Are you about starting a pets waste removal business? If YES, here is a complete sample pets waste removal business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE. Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a pets waste removal business. We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample pets waste removal marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for pets waste removal businesses. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.
Why Start a Pets Waste Removal Business?
Starting a pet waste removal business might look like an easy business to start that isn’t glamorous but any entrepreneur going into this business can make it become very lucrative in a short while especially if they take the business very seriously. Starting a pet waste removal business just like any other business requires an in-depth study of the business to determine its worth before plunging into the business.
No matter how simple a business looks, it is highly essential that a plan either simple in nature or comprehensive be drafted, which can be referred to as a business plan. While writing a business plan might look intimidating, it shouldn’t be as there are free pet waste removal templates online that you can use as an aid in writing your own business plan. Below is one of such, a sample pet waste removal business plan;
A Sample Pets Waste Removal Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
The pet services industry is recession proof and according to statistics and data has continued to grow due to the love of Americans for their pets, which is why more innovative entrepreneurs who are going into the industry are making it lucratively.
The demand market according to research is fuelled by Baby Boomers and Millenials, who use these pets to fill in the void of human companionship. While Baby Boomers use pets to fill the void of children having left home, millenials are using pets to fill in the void of delaying to get their own families and children either due to work or other reasons.
According to research however, baby boomers are the biggest clients of pet services especially women and it is these segment that started humanizing their pets. Even though most pet services have been focused more on dogs, other pets like cats have started receiving focus by these businesses in the past decade.
The increased demand for pet services such as pet waste removal businesses cannot be only linked to baby boomers and millenials; it can also be linked to the public’s acceptability of pets especially as more public spaces are becoming pet friendly.
Another factor that has played a huge role in the demand for pet services is the continuous growth of population especially in urban areas with more people in these areas also owning pets, and playing an increased responsible role for these pets.
Also, the government has had a huge role to play as there are ordinances that mandate pet owners to pick up after pets, which has led to the increase in demand for poop pick up bags which are offered by most pet waste removal businesses.
The entry barrier for the business is however low and yet no matter how many entrepreneurs are going into this business, there is no dominant company taking a huge share of the market, as most of these businesses face stiff competition in their regions and not nationally.
2. Executive Summary
Pooper Masters pet waste removal business is a business that has been established in Columbus – Ohio in order to carry out pet services (pet waste removal) on behalf of pet owners. We intend to ensure that we deliver our core service in addition to other services that will be offered to increase our target market.
Our location is one that is strategic as we conducted a thorough market research before picking where to establish out business. We are optimistic that with our location, we would be known in no quick time and also be able to conveniently compete against other established and even start-up pet waste removal businesses here in Columbus – Ohio.
We have several strategies in place to retain most of our customers as we are aware of the importance of having repeats customers for a business. We have referral programs and also discount incentives for our loyal customers.
Our vision is to be able to deliver quality service to all our customers here in Columbus – Ohio and also be the preferred pet waste removal business for all our clients. To achieve this vision we have resolved to ensure that we have a solid business structure which means hiring competent employees to help run this business.
We intend to provide a conducive environment for our employees and also ensure that they are well paid, compared to what their colleagues in similar businesses are getting. We know that getting a good pay will enable them become more productive for the business.
We already have the best customer service attitude and we do not intend to lower our standards but grow from there. Our customer care executives are well trained to handle all our clients’ requests and we have created an enabling environment for them to keep updating their knowledge about industry trends so that they can best serve our clients.
Our marketing team which has been tasked to ensure that they generate revenue for the firm has been empowered to draft strategies that are in line with our corporate goals and objectives, which will bring in more clients and inadvertently boost our bottom line.
Finally, the duos of Catherine and Doug Patters have the necessary experience needed to run this business. While Catherine has worked in several pet stores, Doug has worked in a veterinary and so they both have more than 10 years experience necessary to handle the business and ensures it is on the right path.
3. Our Products and Services
Pooper Masters pet waste removal business has been established to offer a core service of helping owners of pets dispose and manage the waste of their pets in a hygienic manner. Our location has primed us for being able to conveniently handle this market and our different customers.
However, we would not solely rely on our core service as we intend to ensure we have multiple sources of income so as not to only increase the number of customers that patronize us but to also boost our bottom line so as to ensure that our business is adequately sustained.
Some of the products and services we intend to offer are;
- Pet poop scooping
- Treating brown spots left by pets
- Deodorizing the client’s patio or deck
- Sale of poop bags and waste bins
- Sale of litter boxes
- Consultancy services
- Trainings
4. Our Mission and Vision Statement
- Our vision is to be known as providing quality services and also be known as the trusted pets waste removal company nationally
- In achieving our vision, we will exceed customer expectations by not only providing quality and exceptional service but also providing value-added benefits that will be highly beneficial to our customers, thereby ensuring high customer satisfaction.
Our Business Structure
No matter the scale or size of the business, having a solid business structure is very important for the growth and sustainability of the business. It is due to this that we are taking our business structure very seriously as we have sourced for and hired only those who are competent into different various positions in our company to handle their assigned duties.
We did this because of our foundational policy which is to ensure that we provide quality services for our various customers and also be the preferred and trusted company nationally. We have therefore sourced for committed employees who understand the industry and are our foundational policies and are willing to work to ensure we get to our intended goals.
Since we believe in getting quality employees to work for us, we also believe in paying them well and so due to this, we have the best welfare package for our employees and incentive bonus for those who are very hard working and committed. We have also provided a conducive environment for our employees at Pooper Masters pet waste removal business.
Below is the business structure we intend to build at Pooper Masters pet waste removal business;
- Chief Executive Officer
- Manager
- Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Marketing and Sales team
- Accountant/Cashier
- Front Desk Officer
- Driver
- Cleaner
5. Job Roles and Responsibilities
Chief Executive Officer
- In charge of making strategic decisions that would affect the overall direction of the company
- Communicates strategies to management staff and ensures that it is understood and implemented accordingly
- Seeks for high end clients on behalf of the pet waste removal business
- Drafts the overall budget on behalf of Pooper Masters pet waste removal business
Manager
- Ensures that the day-to-day activities of the business goes off smoothly
- Ensures that the field staff have the right equipment and that worn out equipment are adequately replaced
- Liaises with the Chief Executive Officer on how better the business can be run
Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Ensures that all the administrative functions of the business runs as smoothly as possible
- Sources for and recruits competent employees on behalf of the business
- In charge of ensuring that employees have good welfare packages
- Carries out periodic performance appraisals on employees
Marketing and Sales team
- Carries out direct marketing on behalf of the Pooper Masters pet waste removal business
- Conducts more market research to determine what new target market can be gained for the business
- Drafts and modify marketing strategies on behalf of the firm
Accountant/Cashier
- In charge of all vouchers raised at Pooper Masters pet waste removal business
- Prepares all the financial statement on behalf of the business
- Handles all the bills that is incurred by the business and ensure that they are well paid
- Ensures that the business loan repayment agreement is adhered to
Front Desk Officer
- Attends to all clients enquiries either physically, via phone or via online
- Ensure that all complaints made by clients are promptly resolved
- Keep a correct database of customers and update as at when necessary
Driver
- Ensure that field staff get to client’s residence or commercial place on time
- Carry out light maintenance on the vehicle as at when due
- Obey all traffic rules and keep log records of routes taken
- Carry out any other duties as might be assigned by the admin manager
Cleaner
- To ensure that all the materials used for field work are cleaned as soon as possible
- Keep the premises of our pet waste removal business clean
- Ensure that the convenience is kept clean at all times for staff and clients
- Stock up on cleaning supplies and request for more whenever cleaning stock levels drop
- Carry out any other duty as instructed by the admin manager
6. SWOT Analysis
It was very important to us that we examine our business concept before venturing into the business. This examination was conducted for us by a reputable business consultant here in Columbus – Ohio and was to determine if the business was worthy enough for us to venture into.
The hired business consultant made use of SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to determine how well our business would fare in the regional market here in Columbus and in the industry as a whole especially against our competitors.
Making use of various accurate data, below was the result of the analysis that was conducted on behalf of Pooper Masters pet waste removal business;
- Strengths
There are several pluses for us going into this business. The fact that we offer a professional service is already a plus to us. Also, the several competent employees we have who have vast experience and understand the industry thoroughly is a hug plus for us.
Also, to shore up our revenue base and improve on our bottom line, we intend to offer various services that will also attract more customers to our business and increase the awareness for our business as well.
- Weaknesses
Like every other business we have identified our weaknesses which are; lack of available funds to be able to handle all the required services we intend to, even though we have sought for a loan from the bank, we are still in need of more loans to be able to grow at a rapid pace.
However to counter this, we intend to vigorously re-invest our earnings as this would allow us sustain our business and grow as well. Also, the number of people we have employed for our business will limit the services we are going to offer and would seriously limit our competitive advantage for a while; however, we hope to overcome this within a year of operation.
- Opportunities
There are several opportunities that are available to us in this business such as innovative services that would bring forth new markets and more pet fairs and events that would allow us to network and make new contacts.
- Threats
Threats aren’t a new thing to businesses either already existing ones or start-ups. Every serious entrepreneur should be prepared for threats that are likely to crop up and have strategies on how to handle these threats. For our pet waste removal business, we are likely to face the following threats, arrival of a new competitor, economic downturn which would see people spending less than they should and restrictive government policies.
7. MARKET ANALYSIS
- Market Trends
The market for this business is on a growing curve as there are about 300 million pets owned in the united states of America. Most of these pet owners do not want to be involved in the duty of picking up the waste of their pets or other stains that might have been left by their pets as some consider it distasteful to.
This is what has led to the boom of the business as owners of this business have looked for ways to ensure that they offer such services and more to their intended clients. Also, another reason why the pet waste removal business is booming is due to the fact that these companies offer a more hygienic way of having these poop removed.
Another trend to this business is the division of the target market to residential and commercial customers which has made for some of these businesses concentrating on only one section, while others have concentrated on both segments in order to increase their customer base and revenue earnings.
Both set of customers have different service times and rate which is why some businesses prefer to only serve one. Also, pet waste removal businesses often have their rates reduced for clients if the client owns more than one pet.
The business is one that demands a quick response rate and this is why pet waste removal businesses are dominant in only the regions where they are located except for large scale companies who have branches in other strategic locations in the country.
Technology has greatly contributed to the growth of this business as the response rate has become quicker especially as there are many platforms by which the business can be reaches – via phones, website and social media platforms. Pet waste removal businesses without technology have suffered a great number of losses to those who have incorporated technology into their business.
8. Our Target Market
Before one can start any business, it is vital that one knows and understands the intended target market for the business as this would help to ensure that the right strategies for this market are crafted and implemented for the overall benefit of the business. Our strategic location here in Columbus – Ohio is perfect for this business as there are enough pet owners here.
On this note, we intend to conduct a thorough market research so as to know who our target market is and what they expect from us. From our market research, we were able to identify the group of people we would be likely offering our services to, and they are;
- Households
- Apartment complexes
- Pet stores
- Condominiums
- City parks
- Veterinary services
Our competitive advantage
As a business that has been established to make profit, we know that this comes with having to compete with others conducting the same business in our area of location or even nationally. This is why we have come up with strategies that will not only allow us compete favorably against others but also ensure that we have an edge as well.
Our vision is to ensure that we provide quality service to our various clients and offer several services in addition to our core service, and in so doing become the preferred pets Waste Management Business for our existing clients and even potential clients, this is our first competitive advantage.
In order to achieve our vision of being the best in our field, we intend to hire competent employees that have the necessary expertise as well and understand the industry and are committed to our vision, and understands what to do to ensure that that we achieve our intended goals and objectives. This will be our second competitive strategy.
Because we know how necessary it is for our employees to remain happy which will lead to higher productivity, we intend to ensure that they are not only well paid and receive constant trainings that will enhance their skill set but that they also work in an environment that is not only conducive but also easily accessible.
We have already become known for our quality and excellent customer care and we intend to keep it that way by ensuring that we attend politely to all the inquiries by our customers and that we promptly resolve any complaint that might crop up. Our front desk officers undergo continuous training to ensure that our high standard of customer care is not lowered.
Finally, we have an experienced management team that understands the rudiments of the business and so have several proactive measures in place to counter any threats to the business. This has given the business an upper hand over the others in the same field.
9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
- Sources of Income
Pooper Masters pet waste removal is established to offer our various services to our residential and commercial clients in the pet services industry here in Columbus, Ohio. In addition to our core service, we intend to provide other services in order to boost our revenue generation and also gain more customers than we would likely have just offering our core services.
Therefore, we intend to offer the following services at Pooper Masters pet waste removal;
- Pet poop scooping
- Treating brown spots left by pets
- Deodorizing the client’s patio or deck
- Sale of poop bags and waste bins
- Sale of litter boxes
- Consultancy services
- Trainings
10. Sales Forecast
There are a large number of pet owners and lovers in Ohio as well as in the United States of America as a whole, which means there will always be a demand for services such as ours.
Our location in Columbus – Ohio is very strategic as we are well positioned to take on the available market and due to this are quite optimistic that we would not only generate enough revenue and meet our target, but that we would make a profit in the first year of business, which will sustain and grow our business.
Due to this, we have carried out a thorough analysis of the pet services industry especially for services such as ours in order to analyze our chances of survival in the market place. Our analysis, which is based in verifiable data was gathered from similar businesses that were similar to ours here in Columbus – Ohio, and led us to the sales forecast below.
Therefore the sales projections for Pooper Masters pet waste removal business after critical evaluations are;
- First Fiscal Year-: $55,000
- Second Fiscal Year-: $110,000
- Third Fiscal Year-: $220,000
N.B: The above sales projection were done on the basis of several obtainable assumptions that the number of people owning pets won’t decrease, there won’t be an economic downturn, and that no competitor would arrive in the same business location offering same services. Should there be a change either positively or negatively in these assumptions, it would cause an increase or decrease in the above stated figures.
- Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
Before settling on the location used to start our pet waste removal business, we conducted a market survey to determine what location would best favor us and determine how we would best penetrate and gain a large share of the target market.
The information gotten from the survey was quite helpful as it would not only allow us meet and exceed our revenue target but it would also enable us to effectively compete against other pet waste removal businesses here in Columbus – Ohio as well as in the United States of America.
There are several strategies which we hope to adopt in our aim to gain a huge share of the market. Such strategies involve physically educating people on the need to understand the benefits of having the poops of their pets removed professionally. We would use several platforms online as well to educate our customers – both existing and potential.
In order to be able to draft the best strategies that would aid our business, we hired a reputable marketing consultant here in Columbus who understands the market and industry quite well to help us draft strategies that would be very effective in gaining a huge share of the available market here in Ohio.
We also empowered our marketing team to also draft and modify existing strategies and remove ineffective strategies. Our marketing team is to ensure that all the strategies are in line with our policies and corporate goals. Therefore, below are the strategies we intend to use in marketing our services and products to the following group of people here in Columbus – Ohio:
- Ensure that we go round neighborhoods distributing our fliers and pasting them in conspicuous places
- Advertise our business locally in newspapers and popular magazines, and also on radio stations as well
- Engage in direct marketing by approaching potential customers
- Encourage our loyal customers to refer us
- Throw a party that would gain local attention, thereby increasing awareness for our business
- Use social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to promote our pet waste removal business
- Ensure that our pet waste removal business is listed in yellow pages and on online directories
11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy
Regardless of the size of business, as long as the business is established to make profit and will compete with other similar established business, then promoting the business is a must. Since we intend to run a standard pet waste removal business that will offer quality and efficient service to all our customers, we would ensure that we intensify our publicity so that we can give our business a boost against our competitors.
Our publicity and advertising strategy at Pooper Masters pet waste removal is to ensure that we use a mix of conventional and unconventional means of promoting our business here in Columbus – Ohio. We have studied our competitors and their several promotion strategies and from there know which strategies would be more effective for us here at Pooper Masters pet waste removals.
Below are some of the platforms we intend to use in promoting and advertising Pooper Masters pet waste removals;
- Ensure that we print fliers and paste in neighborhoods, and also print handbills and hand out in target areas such as public parks and hangouts
- Create an official website and promote our activities there
- Use social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to promote our pet waste removal business
- Position our flexi banners in strategic locations here in Columbus – Ohio
- Network with pet stores and veterinary clinics so that we could benefit from their referral programs
- Participate in relevant community programs in order to promote our business
12. Our Pricing Strategy
The prices for our services depend on what kind of customers we are attending to. Prices for our residential customers varies depending on the number of pets poop we have to clean up and also if they are willing to pay for a one time clean-up or for as long as 12 months in advance.
Prices for our commercial customers depend on a whole lot of factors and those under this category would usually need to call us so that we understand what they want before giving them a quote.
Regardless of this however, we intend to gain a huge lot of customers first by lowering our prices for the first few operational months of business. Even though lowering our prices might reduce our profit margins a bit, we are confident that this price reduction strategy in the long run will be more beneficial to our business.
- Payment Options
Due to the fact that we would be offering various services, we intend to have different payment options for our various clients that would suit their different preferences. Therefore some of the payment options we intend offering our various customers are:
- Cash payment
- Payment via credit card
- Check payment
- Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
- Payment via online payment portal
The payment platforms which we carefully considered before choosing will work for all our different clients without hitches.
13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
Even though this is a business that is pretty easy to start up, enough capital is still required if one intends to make it a successful and standard business. For our pet waste removal business, the bulk of our capital will go into getting the necessary equipment, getting a fairly used vehicle, paying employees and utility bills for at least a defined period of time.
Therefore the breakdown below is how we expect to spend our start-up capital;
- Total incorporation fees for our business in the United States of America – $500
- Obtaining of zonal permit, licenses and accounting software – $1,000
- Cost of hiring a business consultant – $500
- Insurance coverage (general liability, workers’ compensation and property insurance) – $1,000
- Cost of start-up inventory (poop bags, dispensers, gloves, masks and overall) – $5,000
- Storage hardware (bio bins, shelves) – $1,000
- Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees and payment of utility bills) – $20,000
- Marketing promotion expenses (grand opening promotion expenses and general marketing promotion expenses) – $2,000
- Other start-up expenses (stationeries, computers, phones, furniture) – $3,000
- Cost of purchasing a fairly used official vehicle – $10,000
- Cost of launching a website – $500
- Cost of throwing an opening party – $2,500
- Miscellaneous – $3,000
According to the above breakdown, we would need an estimate of $50,000 in order to successfully start and run our pet waste removal business successfully here in Columbus – Ohio. It should be noted that the above amount includes all major overhead (fairly used vehicle, equipment) as well as operating (employees’ salaries and utility bills) expenses for a defined period.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Pooper Masters Waste Removal Business
Pooper Masters pet waste removal is a family owned business that has been defunct for a while and is being run by Catherine and Doug Patters, we intend to re-start the business and ensure that it is being run properly, therefore, we would not be seeking for external investors for our business and have decided to restrict the major sourcing of our capital to just 3 sources.
The below sources are where we intend to generate capital for Pooper Masters pet waste removal business;
- Generate part of the capital from our personal savings
- Source for soft loans from members of the family and close friends
- Apply for loan from our bank
N.B: we were able to generate the sum of $10,000 from our personal savings and the sum of $5,000 from our family members and friends. We applied for a loan of $35,000 from our bank that was just recently approved as we just signed all the documents early this week, and will soon have the amount credited to our account in no time.
14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
Just like any business that has been established to make profit and compete favorably against other competitors in the market place, we have several sustainability and expansion strategies – such as competent employees, retention of customers and intense publicity – drafted out to ensure that we achieve our intended goals and objectives.
We believe in having a strong business structure and as such we have sourced for and hired competent employees who are also very well experienced in this industry. The employees we have hired are also very committed and attuned to our vision of becoming the preferred pet waste management business here in Columbus – Ohio and are working hard to ensure that the vision is achieved.
We on our part are paying our employees well enough, better than what most companies in our category are paying. We also ensure that our employees undergo trainings periodically so as to enable them have updated skills in which to carry out the job.
We intend to engage in in-depth publicity for our business as we are aware that no matter how lovely a business idea is, it will die a natural death if it is not adequately publicized to the potential market. We have drafted effective publicity strategies in place to ensure that we communicate our brand positively to our target market.
Finally, Customers are the lifeblood of any business because without any customers, the business will not succeed, and so we will not only roll out measures that will attract customers to our services, we will also ensure that we seek for ways to retain most of our customers as it is more expensive to attract than to retain customers.
We would give our repeat customers discounts and a free poop disposable bag. Customers that refer us to others will also get an encouraging incentive from us as well.
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: Complete