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PetCafe, LLC
Chill With Your Pets Over Meals

Business Plan

Name: Hassan Naveed, John Paul Lacap, Jeffrey Cash, Gerardo Valles, Alan Bowman
Business: PetCafe, LLC
Address: 5538 South Main Street
Harrisonburg, VA, 22811
Phone: 571-234-4534
Email: petcafe@gmail.com

Table of Content

I.

Executive Summary

At Petcafe, LLC, we have fabricated an environment that will provide a

satisfying and enjoyable experience for our customers. We noticed a necessity
for a restaurant which can accommodate pets and animals. We are very
optimistic about the success of this busines since we strive for greatness in every
order that we take. Customer service and quality products are a priority for us, as
these are the aspects that will make or break our business.
Our cafe will be established on Harrisonburg, Virginia. The reasoning
behind this decision was that Harrisonburg hosts a plethora of college students
which come from 3 surrounding colleges, Bridgewater College, James Madison
University, and Eastern Mennonite University. We can welcome as many
customers as we deem necessary and will look towards expanding once we are
able to. Our goal is to make our establishment as relaxing as possible for our
customers.
The owners of this restaurant are Alan Bowman, Jeffrey Cash, John Paul
Lacap, Hassan Naveed and Gerardo Valles. On opening, we, the owners, are
going to be the ones primarily conducting this business. That includes managing,
operating and planning everything pertaining the restaurant. We all have
knowledge about how to run a business. Some of us have backgrounds that
specifically involve the restaurant industry. We are extremely confident towards
the success of this business and looking forward towards the day where we
establish chains all over the world. PetCafe, LLC will have a staff that is
motivated and that motivation would lead to our success, especially with the
entertainment of our guests. Leaving this satisfied feeling for our guests will
create more customers for our facility. More customers means more income
which will lead to our goal being fulfilled.
As a company, we are requesting funding with an amount of $150,000.00.
This amount will give us the ability to purchase everything that is necessary to
create this restaurant without any hitches. We have given the most that we are
able to towards the start-up expenditure and with the amount stated above,
investors who are most generous are being sought upon. There is no question
that we will be returning this money that was once borrowed.
Team descr.

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1) Alan Bowman
a) Experience:
i)
4 months BC Phonathon
b) Certification
i)
BS Computer Science
ii)
BS Business Administration
c) Skills
i)
Java Programming
2) Jeffrey Cash
a) Experience
i)
4 years till current of being a Project Manager
b) Certification
i)
BS Business Management
c) Skills
i)
Organizing, Planning and Leading a Team
ii)
Cook Food, Make Coffee
3) John Paul Lacap
a) Experience
i)
12 Years of IT and technical
ii)
1 Year as Food Runner
b) Certification
i)
BS Computer Science
c) Skills
i)
Creating visuals, Menus
ii)
Cook Food, Make Coffee
4) Hassan Naveed
a) Experience
i)
2 Years as a Manager
b) Certification
i)
BS Business Accounting
c) Skills
i)
Making Ledgers, Bookkeeping
ii)
Cook Food, Make Coffee
5) Gerardo Valles
a) Experience
i)
7 Years as a Cook
b) Certification
i)
BA Culinary Arts
c) Skills
i)
Gourmet Cook
ii)
Cook Food, Make Coffee

Qualifications needed

II. General Company Description

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Our business statement is to provide an enjoyable experience for pets and their families
alike. We will give our best in providing A-class materials, employees with a drive for success,
and an experience that our customers will hunger for.
Our business opportunity is is to provide an environment where pets are allowed with the
care of their owners. The problem we are addressing is a) most restaurants do not allow pets
and b) due to the policy above, pets usually suffer while waiting inside a hot, unventilated car
and c) pet owners will not have to bother with having a sitter for their pets.
We plan on solving this issue through creating an environment where pets would be
accepted along with their owners, and since pet owners would be able to bring along their pets,
they would not need to leave their pets abandoned inside a car, nor having to pay a sitter for
something they can do on their own.
Our business type would be classified as a service. This is the type we chose because
we will be selling products such as food and beverages, while providing an excellent customer
service as our staff would be properly trained and driven towards fulfilling what our incoming
customers would desire. We, at PetCafe, plan to make our customers come with anticipation
and leave with the feeling of wanting to come back.
Our company will be an limited - liability company. We determined that it would be best
with the type of business we will be running, since being a LLC will provide us with protection,
as there are a vast amount of possible risks and harms. Not only that, having the option of how
we will get taxed made this option a whole lot more enticing.
We, the company owners of PetCafe, LLC, got together and discussed certain ways that
we could do in order for our company to give back to the community. We narrowed the ideas we
had down to donating a portion of our earnings to local animal shelter, specifically to
Rockingham/Harrisonburg SPCA. Another way our business would provide to the community is
expanding our customers knowledge about local animal shelters and the importance of animal
cruelty prevention.
II. General Company Description (Continued)
Our business opportunity is a pet friendly cafe. The problem is that restaurants do not
usually allow pets inside, ours do. We can provide a place where pets can be instead of them
being stuck inside a hot car. We are going to solve this problem by allowing pets into our cafe.
Doing so allows people to bring their pets inside and not have to provide a sitter for their animal.
We are a service industry because we are providing a service to people. We believe there is a
chance to make profit because a cafe in this area could be a huge hit. We want to provide for
people and their pets. We chose a LLC business for reduced tax, risk and liability. The
advantages of being a LLC would be single taxation and limited liability. We trust each other as
partners and plan to help one another where applicable. Our mission states is to provide an
enjoyable experience for pets and their families alike. Our business is socially responsible
because we plan to donate a portion of our earnings to a local animal shelter. We are unsure on

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what percentage of earnings we plan to donate but we plan to donate. We want to also provide
information about local animal shelters and the importance of animal cruelty prevention. To do
this there will be pamphlets and other information in our cafe. Also, after work hours we plan to
donate time and effort to the local food shelters.

III. Products and Services

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III. Products and Services
Ethiopian Coffee (dark roast, regular roast), Cappuccino, Latte, Hot Chocolate, Brownies,
Chocolate Chip Cookies, Vanilla Cookies, Chocolate/Vanilla Cupcakes, Cinnamon Rolls,
Croissants will all be available on our menu for affordable prices. A Pet Friendly Environment
alone will give us a competitive edge over all the other coffee places in surrounding areas.
Coffee at low, affordable prices is a great way to get an advantage on the other more expensive
cafes.
What are the pricing, fee, or leasing structures of your products or services?
Coffee:
Small - 1.40; Medium - 1.85; Large - 2.20
Latte/Cappuccino:
Small - 2.40; Medium - 3.25; Large - 3.90
Hot Chocolate:
Small - 1.50; Medium - 1.95; Large - 2.30
Brownies:
2 for .99
Cookies
2 for .99
Cupcakes
a dozen for 5.99
Cinnamon Rolls
2 for .99
Croissants
2 for .99

V. Marketing Plan
I.
II.
III.
IV.

Promotion
(we only need II-IV for now)
Sales Methods
Direct Sales meaning the customers will come to us.
Sales Estimates
Distribution Channels
Direct distribution

I.

IV. Market Research & Competition Analysis

Market Research

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Our business belongs to the service industry. Our business fits into this industry because we are
providing a service to the community.This is one of the biggest industries in the world. The size
of our potential market is the entire 540 area. Bridgewater College, EMU, and JMU are all
colleges in the area are targets. Also, surrounding counties do not have a lot in their home
towns so they are also in the target population.
II.
Target Market
Our customers will be workers going in after 6 am, people who enjoy their pets and pet lovers in
general will all be target customers. We believe students studying late at night would be another
customer trend. PetCafe will sell more during the cold seasons than warm seasons.
III.

Competitors

Competitors such as Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, and 7/11. These are direct competitors
because they all serve coffee and other espresso drinks.
IV.

Competitive Analysis

Indirect competitors would include all restaurants that include coffee as a drink on the menu.
Other indirect competitors would be Wal Mart because they serve coffee products. Our service
offers coffees and other espresso drinks that can be shared with your pets. Our specialized
delivery method is allowing pets into the cafe. Our three competitive advantages would be that
we offer cheaper prices than our competitors, we allow animals into our store, and we are open
early enough and late enough to hit the biggest target market.

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VI. Business Growth

A trend that could give us a possible growth would be an increase in customer flowing in
and out of our restaurant. These customers would be able to provide us with recognition through
word of mouth. Another possibility would be commercials or advertisements that gives an eyeopener towards animal abandonment.
Some following steps that we could take in order for our business to grow would be
establishing our businesses in other locations, creating a website that would contain what our
business is and what our menu is, and making advertisements and sending them through on
either TV, papers, and the internet.
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VI. Business Growth
What trends in your industry could provide additional opportunities for growth?
There are multiple trends in our type of industry that could be great for growth.
Commercials that provide awareness towards animal ignorance and abuse would be a great
way to get people to come into our store knowing that we donate a portion of our earnings to
local food shelters. Emotions is the strongest way to a humans heart. Another trend that we will
never lose because of our location is that college kids love coffee not only for the taste but when
they need to stay up late it is the go to beverage. After talking with all our group members we
came to the conclusion that all of our grandparents love coffee. There are 25 Senior
Communities in Harrisonburg. If we could reach out to this group we could have business
booming. Kids love pettings animals and if we could get a separate area just for small animals
after they have been trained it would be a great place for parents to bring their kids while we
drink coffee.

What next steps would you take to grow your business and/or making it operational?
There are steps we could take after gaining some profit that could make our business
even stronger. The collaboration with local pet shelters to spread awareness and help animals
around could be a partnership idea or just a great way to bring even more customers in. If we
could build on to our building or even buy more buildings to reach out to more areas is always a
great way to get more customers. We are starting out as a cafe with a set list of items on the
menu. Expanding on the menu could hit different populations in the area.

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II. Sales Method

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We have a couple ideas on how to get the word of our new business out. The biggest
way to reach people is through social media. We would like to provide some type of business
card to hand out in front of a big store such as Wal Mart. A newspaper advertisement can reach
out to an older population that social media could not reach. Only friends can see your social
media page so we think it would be beneficial to hand out flyers to colleges around the
Harrisonburg area. Colleges such as Bridgewater, James Madison, Blue Ridge, and Eastern
Mennonite could all be reached out to.
III. Sales Estimates
Max Cap:
45 cups hourly
Break-Even Units:
1808 cups monthly
Market Analysis:
100 cups daily and 3000 cups monthly.
Seasonality:
Sales will be more abundant during the colder seasons and fewer during hotter ones.
Month

Units

Revenue

January

2500

$2650

February

2500

$2650

March

2500

$2650

April

2500

$2650

May

2500

$2650

June

2500

$2650

July

2500

$2650

August

2500

$2650

September

2500

$2650

October

2500

$2650

November

2500

$2650

December

2500

$2650

Annual Total

2500

$2650

IV. Distribution Channels

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How do you sell your products or services?

VII. Business Challenges

A trend that could impose difficulties on our business would be changes in food
regulation. For example, if the regulations changed and included in the changes were a ban for
animals inside restaurants, that would destroy our companys main idea, which is to allow pets
inside our restaurants.
Our biggest barrier in starting this kind of business is our inexperience with this kind of
field. Another challenge is finding a building to put our cafe. We are looking at a couple different
places now but we need a building big enough to hold customers and other equipment. Also,
there are other cafes in the area such as Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, and McAllisters. A small
challenge could be that not all people like pets so we could lose those customers.

VII. Challenges
Restaurants are always updating food regulations. As long as we stay on top of things
this should never be a problem considering our selling product is mainly coffee. Perhaps the
biggest issue would be the safety of other customers while pets they do not know are around.
Pets should be on a leash and if you know your pet is not great with other animals or humans
we have a designated area outside for you.

What barriers to starting this business exist? What additional education or training could you
pursue to overcome these obstacles?

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Barriers such as inexperience in the business field and owning and running a business
exist. Taking courses in leadership and business management could aid in our ideal situation of
overcoming these barriers. After we acquire the skills necessary we can teach our employees
how we would like things to be done.

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VIII. Startup Expenses and Capitalization
I.

Definition of One Unit

We will define one unit of sale as 1 Cup of Medium Coffee. Since we specialize in
and promote coffee as our main product, we decided to use a cup of coffee as our single
unit. 1 Cup of Medium Coffee costs $1.85.
II.

Production Process/ Delivery of Service

Description of Process Steps

Brew Coffee
Serve
III. Variable Expenses

Materials
Material
Description

Bulk Price

Bulk Quantity

Quantity Per
Unit

Cost Per Unit

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Lids

$160

2500

.06 cents

Cup

$250

2500

.10 cents

Stir Sticks

$10.68

2500

.10 cents

Coffee

$160

62.5Lb

.03lb

.20 cents

Granulated
Sugar

$138

330lb

.13 lb

.06 cents

Milk and Cream

$395

78 gallons

.03 gallons

.15 cents

Labor
Cost of Labor per Hour

Time(in Hours) to make one

unit

Total Labor Costs per Unit

$7.25

.017

$0.12

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IV. Economics of One Unit
Selling Price per
Unit

1.85

Variable Expenses
per Unit
Cost of Goods Sold
Materials

.67

Labor

.12

Other Variable
Expenses

.79

Total Other Variable

Expenses

Total Variable
Expenses

Contribution Margin
per Unit

1.06

V.

Fixed Expenses for One Month

Expenses Type

Monthly Cost

Explanation

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Insurance

41.67

Statefarm

Salary

N/A

Advertising

25.00

Interest

N/A

Depreciation

1.27

Coffee Machine

Utilities

450

Water Electricity Gas

Rent

1,400

Strip Center, Harrisonburg Va

Other Fixed Expenses

N/A

Total Fixed Expenses

1,917.94

Newspaper, Social Media

Appendices

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This project has been a great experience for us and we have learned a lot about
businesses. In this business plan we are using Facebook as an advertisement to get our name
out to the public. The only flaw with this is that we are not friends with everyone in the area so
not everyone will see our business through facebook. We used a renting site to determine a
location in the Harrisonburg area. We are looking to purchase two coffee makers, a small
commercial over, and an espresso machine. We will also have to provide chairs and tables for
inside the store. Also, a cash register will have to be bought. We also observed prices and menu
items from relatable stores such as starbucks, dunkin donuts, and 7/11. After viewing viewing all
these menu items we came to the conclusion that we offer great prices and a great experience.

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FACTOR

Me

Strength

Weakness
es

Starbucks

Dunkin
Donuts

Importance
to Cutomer

Products

Coffee
Hot
chocolate
Latte
Cappacino
Pastries

Made with
care at the
store

Not much
variety

All types of
coffee,
many
desserts

Many types
of coffee,
donuts and
breakfast
sandwiche
s

The
products is
what drives
the
customer
to the store

Price

Average
1.65

Cheap

Possibility
of going
under

Average
3.50

Average
2.10

The price
can help
customers
save
money
which
drives
business to
your
company

Quality

high

great
products

medium

medium

Higher the
quality, the
more
customers
that return

Selection

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Service

Home-like

Very good
service

profession
al

profession
al

Makes the
customer
feel wanted

Reliability

High

always
there for
the
customer

medium

medium

The
customer
wants to be
able to
depend on
the
business
for their
needs

Stability

medium

may not
always be
in business

high

high

customer
wants a
business
that will
always be
there

Expertise

low

Not much
experience

high

high

Customer
wants
people who
know what
theyre
doing

Company
Reputation

low

sometimes
people
want to
support
local stores

not a big
company

high

high

customers
wants a
good
reputation
in a
comapny

Location

Harrisonbu
rg

When
college
kids come,
busines
goes up

College
town, not
business
year roung

Harrisonbu
rg

Harrisonbu
rg

Location
allows
customer
to be in
reach with
you,
without
having to
go out of
thier way

Appearanc
e

medium

dont look
high end

high

high

customers
like a
classy
looking
place

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Sales
Method
Credit
Policies
Advertising

Image

low

not much
exposure

nice and
cute

not a
major,
unique
logo

high

high

If a
customer
always
hears
about a
place, they
will most
likely go
there
It appeals
to them