Are you about starting a cell phone store? If YES, here is a complete sample cell phone retail store business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE.
Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a cell phone store. We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample cell phone store marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for cell phone stores. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.
All over the world, the cell phone business has continued to be on the rise and this owes to the fact that there are billions of people who cannot do without the cell phone. The cell phone has made it extremely easy for people to communicate with themselves.
This has also made loved one stay really in touch with one another from time to time. The cell phone business is such that will not go into extinction because no one is ready to stay incommunicado for anything. Hence it is a viable business to launch into at any time of the day.
The cell phone industry has continued to grow with various phone models being churned out every now and then. This is one of the reasons why the competition in the industry has continued to become even stiffer as the day goes by.
If you are determined to start a cell phone store business then you have to put a lot of things into consideration. One of the things that you can consider is undertaking a feasibility research. You will also need a business plan to work with. Below is a sample cell phone store business plan;
A Sample Cell Phone Store Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
As at 2008 according to Sign-on San Diego, there were 250 million mobile phone subscriptions in the united states. From then till now, more people have gotten cell phones, which mean that the market has consistently grown and become more relevant as regards more uses and applications.
This is a lucrative business that offers you the opportunity to be at the forefront of new and emerging technologies, if you intend to go into this kind of business as an entrepreneur.
In recent years, there has been a change in the dynamics and structure of cell phones globally which also includes smart phones. This is due to the fact that there has been a positive change in the design and functionalities of cell phones which has led to an increased cost.
The improved functionalities such as emergence of new network technologies such as 4G to enhance mobile browsing, and also improved upgrade of operating systems, have led to the growth of the industry, and expansion into several markets that were deemed impossible.
The cell phone business has an unstoppable growth that makes it have the strongest growth industries as well as being responsible for its huge revenues in the market. Due to research and forecasts, 65% of children between the ages of 10 – 15 have been projected to own cell phones between 2014 and 2016.
Apart from children, even those who live below the poverty line have been projected to own a cell phone as it is now regarded as one of the essential commodities for everyone in the society. According to research, the cell phone industry had a growth momentum between 2006 and 2011 and is expected to reach an estimated $334.8 billion in 2017 with cumulative annual growth revenue of 6.8% from 2012 to 2017.
Regions that are still developing are expected to register significant growth in this industry due to an increase in population as well as rising urbanization .the cell phone industry comprises of establishments whose primary focus is in the manufacturing of mobiles.
This means that the industry expands to include not only the end salesman but also the phone set manufacturers. The market has less entry barriers which are majorly to reduce the threats that will be posed by new players.
This means that the older players are always evolving as regards technologies and innovations which practically make it difficult for new players to keep up with, thereby still allowing the old players to retain part of its customer base while still growing in revenue. This does not mean though that this strategy has been effective for all such cell phone companies.
2. Executive Summary
Excellent Cell Phone Shop is a leading and standard phone shop that will be based in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan, USA to retail cell phones to our various clients. We are in business to produce and retail a variety of phones to our various customers.
We also intend to offer other products and service as well to our customers such phone accessories and what have you. Our strategic location in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan is a great place to grow and develop our cell phone shop due to the fact that not only is it a metropolitan area but there are no close competitors for several miles.
This therefore means that our business is likely to boom in a short period of time before perhaps other competitors come and site their shops near ours.
Asides the fact that our location is perfect for the business due to the fact that we have no close competitor, our location is also perfect because it fits well into the demography as more than 60% of households here fall into the average income rate and there are more than 400,000 people residing within a 5 mile radius of our cell phone store.
We are glad because we intend to have an edge over our competitors now and in the near future, we intend to ensure that we have the best phone brands and we will ensure that we are well stocked with our different varieties so as not to run out of varieties for our customers quicker than we should.
We take our business structure very seriously and as such have sourced for and hired the employees that are the right fit for our company. We know that having competent and experienced employees who not only understand the market but the business and our ideologies as well will lead to us being able to achieve our desired goals and objectives in quick time.
Because we know the importance of having the best customers, we intend to ensure that our employees remain well motivated.
We are going to ensure that our employees are well paid better than what their colleagues in similar start-ups such as ours in this industry are getting. Also, we intend to ensure that our employees enjoy other fringe benefits and are rewarded for hard work.
All our employees are trained in excellent customer care and as such we know that all our customers will be treated well irrespective of whatever worker they encounter in our cell phone store. We know that this is key to retaining a high number of customers and attracting more to our cell phone shop business.
We intend to expand into a four store operation even though our business plan is dealing with just our first operation, we have laid down plans and processes in place to handle our expansion as our Chief Executive Officer, Michael Pump who is also the owner has worked in different cell phone stores in the industry.
He also has handled several franchises and has over 8 years experience in this industry that will be highly beneficial to the business attaining its goals and objectives.
3. Our Products and Services
Excellent Cell Phone Shop is a phone shop that deals in all varieties of cell phones. Our intention is not to depend on our core services (sale of cell phones) but to engage in other services as well that will ensure that we create multiple streams of income by offering other services and products in addition to our core service.
This is so that we would be able to generate revenue and make profit that would boost our bottom line and not only sustain but grow our business as well. Therefore some of the products and services we intend to offer our various customers are;
- Sale of Cell Phones
- Sales of mobile hardware and accessories
- maintenance services and repairs
- mobile applications
- mobile money services
- Software and such other kinds of services.
4. Our Mission and Vision Statement
- Our vision is to be known for our top notch brand cell phones and to be the leading and preferred cell phone distribution store here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan.
- In order to achieve our vision, we intend to remain proactive in the business by constantly coming up with new and brands of gadgets intended to excite our customers whilst also giving us an edge over our competitors. We also intend to ensure that we well our franchise all around the United States of America as well as Canada.
Our Business Structure
Due to how serious we are taking our business, we plan to build a standard cell phone shop business here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan and so we have set plans, processes and structures in place that will allow us get it right from the beginning in ensuring that we hire the right employees into all the available positions in our cell phone shop.
Because we intend to become a leading brand as well as sell our franchises here in America as well as Canada, we carefully sourced for those that we would want to be a part of our management team and we chose those that had the required experience and understood what it takes to take our cell phone shop from where we are to where we intend to be.
Also, our management team understands our core vision and ideology and is committed to ensuring that we are able to attain them as fast as possible.
Also, because we intend to offer various services and products to our various customers as well as sell our franchise, we will employ more than the average cell phone shop so that all our services at Excellent Cell Phone Store will run smoothly in delivering the various services to all our various customers.
Below is the business structure we intend to build at Excellent Cell Phone Store;
- Chief Executive Officer
- Manager
- Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Accountants
- Marketing Team
- Customer Service Executives
- Sales Team
- Truck Driver
- Cleaners
5. Job Roles and Responsibilities
Chief Executive Officer
- Responsible for the overall strategic direction of Excellent Cell Phone Shop
- Communicates and ensures the implementation of the vision and objectives of the organization to employees
Manager
- Ensures that the cell phones come in intact without damage
- Carries out an inspection on every batch that comes in
Human Resources and Admin Manager
- Sources for competent employees on behalf of the company, and ensures that they are properly inducted
- Ensures that the administrative function of the company runs smoothly
- Responsible for employee welfare
Accountants
- Prepares all financial statement and information on behalf of the store
- Ensures that the store’s book is balanced monthly against that of the bank
Marketing Team
- Conducts more research on behalf of the company in order to find ways to retain customers as well as attract new ones
- Drafts
- Hands out handbills and pastes fliers in strategic locations
Customer Service Executives
- Interacts with customers via phone and online by answering enquiries, taking orders and feedbacks, and resolving complaints
- Stays abreast of industry trends as well as organizational policies in order to pass on accurate information to the customers
- Keeps an accurate customer database on behalf of the store
Sales Team
- In charge of retailing the cell phone both inside and outside the shop
- Helps to increase sales on behalf of the store
Truck Driver
- Ensures that the truck is driven to and fro different sales location
- Supervises the loading and offloading of supply and equipment and assists where necessary
- Carries out light maintenance on the truck and reports major defects to the admin manager
Cleaners
- Ensures that the premises is kept clean
- Keeps the convenience clean for both staff and clients
- Carries out any other duty as might be determined by the human resources manager
6. SWOT Analysis
Due to the fact that we intend to run a leading and standard Cell Phone shop, we have hired the services of a reputable business consultant here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan to help look through our business concept and know if we were likely to make it in the industry we intend going into and also let us know if we would be able to compete favorably against other competitors in the bagel shop industry here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan.
Due to this, the business consultant was able to analyze our business by performing a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis and using this to know how well suited we were to starting our bagel shop business in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan. The result of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Excellent Cell phone Shop are as follows;
- Strengths
Our strength lies in the fact that we are providing our various customers really durable and high quality phones which is far better than what they were getting elsewhere. Also, our product offering is a bit different as we have several varieties of phones due to our secret but awesome marketing secrets ensuring that our customers have something unique whenever they purchase our phones.
Also, we have a structured distribution which has allowed us to be able to meet up with demands no matter the order or emergency.
We have hired competent and experienced employees who do not only understand the cell phone industry but have had the experience working in cell phone stores and therefore know what is required in taking our phone shop to the height it intends to achieve.
The fact that we are also offering additional services and products is a boost to us as this has expanded our customer base and ensured that we not only boost our bottom line but that we are strong enough to sustain and expand into the four store operation we have in plans for our business.
- Weaknesses
One of our weaknesses is our location as are regionally restricted due to the fact that we are just yet a start-up compared to our competitors in the industry. Another weakness is the fact that we are offering basic services and as such need to remain proactive in researching for a new product line so that no competition can easily overtake our business.
- Opportunities
There are several opportunities that abound for us such as expanding our product line so as to attract new customers to our cell phone shop. We have expanded our services to include online ordering as well, this is to gain a share of those who are online shoppers.
- Threats
Every business faces threats every now and then and we are no different. The cell phone shop market is one that is highly fragmented and as such competitors can easily overtake and gain a large share of the market. Also, we are faced with the threat of customers finding alternatives or substitutes to bagels.
7. MARKET ANALYSIS
- Market Trends
Cell Phone stores are now offering the right products built around the phones such as dual sim phones, water resistant phones, and multiple mega pixel phones.
Cell phones were once seen as a luxury item but now are seen as an essential commodity and even though there have been economic downturns, the industry has had just a slight dent unlike other industries that have gone down during economic downturns.
It is important to note though that the market is seen as mature in the United States, and so we might need to ensure that our company will provide an added service that customers will be unable to resist.
We will also seek out insurance for our cell phone shop business. An insurance cover protects us from any sort of problems – both known and unforeseen – that we might encounter in the course of carrying out our business. We have done so well by talking to the best insurance that is good for our business, and have also consulted with to an insurance agent or broker who will guide us on what is best for our business.
Phones are regarded as an inexpensive luxury that must not be done without. People fear being cut off from the internet and from their loved ones. They also like the idea that they are able to be abreast of global issues wherever they go via their cell phones.
8. Our Target Market
Even though almost everyone uses phones, it is still imperative that we know and identify our target market so that we draft effective strategies that will allow us gain a huge share of the market. Also, knowing our target market will allow us know where to position our truck here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan.
In regard to this, we are conducting a market research that will allow us know and understand what it is the target market would be expecting from us and also what we should expect from them. From our findings, we are in business for the following groups of people;
- Men
- Women
- Boys
- Girls
- Schools
- Households
- Business people
- Corporate executives
- Students
- Tourists
- Hospitals
Our competitive advantage
We are starting a cell phone shop company that we intend to make the most preferred cell phone shop here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan and so as to be able to favorably compete against our competitors by having competitive strategies that will help us to achieve our vision of becoming industry leaders.
To be able to favorably compete, we intend to be one of the few shops with a customized truck that will ensure we sell cell phones to customers in strategic locations.
One of our competitive advantages is in sourcing for and recruiting highly experienced personnel who are not only competent but who understands the cell phone market and how best the business can attain its desired goals and objectives. Our employees also understand our core ideologies and are committed to ensuring that we achieve our vision.
Due to low entry barriers, competition in this industry is quite stiff and most businesses that haven’t been able to innovate or offer something completely new have failed. This is why before going into this business we have carried out a thorough research that will ensure that the field we intend going into in our region, has less competition for you to battle with.
This is not to say that in offering unique services that we will prevent the larger companies from offering it and staking a claim in our market share, but we will be proactive and good to our customers so that we can still get to retain most of your customer base and revenue.
Another competitive advantage we have is our excellent customer service culture which has allowed us to retain a high level of customers who have also referred others to our cell phone store.
Finally, our employees are well paid and have a welfare package that is the best across the industry and amongst similar startups here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan, as well as around the United States of America. The great welfare package will allow the employees focus on the business, motivate them and also ensure that they help in achieving all aims and objectives of Excellent Cell Phone Store.
9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
- Sources of Income
Excellent Cell Phone store is established with the aim of generating revenue and maximizing profit in the cell phone and gadgets industry.
To ensure that we boost our bottom line, we intend to offer other services and sell other products in addition to our core service to our various customers. Excellent Cell Phone Store intends to generate income by offering the following products and services;
- Retail and wholesale of different Cell Phones
- Sales of mobile hardware and accessories
- maintenance services and repairs
- mobile applications
- mobile money services
- Software and such other kinds of services.
10. Sales Forecast
Cell Phones are regarded as a necessity to everyone. In regards of this, we are optimistic that we will not only take on the available market here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan but that we will surpass our set target and generate enough income in our first year of business that will allow us sustain and expand our business.
Due to this, we have conducted a critical evaluation of the cell phone industry and market in order to analyze what our chances are in the industry and so that we will be able to come up with a sales forecast.
The sales projection that we conducted was based on the information and assumptions gathered from similar startups here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan. Below therefore are the sales projections for Excellent Cell Phone store based on several assumptions and data;
- First Fiscal Year-: $500,000
- Second Fiscal Year-: $1,000,000
- Third Fiscal Year-: $2,000,000
N.B: It should be noted that the above sales projections were conducted based on certain factors such as that there won’t be alternative substitutes, no economic downturn and that no competitor would arrive in same location such as ours for the stated period of projections.
Should there however be any change in the above factors, it would cause an increase or decrease in the above projected figures.
- Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
Marketing is one aspect of a business that cannot be neglected because not only does it generate revenue that will help sustain the business, it also creates awareness that the business will use in thriving and favorably compete against its competitors in the marketplace.
Due to this fact, we intend to conduct a market research that would allow us best understand the market we are going into and how best we would lay out strategies that would allow us have a fair share of the market. To this end, we hired a professional marketing consultant here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan who thoroughly understands the cell phone industry and knows what it takes to survive and thrive in this environment.
We have also empowered our marketing team to draft strategies that would be in line with our core values and ideologies as a company. This is because we intend to ensure that every strategy communicates the business positively to our customers Therefore, the marketing and sales strategies that we intend to adopt for Excellent Cell Phone Store are;
- Ensure that we place advertisements in local newspapers, magazines as well as on radio and television
- Throw a grand launching party for excellent Cell Phone Shop in order to generate interest and create awareness for our business
- Ensure that Excellent Cell Phone Shop is listed in offline and online directories
- Engage in direct marketing and sales both in the store and in public places
- Leverage on social media platform – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram – to thoroughly advertise our products and services
- Encourage our loyal customers to refer us to others
11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy
In order to create the much needed awareness that we would need to attract customers to Excellent Cell Phone Store, we intend to use effective publicity and advertising strategies, especially as our intention is to become the preferred Cell Phone shop here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan.
Our penetrative publicity and advertising strategies was drafted for us by a reputable brand consultant who has several experience in the coffee and snack industry and has helped several company such as ours achieve their intended publicity goal translating into more revenue for the business. Therefore, some of the platforms that we intend to use in promoting Excellent Cell Phone Store are;
- Create contests here in the community where we are located as well as online in order to create awareness for our cell phone store
- Sponsor relevant programs in the community especially in clubs, hotels , schools and hospitals
- Place adverts in local newspapers and magazines as well as on radio and television stations
- Make use of our social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to promote our business
- Distribute our fliers and handbills in target locations
- Attend fairs and carnivals in order to sell and promote our products and network as well
12. Our Pricing Strategy
Determining what price we will charge for our cell phones is no brainer as most of the cell phones are made in the United States of America as well as other parts of the world. We would however ensure that we do not set prices that are way below what our competitors are offering or what will make us run at a loss.
In order to create the necessary awareness for our business and attract the customers we would need to enable us generate revenue, we intend to for the first six months offer a discount on our cell phones by giving customers who purchase more than two phones, one phone free.
This will in no way cause us to run at a loss as we have carefully checked what our margins would look like during this period and have found that there will be little or no changes
- Payment Options
Because we believe in making things very simple for our customers here at Excellent Cell Phone Stores, we intend to ensure that we proffer payment options that will suit the different preferences of our customers. The payment options that will be proffered to all our customers are;
- Payment via cash
- Payment via check
- Payment via credit card
- Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
The above payment options were carefully chosen and will work with no hitches for any of our customers as well as for our business.
13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
Starting a cell phone store and running it to a certain standard requires that one spend most of the generated capital. The bulk of the capital usually goes into buying bagel making equipment, paying employees and utility bills as well as buying a customized truck that will be used in selling the phones outside the store.
Below is a breakdown of the things we expect to spend the bulk of the capital on;
- Business registration and incorporation in the United States of America – $750
- Obtaining licenses and permits to run a cell phone as well as accounting software and other legal expenses – $1,250
- Cost of hiring business consultants – $3,000
- Insurance coverage (general liability, property insurance, health insurance and workers’ compensation) – $2,500
- Operational cost for the first six months (utility bills and employees salaries) – $150,000
- Cost of purchasing bagel making equipment – $20,000
- Other start-up expenses (furniture, stationery, computers, phones, and printers) – $2,000
- Marketing promotion (grand opening promotion and general business promotion( – $5,000
- Cost of purchasing phones and accessories – $2,000,000
- Cost of storage equipment and hardware (shelves, racks, bins, cash register, security gadgets) – $10,000
- Cost of purchasing a fairly used truck – $30,000
- Cost of launching a website – $500
- Cost of throwing an opening party for our Excellent Cell Phone Shop – $5,000
- Miscellaneous – $5,000
From the above analytical breakdown, in order to run a standard and successful bagel shop here in Winston Blvd. Troy – Michigan; we would require the sum of $2,255,000.
It should be noted that the amount covers the salaries of our employees and payment of utility bills for a period of six months. It also covers overhead expenses such as bagels making equipment, as well as the purchase of a fairly used truck.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Cell Phone Shop Business
Cell Phone Shop is a business that is run and owned by Mr. Michael Pump. Mr. Pump who fully owns 100% equity does not intend to seek for private investors that will have a share of his company. This is why he intends to restrict the sourcing of his capital to three major sources.
Therefore, the three areas Mr. Pump intends to seek his start-up capital from are;
- Generate part of the start-up capital from savings and mutual funds
- Source for soft loan from family members and friends
- Apply for loan from the bank
N.B: Mr. Pump was able to generate the sum of $1,000,000 from his personal savings and mutual funds. From family members and friends, he got the sum of $200,000. He applied for the rest from the bank payable within 5 years at an interest of 2% per annum.
All the documents concerning the loan has been signed and approved and the money according to the accounts officer will be credited to the account before the week runs out.
14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
We are a business that is built to last for a long time and we have several sustainability and expansion strategies in place such as ensuring we live up to our brand name, employing competent employees and also ensuring that we engage in intensive promotion strategies in order to bring in more clients that will ensure that we sustain our business.
We are a business whose intention is to ensure that we sell only durable phones to our various customers. We will therefore not sub standard phones to our customers as we intend to remain very transparent in our dealings and also engage in the best business practices by ensuring that our kitchens meet up with the set standards.
Having the best business structure is of paramount importance to us and so we intend to ensure that we employ competent employees that understand the business and are committed to ensuring that our bagel shop attains its desired goals and objectives.
We will ensure that our employees are well trained and also are well paid so as to boost productivity that will be highly beneficial to our business. We will also ensure that we engage in intensive promotion strategies that will increase awareness about our bagel shop to customers both existing and potential.
We would hire a brand consultant to help us in this regard by drafting effective strategies intended to give us an edge over our competitors. The above three factors if seriously looked into will ensure that we sustain and expand our bagel shop.
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