vital aspect to consider is choose the products that the tea shop should sell- whether just different varieties of tea ( like masala chai, ginger tea, lemon tea, etc.) or sell tea and refreshments and accompaniments like biscuits, khari, cream rolls, or even hot snacks like fritters (bhajji), samosas, pav vadas etc. The products to be sold at the tea shop must be decided in detail and mentioned in the business plan.
  • Further, the aspect to be considered is deciding on the pricing of the products, especially how much to charge for a cup of tea and the other eatables at the shop. Cost of the raw materials such as the water, milk, tea powder, sugar, gas connection, etc need to be calculated for each cup of tea and accordingly the pricing can be decided, keeping the profit margin in mind. Similarly for the other eatables and products at the shop. A brief note about the pricing and calculation must be mentioned in the tea shop business plan.
  • The next factor to consider and mention in the business plan is information regarding from where the raw materials will be purchased and why. 

These are important aspects specific to the tea shop business that need to be considered and included in the business plan. To know of the other important aspects to be included in a business plan, the entrepreneurs can Download Business Plan Checklist to ensure all the vital factors are included in the business plan.

How To Make A Business Plan

Once it is known as to what are the main elements to be included in the business plan and what specific details of the tea shop business need to be considered and mentioned in the business plan, the next step is to know the basic structure of a business plan. Every business plan, including the tea shop business plan, has the following titles – 

• Summary
  • • • The executive summary of the business plan includes a brief writeup about the business. The summary must include the mission statement, who is the owner of the business, when will the business start or has started, what it sells, how it sells, the growth or progress made so far and future aspirations for the business.
• Description
  • • • The description and overview of the business plan for a tea shop is an elaborate description of the entire business. It describes what exactly the business does, how it does it (sells tea in a shop- location of shop, area of shop, locality of shop, etc.), how it satisfies the needs of the customers, the niche market or specific customers it serves, how it stands against the competition, what measures it takes, the business structure it adheres too, etc.
• Analysis
  • • • Analysis includes both market analysis and competitive analysis. As mentioned early, market research and competition analysis are imperative to the success of the business and must be carried out and mentioned in the business plan.
• Operations
  • • • Operations mentions the managerial information of the tea business, such as who is the owner, the structure of the organisation, how many employees will the business have, who will manage the shop and the staff, the responsibilities of the other employees and other details related to the day to day operations of the tea shop.
• Financial Summary
  • • • The financial summary is a vital aspect for every business and breaks down the capital required for the business. In case of the tea shop it includes investment needed to purchase or rent the shop, furnish the shop, purchase the utensils and other essentials, market the business and other operational costs. The summary includes the details of how much these requirements are and how they will be fulfilled- whether via a loan or through savings or borrowing. 
• Marketing Strategy
  • • • Marketing is critical for the success of every business, including the tea shop. The strategy to be used to advertise the tea shop-  such as media and print advertisements, loyalty programs, promotional offers, group discounts, happy hour pricing, etc can be mentioned in the business plan.

These are the important details regarding the tea shop business plan– what factors need to be decided before the start of the business, which essentials are specific to the tea business and the components of a business plan, all of which help prepare an impressive business plan for the tea shop business. Further inclusions and layout details can be discussed at length with any of the experts at deAsra Foundation, who are always available to help new entrepreneurs kick start their business, including those aspiring to start a tea shop business.