Are you about starting a mango exporting business? If YES, here is a complete sample mango export business plan template and feasibility report you can use for FREE.
Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a mango exporting business. We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample mango export business marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for mango exporting businesses. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.
Why Start a Mango Export Business?
Mango, known as the king of fruits is the favorite fruit of a lot of people not only in Nigeria but globally as well. Asides from the sweetness of the fruit, mangoes are believed to have medicinal properties that can cure ailments. Also, there are various uses of mangoes in the food industry, health industry and the beauty industry.
Starting a mango exporting business is therefore one of the most lucrative businesses that a serious minded entrepreneur can start up and in no time start making profit.
However, exporting the fruit is quite different from selling the fruit locally and a number of things have to be put in place before your mangoes can be exported out of Nigeria to countries in Europe, united kingdom, North America, Middle East and the United Arab Emirates, where there is a high demand for it.
One of the requirements you would need to fulfill before getting started as a mango exporter is in registering with the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), where you will then be given a certificate and an access to foreign buyers. The council will also help you with information such as the best way to preserve and package your mangoes for exporting in line with the international food laws of the countries you would be exporting to.
You will also need to establish a business relationship with any local bank here in Nigeria that handles international business, as the bank will help you handle the transactions and ensure that your credit remains afloat. Another important aspect that should not be overlooked is a business plan. If you cannot write a business plan yourself, below is one that has been written for you.
A Sample Mango Export Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
To successfully run a mango exporting business, you need to know all the kinds of mangoes that exist, so that you would know which ones are peculiar to Nigeria and which countries would want the mangoes that are being grown in Nigeria, before going into the export business.
Mangoes are classified into known types like Amelia, Julie, Kent, Ruby, Alphonso and Apple Haden. All these types of mangoes grow in Nigeria depending on the climatic condition as well as the prevailing agricultural practice in the area.
Mangoes are medicinal contrary to popular belief that they are just a sweet fruit. Every part of mango, from the bark, leaves, pit or skin has been used as remedies for some sort of ailments. The medicinal properties of this sweet fruit can perform such functions as; contraceptive, laxative, cardio-tonic, aphrodisiac, anti-septic, expectorant, anti-parasitic, cough, anti-asthmatic et al.
The climatic condition here in Nigeria has tripled the country’s potentials over other suppliers of mango globally. Even though the input cost is somewhat high, the steady export rate has more than compensated for this. The export price per ton is dependent on the grade of the mango, if it is single, and if it is a slice or concentrate.
Mangoes are also important due to the various other drug and food derivatives that is being sourced from it such as jam, juice, flavors, marmalade, syrup, body products and a host of others.
Even though mangoes are grown in more than 85 countries in the tropical and sub-tropical regions according to research, with over 63 countries exporting over 20 million metric tons, more than 97 percent of what is produced globally is from developing nations such as india and Nigeria.
Nigeria’s position in the global community of countries exporting mangoes as at 2006 was number 8. Most of the states that produce these mangoes for exporting purposes are Kaduna, Benue, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Plateau, Sokoto, Yobe, Adamawa, Kebbi, Taraba, Niger and the FCT.
The demand for mangoes as seen globally is in response to the increase in demand from Europeans, Middle East and the Arabs.
While the Europeans see mangoes as a fruit that can help with health concerns, the Middle East and Arabs see it as meeting their non-alcoholic dietary needs. According to a market survey conducted by the International Trade Center in Geneva on fresh fruits, it was found that the volume of trade regarding mangoes annually stood at $5 billion.
2. Executive Summary
Juicy mango Exporter Ventures is a mango exporting business that has been fully registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and licensed by the National Exporting Promotion Council (NEPC) here in Apapa – Lagos. We intend to offer our global customers the following products and services such as; exporting of frozen mangoes, exporting of preserved mangoes, exporting of dried mangoes, consultancy and advisory services.
Our intention is to ensure that we run a standard mango exporting business that will not only generate revenue and maximize profit but will also stand out and compete favorably against our competitors. Our mango preservation and packaging methods are the best and adhere to international best practices.
In order for us to achieve this, we intend to build a solid business structure that will allow us run our business with as less hitches as possible. We will ensure that we source for and hire the best hands in the field to help handle and run our business.
Our food technologist for instance is one that knows the best preservation methods for our mangoes, and our purchasing manager understands the best areas to source for mangoes for our organization.
In order to ensure that our employees remain motivated enough, we would not only ensure that they work in an environment that is conducive, we would make sure that they receive the best pay and welfare packages better than their counterparts in similar start-ups such as ours.
Finally our Chief Executive Officer and owner, Alhaji Bintu Ahmed is an agro allied professional and has been in the industry as well as the exporting industry for more than 10 years. He understands fully how to run businesses like this and will ensure that we are able to attain all our goals and objectives.
3. Our Products and Services
Juicy Mango Exporters Ventures is a business that is not only fully registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) but also fully licensed by the Nigeria Exporting Promotion Council (NEPC) and other relevant agencies here in Apapa – Lagos to generate revenue and also maximize profit in the agro-processing industry cum agricultural industry.
We intend to provide the best services to all our international clients. Therefore the products and services that will be made available to all our clients include;
- Exporting of frozen mangoes
- Exporting of preserved mangoes
- Exporting of dried mangoes
- Consultancy and advisory services
4. Our Mission and Vision Statement
- Our vision is to ensure that we become the preferred brand for all our international customers through our quality products and services. We intend to be known as the number one mango exporter here in Nigeria.
- In order to achieve our vision, we intend to ensure that we hire competent and experienced employees that will ensure that we source for the right mangoes and that proper preservation and packaging methods are carried out according to international laws.
Our Business Structure
Juicy mango Exporters Venture is a standard mango exporting business that is set to become a class leader here in Nigeria through our services and products that will allow us not only to stand out in the industry but also enable us compete favorably against our competitors in the whole of Nigeria.
With this in mind, we have resolved to build a solid business structure that will see us sourcing for only the best to come and work in our company.
We intend to source for and hire a management team that do not only come with experience but understands the industry quite well and knows how best to achieve all our goals and objectives. Our management team will ensure that all our company policies are adhered to and implemented so that we can rise from becoming a start-up to a national and international force to reckon with.
Due to the additional services that we intend offering in order to enable us retain a huge share of the market, we would be hiring more employees than necessary to help handle the tasks and responsibilities that would occur from the new positions created.
We will ensure that our employees are well paid and receive incentives that will allow them remain motivated and committed to ensuring that we achieve all our goals and objectives. The business structure that we therefore intend to build here at Juicy Mangoes Exporters Ventures is;
- Chief Executive Officer
- Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Accountant/Cashier
- Marketing Team
- Business Development Officer
- Purchasing and Inventory Officer
- Food Technologist
- Customer Care Executive
- Driver
- Cleaner
- Security Guard
5. Job Roles and Responsibilities
Chief Executive Officer
- Creates the necessary policies and strategies that would impact the overall direction of the organization
- Prepares the budget that would be used by the organization
- Evaluates the success of the organization as a whole
Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Ensures that the administrative functions are smoothly performed
- Interviews and hires the best employees on behalf of the organization
- Appraises the performance of the employees and uses this to determine their worth to the organization
Accountant/Cashier
- Prepares all the financial information, statement, budget and reports on behalf of the organization
- In charge of preparing employee payrolls and the overall budget of the organization
- In charge of monitoring the inflow and outflow of monies generated by the organization and ensures that every naira is accounted for
Marketing Team
- Conducts marketing research to determine new target markets on behalf of the organization
- Creates effective marketing strategies that will generate income for the organization
- Generates revenue for the organization by sourcing for clients and negotiating with them
Business Development Officer
- Sources for likely new business models that will generate revenue on behalf of the organization
- Sources for new foreign distributors and agents on behalf of the organization
- Creates new revenue streams on behalf of the organization
Purchasing and Inventory Officer
- Sources for reliable suppliers and mango farmers and ensures that there are back-ups always
- Ensures that the mangoes that arrive at the organization for preservation are all according to company policies and industry standards
- Knowledgeable about industry trends and knows the going rate for what grams is acceptable by foreign distributors and how it is weighed here in Nigeria
Food Technologist
- In charge of using the best ways possible to ensure that the mangoes are preserved for exportation
- Carries out quality assurance on each preserved mangoes to ensure that they are in line with international practice
- Ensures that the mangoes to be exported are well packaged
Customer Care Executive
- Attends to all the enquiries and orders on behalf of the organization
- Remains updated about industry trends and company policies in order to offer customers accurate information
- Keeps an updated and accurate customer database on behalf of the organization
Driver
- Runs official errands on behalf of the organization
- Ensures that mangoes to be exported are duly delivered at the port of departure
- Ensures that the vehicle is cleaned at all times and carries out preventive maintenance on the official vehicle
Cleaner
- Ensures that the premises is cleaned before official working hours
- Ensures that cleaning stocks are always in supply and reports any depleted stock to the human resources manager
- Carries out any other duties as determined by the human resources manager
Security Guard
- Monitors incoming and outgoing individuals in the company
- Ensures that all visitors fill a form indicating who they are, who they intend to see and times of arrival and departure
- Carries out any other duties as determined by the management
6. SWOT Analysis
While starting a mango exporting business might be seen to be straightforward and easy, there are certain factors that must be taken into consideration if one is expected to succeed in the business. We have therefore hired the services of a reputable consulting firm here in Apapa – Lagos to help us look through our business concept and determine how likely we are to make an impact in this business once we have started.
Using our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to thoroughly determine how our business would likely fare and compete effectively against our competitors not only here in Lagos but all around Nigeria as well. The therefore of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Juicy Mango Exporters Ventures are;
- Strengths
We have several strengths in our favor. The first is that we are offering other services in addition to our core service which has seen us have a larger share of the target market and compete favorably against our competitors.
Also, we have employed those who not only have the necessary experience and competence but are also dedicated to the growth and prominence of our mango exporting business. Our chief executive and owner is one that has the necessary experience and will ensure that we are able to attain all our goals and objectives.
- Weaknesses
We are a relatively new exporting business and because of this, it is not so easy for us to get a bank that will offer us a line of credit as other already established exporting businesses. Also, even though we have locally sourced for financing to help with our local operations, we do not have enough to compete effectively against already established mango or fruit producers.
Our staff strength is also somewhat limited and this will greatly affect our chances of growth. Also, since we are relatively a new brand, we have to deploy effective publicity strategies that would allow us be seen and known.
- Opportunities
The opportunities that abound for us in this industry is huge especially as the different services that we would be offering would allow us have a huge share of the target market and the other opportunities that will be made available to us that our international customers have to offer. Our global ranking is enough for us to secure enough opportunities that will allow for the growth of our company.
- Threats
Every business faces threats every now and then and so the threats that we are likely to face in this mango exporting business is having to deal with changing government policies regarding exports, dealing with falling value of the dollar which will see us not making as much profit as we should, having to deal with the arrival of competitors offering same services to the same target market, and also an economic downturn globally that will cause consumers in the countries we export to, to spend less than they usually do.
7. MARKET ANALYSIS
- Market Trends
The trend when it comes to exporting of mangoes is that the mangoes are usually harvested half ripe before being packed for export, this is due to the standard stipulated by the international law on food by America and Europe. This is not to say however that consumers in these countries don’t prefer that imported mangoes ripen with traces of green. Those that distribute these mangoes in foreign countries prefer mangoes that weigh between 225g and 400g.
Exporters often use various ways to ensure that the exported mangoes retain a longer shelf life. Most exporters therefore favor freezing, which allows the fruit to retain its original color and flavor.
Another method is in preserving the fruits with preservative solutions such as brine, sulphur oxide gas and any other approved solutions, even though this increases the shelf life of the mangoes for more months, the color of the mango is usually affected.
8. Our Target Market
Even though the mangoes we source for are to be exported to certain countries, we cannot, without conducting a market survey decide on which countries will be most favorable to us. In this regard we intend to carry out a market survey in order to identify what countries would most likely be beneficial to our business. The aim of the market survey is to enable us understand our target market and know what it is they expect from us.
According to our market survey, those that will be benefiting from our exported mangoes in the countries that we would be exporting to are; food industries, households, beauty industries, drug industries, supermarkets and grocery stores, government agencies, wholesalers and distributors.
Our competitive advantage
Even though there are a number of people that engage in growing and selling these mangoes locally, there are few who export these mangoes to international customers.
Our vision is to ensure that we become the preferred brand for all our international customers through our quality products and services and to achieve this, we have laid down plans and processes that will allow us have several competitive advantages against our competitors.
Our sourcing, preservation and packaging of mangoes for our internal consumers is one of the competitive advantages we have over our competitors. We have a purchasing manager who knows all the credible suppliers of the best mangoes that were grown organically and how to also get us the best deals.
Our facility is one of the best as we not only ensure that it is kept clean and well ventilated, it is also well secured against theft and bugs, thereby ensuring that our customers get mangoes that haven’t been contaminated in whatever manner.
Also, the fact that we offer additional services is a plus for us against our competitors. Another competitive advantage that we have against our competitors is the fact that our employees come with a vast amount of experience and proficiency and therefore understand how to ensure that a start-up such as ours is able to achieve all its intended goals and objectives, thereby becoming a force to reckon with nationally and internationally.
Our employees fully understand our policies and philosophies and are committed to ensuring that we are able to achieve all that we set out to do.
We intend to ensure that our employees are well taken care of, as their welfare package is the best amongst start-up categories such as ours here in the agro-processing and allied cum agricultural industry. This high pay structure for our employees is one sure way of ensuring that they not only remain committed to our business but remain motivated to work in helping us attain our goals and objectives.
9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
- Sources of Income
Juicy Mangoes Exporter Ventures is a mango exporting organization that has been established with the sole aim of generating revenue and maximizing profit here in Apapa – Lagos State and we intend to go all the way to ensure that we generate enough profit to not only sustain the business but grow it as well. Therefore our mango exporting organization will generate income by offering the following services;
- Exporting of frozen mangoes
- Exporting of preserved mangoes
- Exporting of dried mangoes
- Consultancy and advisory services
10. Sales Forecast
Mango is regarded as the king of fruits globally because of the medicinal, dietary and beautification purposes that the fruit offers, and that is why there will always be demand year round from our various customers, which therefore leads to revenue generation and increase for our business.
Our location here in Apapa – Lagos is very strategic as we are very close to the ports and not too far from the airports. This will make us spend less to ensure that our mangoes get to the ports or the airports. This has given us massive advantage over our competitors who are located in the mainland or deep in the islands or even in other states.
We have however carried out critical examination of the agro processing and allied industry cum agricultural industry, in order to determine our chances at succeeding in this business. Our analysis has allowed us to come up with an accurate sales forecast.
Our sales forecast was based on certain information and data garnered from already established mango exporting organizations or new start-ups such as ours. We are therefore confident that we would be able to make profit within the first year of business.
In view of this, the results that were gotten for Juicy mangoes Exporter Ventures based on certain facts and assumptions from similar businesses such as ours here in Lagos and all over Nigeria are below;
- First Fiscal Year-: N3,000,000
- Second Fiscal Year-: N5,500,000
- Third Fiscal Year-: N12,000,000
N.B: The above sales projections were done based on what was obtainable in the industry as at that time and the assumptions used.
The assumptions were that there won’t be a global economic crises and that our naira would remain strong against the dollar. Should any of the prevailing circumstances change, it would lead to an increase or decrease in the figures stated above.
- Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
Marketing for every profit oriented organization is very important because this is one of the major ways that they are able to generate the revenue that would not only sustain but grow the business as well.
Marketing is also used to create awareness for the business which is why any serious organization takes its time to create effective marketing strategies that would best suit the organization as well as ensure that a marketing budget is kept separate to handle all the marketing affairs of the company.
In ensuring that we create the right marketing strategies for our business, we intend to carry out a market survey that will allow us understand the industry we are going into, who our target market is, what they are expecting from us and what we should expect from them as well.
This market survey we intend to carry out would allow us to penetrate the market and get a large share. It would also allow us know how best we can effectively compete against our competitors – either already established mango exporters or ones that are just newly starting up.
Because we intend to have the most effective strategies, we have engaged the services of a reputable and experienced marketing firm here in Lagos State who thoroughly understands the sector we are in and the international stage we intend to play in and who knows the right marketing strategies to help us create marketing strategies that would not only be effective but allow us stand out.
We have also empowered our marketing team to ensure that every marketing strategy created is in line with our corporate sales goal. In view of that, the following are the marketing and sales strategies that we intend to adopt at Juicy Mangoes Exporter Ventures;
- Formally introduce our company and the services we offer to intending customers and target market from the database given to us by the National Exporting Promotion Council (NEPC)
- Engage in massive adverts online especially in foreign agriculture and food blogs and websites
- Create social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin in order to connect with our international audience
- Deliver consistent customer experience to all our clients and ensure that not only are they satisfied but that they also refer us to others
- Use the email blast approach to penetrate our target market
- Create a website and ensure that our services are vigorously promoted and advertised and then pay for a consultant to drive massive traffic to the site
11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy
Having the right publicity strategy is very important for our business because we intend to run a standard mango exporting business here in Apapa – Lagos that will not only stand out but also allow us to compete favorably against our competitors, and so creating the right awareness for our business is a must for us to grow and thrive in this industry.
Due to the fact that we intend to get it right with our international audience, we have hired the services of a reputable publicity and advertising company here in Apapa, who have been long in this business and therefore possess the necessary experience that would allow us not only generate the necessary revenue to grow and maintain our business but also create the awareness that would enable us stand out and positively communicate our brand.
The platforms we therefore intend to use in promoting and advertising our brand include;
- Place adverts on popular online blogs and websites in order to create awareness about our business
- Use our social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin to massively promote our business
- Ensure that our mango exporting business is listed in online directories
- Pay an SEO consultant and a traffic generating expert to generate more traffic to our website
- Write for blogs and websites and use that to promote our own business
- Send emails and e-newsletters to our target market
12. Our Pricing Strategy
There is no need to undergo a detailed deliberation on what our prices for our mangoes would be, as various factors would determine how much we would export our mangoes for. The factors are; the kind of mangoes we would be sourcing for, what purposes the mangoes would be used for, what preservation and packaging method would we use and also what our competitors are charging.
We are also mindful of the fact that our prices would be dependent on the stipulated weight as set by our foreign distributors. The smaller weight would of course come with a less price while the higher weight will be more expensive. This is not to say that we would not offer other complimentary services based on what is obtainable globally.
- Payment Options
Due to the fact that our customers are global, the payment options that would be made available to them would not be too varied even as it intends to suit all the various preferences that our customers are likely to have. Therefore the payment options that we intend to make available to all our various customers here at Juicy Mangoes Exporters Ventures are;
- Payment via online bank transfer
- Payment via online payment portal
- Payment via PayPal
The above payment options were deliberately chosen for us by our local bank here in Nigeria and would ensure that we are able to conduct our business smoothly without any hitches whatsoever. The payment options are also ones that would be very convenient to all our customers.
13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
Even though we would not be involved in any production whatsoever, there are still certain capital intensive costs that would be borne by us in the event of running our mango exporting business. We would for instance need to source for mangoes, transport them, rent a facility where we would store and preserve them before exporting them to our customers.
We would also need to pay the employees and also settle certain bills that we would incur during the cause of running the business. While our start-up capital will generally define what scale we would be running our mango exporting business, several costs will still remain in place regardless of the scale we would be on.
Also, the cost of doing business in Lagos must be taken into consideration as an entrepreneur starting this same business elsewhere is likely to spend more or less depending on several factors that would need to be considered. Therefore, below are the requirements that we would need to consider and fulfill when starting our mango export business;
- Total fee for registering our mango export business as a venture in Lagos State, Nigeria – N25,000
- Obtaining of the necessary exporting licenses and permits, accounting and inventory software as well as other legal expenses – N20,000
- Cost of hiring a business consultant – N30,000
- Insurance coverage (General liability, workers’ compensation, transportation insurance, property insurance) – N25,000
- Marketing expenses for the promotion of the grand launching of Juicy Mangoes Exporters Ventures as well as general marketing promotion expenses for at least a year – N50,000
- Cost of renting a warehousing facility for use for at least two years and carrying out the necessary renovations – N400,000
- Operational cost for the first three months (salaries of employees as well as payment of bills) – N300,000
- Cost of purchasing a truck for use for picking mangoes from sources and delivering to ports – N800,000
- Cost of preserving the mangoes (refrigerator, chemical solutions, local dehydrator) – N500,000
- Cost of getting a KVA generating set – N300,000
- Cost of packaging (shelves, racks, cartons and wrappers) – N200,000
- Other start-up expenses (furniture, computers, printers, signage, cash register, security and phones) – N100,000
- Cost of launching a website – N25,000
- Cost of throwing a launching party – N30,000
- Miscellaneous – N50,000
From the above estimate, we would need the sum of N2,855,000 in order to successfully start-up and run a standard mango export business here in Apapa – Lagos.
It should be noted that the amount will cover renting a facility for the period of two years, buying a truck, sourcing for and preserving the mangoes as well as paying the salaries of employees for at least three months till the business is able to pay them itself.
Generating Funding/Startup Capital for Juicy Mango Exporters Business
Every business requires capital to start running and our exporting business is no different. We know that for our business to become a reality, we would need to source for the necessary finance that would allow us attain all our intended goals and objectives.
While it is not so easy for an entrepreneur to source for funds for his business, it is not something that can be avoided. Juicy Mangoes Exporters Ventures is a mango exporting business that is owned by Alhaji Bintu Ahmed and his immediate family.
Alhaji does not intend to seek external partners for his mango exporting business, which is the reason why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of his start-up capital to just three sources. Therefore the areas where we intend to source for our start-up capital are;
- Generate part of the start-up capital from personal savings
- Source for soft loans from family members
- Apply for loan from the bank
N.B: We were able to generate the sum of N1 million from personal savings and the sum of N855,000 from family members.
After approaching the bank for a loan of N1 million to be repaid in 5 years and at a 3% interest rate, we have come to an agreement as all documents approving the loan has been signed and we have been told that our business account will be duly credited by the end of the week.
14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
In order to sustain and grow our business and knowing how important the future of our business is to us, we have put several factors into consideration such as the loyalty of our customers, our standard of running the business, as well as our business structure.
The loyalty of our customers is very important to us and as such we have adopted a customer care approach that is excellent.
We have ensured that all our loyal customers get incentives from us in a bid to increase their loyalty to us, and those that refer us to other paying customers also get special incentives from us as well. We have a responsive customer care that understands industry trends and is able to offer our customers accurate information.
Due to the fact that we run a business that is global, we intend to ensure that our mango sourcing, preservation and packaging methods are according to international best practices. We also intend to set the pace as well in the industry, so we have employed the best food technologist.
Our desire to build a solid business structure is borne out of excellence. We have gone the extra mile to hire the best employees that have the right experience, attitude and proficiency in running our mango exporting business successfully.
Our employees also understand the industry and will do all it takes to ensure that we attain all our intended goals and objectives.
Check List/Milestone
- Business Name Availability Check: Completed
- Business Registration: Completed
- Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
- Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
- Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
- Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
- Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
- Application for business license and permit: Completed
- Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
- Conducting feasibility studies: Completed
- Generating capital from family members: Completed
- Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
- Writing of Business Plan: Completed
- Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
- Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
- Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
- Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing/Promotional Materials: In Progress
- Recruitment of employees: In Progress
- Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
- Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
- Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
- Opening party/launching party planning: In Progress
- Establishing business relationship with vendors – wholesale suppliers/merchants: In Progress
- Purchase of trucks: Completed