business plan sample on fish farming

Fish Farm Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Fish Farm Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Fish Farm business plan.

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Fish Farms.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Fish Farm business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm is an aquaculture business located 30 miles north of Madison, Wisconsin. The farm is owned by Jason Newcomb, a fish farm manager for over ten years, who had responsibility for all operations and customer supply in his former position. Now that Jason has garnered a sizable reputation as an experienced fish farmer, several former clients of his last employer are asking Jason if they can begin using his services to supply the fish they need. Jason plans on recruiting a team of professionals to help manage and operate the day-to-day activities found at the AcquaHarvest Fish Farm.

The AquaHarvest Fish Farm will provide high-quality, locally sourced fish to meet the growing demand for fresh and sustainable seafood in the region. By utilizing advanced aquaculture techniques and maintaining a focus on environmental stewardship, AquaHarvest Fish Farm aims to become a leading provider of farm-raised fish in Wisconsin.

Product Offering

The following are the products that AquaHarvest Fish Farm will provide:

Fresh, locally-sourced, farm-raised trout and tilapia
Fish products, such as smoked trout, fish jerky, fish for stocking ponds
Sustainably produced farmed fish in a low-impact environment

Customer Focus

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will target a wide range of customers, including individual consumers, restaurants, grocery stores, and seafood distributors. Additionally, we will focus on promoting our fish as an alternative to wild-caught fish, emphasizing the traceability and sustainability of our farming practices.

Management Team

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be owned and operated by Jason Newcomb. He recruited his former marketing and sales manager, Tim Olsen, to be the new marketing and sales director for AcquaHarvest Fish Farm.

Jason Newcomb holds a certification from the National Institute of Fish Farming in Sustainable and Environmental Protections. He has been working at a well-known fish farm outside Madison for the past decade. Recently, he determined that he could take the best attributes of his former employer, apply them to his new business, and add several improvements to the fish farming process that would appeal to consumers and lower the environmental toll on the land he purchased.

Tim Olsen, who will be the new Marketing and Sales Director, has been working in his former position for over thirteen years and has won the “Outstanding Sales & Marketing Promotions” award multiple times within the fish farming community groups in Madison, Wisconsin. Tim is known for his ability to strategically market and sell long-term contracts from fish buyers on both a national and international level.

Success Factors

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

Friendly, knowledgeable, and highly-qualified team of AquaHarvest Fish Farm
A selection of farmed fresh fish, sustainably raised and locally-sourced
Fish products; including fish for stocking ponds, fish jerky, and smoked trout
AquaHarvest Fish Farm will offer the best pricing in town. The pricing structure is the most cost-effective when compared to the competition.

Financial Highlights

AquaHarvest Fish Farm is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch its AquaHarvest Fish Farm. The funding will be dedicated toward securing the office building and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated toward three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs for the print ads and marketing costs. The breakout of the funding is below:

Office space build-out: $20,000
Office equipment, supplies, and materials: $10,000
Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, rent, utilities): $150,000
Marketing costs: $10,000
Working capital: $10,000

The following graph outlines the financial projections for AquaHarvest Fish Farm.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm Pro Forma Projections

Company Overview

Who is aquaharvest fish farm.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm is a newly established, full-service fish farm 30 miles from Madison, Wisconsin. AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be the most reliable, cost-effective, and efficient choice for customers in Madison and the surrounding communities. AquaHarvest Fish Farm will provide a comprehensive menu of fish and fish products for multiple customer segments to utilize. Their full-service approach includes a comprehensive array of locally-sourced, sustainable fresh fish, smoked fish, fish jerky and other fish products.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be able to effectively provide 300 fresh fish each week, with fish products numbering 200-300 pounds per week. The team of professionals are highly qualified and experienced in the fish farming industry and the management and operations of a fish farm. AquaHarvest Fish Farm provides the perfect one-stop shop for all the fresh, locally-sourced fish customers may need, including filets, steaks, whole fish, fish for sushi, and other expanded customer uses. AquaHarvest will meet every customer expectation or offer refunds, if ever needed.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm History

Since incorporation, AquaHarvest Fish Farm has achieved the following milestones:

Registered AquaHarvest Fish Farm, LLC to transact business in the state of Wisconsin.
Has a contract in place at one of the office buildings, where the operations and management teams will set up office space within the 10,000 square foot area.
Reached out to numerous former clients to include fish handlers, maintenance workers and other staff members for the new fish farm company.
Began recruiting a staff of ten associates and office personnel to work at AquaHarvest Fish Farm.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm Services

The following will be the products AquaHarvest Fish Farm will provide:

Industry Analysis

The fish farm industry is expected to grow over the next five years to over $202 billion.
The growth will be driven by the increased need for regulated raising and harvesting of fresh fish and crustaceans.
The growth will also be driven by the consumer demand for sustainable fish-farmed sources of fish.
The growth will be driven by the increased interest by consumers in healthful eating practices, including fresh fish.
Costs will likely be reduced as more fish farms are established and can provide fresh, locally-produced fish.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will target customers within the Madison, Wisconsin region. They will target individual consumers, restaurants, grocery stores and seafood distributors.They will also target consumer groups focused on traceability and sustainability of food, including fish.

Customer Segmentation

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will primarily target the following customer profiles:

Restaurants
Grocery stores
Seafood distributors
Individual customers

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Fresh SeaPack Fish

The Fresh SeaPack Fish Company is located in Chicago, Illinois. The company is owned by Jerome Packson, a former restaurateur who now oversees the supply of fish and seafood into the finest Chicago restaurants. The company sources locally-raised fish, vacuum-packs and seals each filet, and ships the fish to regional and city-wide restaurants. With one-day service, the fish is as fresh as when it was shipped, which offers excellent flavors for consumers.

Jerome Packson established Fresh SeaPack Fish in 2000, when it became apparent the fish supplies coming in from Alaska were being depleted by wild-caught fishermen. This created in him a drive to change the process, so his company could guarantee a “fresh fish” result in restaurants, while processing and packing up to 24 hours in advance of shipment.

Sea & Land Distributors

Sea & Land Distributors are co-owned by brothers, Dean and Dave Lancaster, who have located their distribution company in Suamico, Wisconsin. From this location, vacuum packed fish can be flown to customers within a multi-state area, typically within 4 hours. The distribution company was formed in 2004 by Dean Lancaster, a former sales manager for a fish industry networking company, and Dave Lancaster, a former seafood salesman for the large, well-known fish and fish product provider.

In addition to fish and fish products, Sea & Land Distributors began distributing fresh beef to restaurants and grocery stores. Using the same processes and techniques, the beef filets, steaks, ribs and other choice cuts are sent to regional clients within 4-hours of processing. This addition to the company has resulted in a significant increase in revenue and the addition of staff to cover the beef portion of the business.

Harris Seafood Company

The Harris Seafood Company is a certified “organic and sustainable” seafood distributor, focusing on the Madison region of Wisconsin. Trent Harris is the owner and president of the company, while six employees process and pack seafood for delivery to Madison restaurants. The company was formed in 2021 and has an estimated 100 customers or clients, who are served weekly or monthly with vacuum-packed seafood.

The Harris Seafood Company has plans to open another processing center in Chicago within three years in order to grow the highly successful seafood sales industry into high-end Chicago restaurants. With demand rising, the Harris Seafood Company plans to meet that demand and exceed current company expectations.

Competitive Advantage

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

Highly-qualified team of skilled employees that is able to provide an array of fish and fish products, including smoked trout and fish jerky.
Fresh locally-sourced fish farmed include: trout and tilapia. These two fish are the most sought-after and easily raised fish in the species, leading AquaHarvest to recognize their prominence in the restaurant industry and provide these two fish for all customers.
Fish that is sustainably-raised and locally-sourced. Unlike other fish farms, AquaHarvest depends on aqua hydroponic techniques to successfully bring the oxygen and nutrients needed by the fish. These are not harmful to the environment; in fact, these elements enhance our environment over all.
Unbeatable pricing for clients; AcquaHarvest will offer the lowest pricing in the region.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for AquaHarvest Fish Farm is as follows:

Word of Mouth/Referrals

AquaHarvest Fish Farm has built up an extensive list of contacts over the years by providing exceptional service and products to former clients. AquaHarvest Fish Farm will garner the former clients before they begin advertising and marketing to new clients. The former clients have already committed to referring associates to AquaHarvest Fish Farm, as well.

Professional Associations and Networking

Both Jason Newcomb and Tim Olsen are well-known in the fish farm industry and have extensive networking contacts. As such, they will work to secure long term contracts with their core target audience to raise the awareness of the new company as soon as possible.

Print Advertising

Two weeks prior to launch, a direct mail piece will be sent to every restaurant, grocery store, seafood distributor and related fishmonger to announce the opening of the company. A discount for clients to sign contracts in the first month will be announced and special packages of service and products will be offered at that time, as well.

Website/SEO Marketing

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will fully utilize their website. The website will be well-organized, informative, and list all the products and services that AquaHarvest Fish Farm provides. The website will also list their contact information and available fish and fish products each day. The sales and marketing director, Tim Olsen, will also manage AquaHarvest Fish Farm’s website presence with SEO marketing tactics. When someone searches in the Google or Bing search engine “fish farm” or “fresh fish near me”, AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be listed at the top of the search results.

The pricing of AquaHarvest Fish Farm will be moderate and on par with competitors so customers feel they receive excellent value when purchasing their services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for AquaHarvest Fish Farm. Operation Functions:

Jason Newcomb – will be the Owner and President of the company. He will oversee all staff and manage client relations. Jason has spent the past year recruiting the following staff:
Nancy Dyce – will be the Office Manager, who will manage the office administration, client files, and accounts payable.
Tina Stevens – whose role will be the Staff Accountant, providing all accounting, tax payments, and monthly financial reporting.
Tim Olsen – Sales and Marketing Manager, who will provide all marketing for AquaHarvest Fish Farm and each product offered.
John Quinten – Farm Manager, who will operate all fish tanks and facilities and provide all maintenance at the properties.

Milestones:

AquaHarvest Fish Farm will have the following milestones completed in the next six months.

5/1/202X – Finalize contract to lease office space
5/15/202X – Finalize personnel and staff employment contracts for the AquaHarvest Fish Farm
6/1/202X – Finalize contracts for AquaHarvest Fish Farm clients
6/15/202X – Begin networking at industry events
6/22/202X – Begin moving into AquaHarvest Fish Farm office
7/1/202X – AquaHarvest Fish Farm opens its office for business

Tina Stevens will be the Staff Accountant, providing all accounting, tax payments, and monthly financial reporting to Jason Newcomb.

Nancy Dyce will be the Office Manager, who will be responsible for the office administration, client files, and act as an executive assistant, upon request.

John Quinten, will take on the role of Farm Manager, in charge of the tank operations, cleaning, facilities oversight and all maintenance at the property buildings.

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for AquaHarvest Fish Farm are the customer fees they will charge to the target audience for their services.

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required in order to staff AquaHarvest Fish Farm. The expenses will be the payroll cost, rent, utilities, office supplies, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

AquaHarvest Fish Farm is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch its fish farm. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the office space and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated towards three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs for the print ads and association memberships. The breakout of the funding is below:

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

Number of Customers Per Month: 185
Average Revenue per Month: $44,500
Office Lease per Year: $100,000

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, fish farm business plan faqs, what is a fish farm business plan.

A fish farm business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your fish farm business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your Fish Farm business plan using our Fish Farm Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Fish Farm Businesses?

There are a number of different kinds of fish farm businesses , some examples include: Inland pond fish farm, Open-net pen and cage system fish farm, and Mariculture fish farms.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Fish Farm Business Plan?

Fish Farm businesses are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding.

What are the Steps To Start a Fish Farm Business?

Starting a fish farm business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Fish Farm Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed fish farm business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your fish farm business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your fish farm business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Fish Farm Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your fish farm business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your fish farm business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.

7. Acquire Necessary Fish Farm Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your fish farm business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your fish farm business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

Fish Farming Business Plan Template

If you want to start fish farming company or expand your current fish farming company, you need a business plan.

The following fish farm business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning plan for your own fish farm business. In addition to this template, conducting market research for your target market will help you identify potential market trends and customer segments to better understand the viability of your commercial farming company.

You can download our fish farming business plan template (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.

Sample Business Plan For Fish Farm Businesses

Below is a fish farm business plan example with each of the key sections to help you write a fish farm business plan for your own company.

I. Executive Summary

Business overview.

[Company Name], located in [insert location here] is a new fish farming company that focuses on using the latest technology and best practices to produce high quality salmon in a sustainable way. The Company uses recirculation aquaculture technology to filter its water and provide the best tasting salmon on the market. [Company Name] aims to be the premium source for fresh salmon in the area.

Products Served

[Company Name] will raise, grow, harvest, process, and distribute fresh salmon. The salmon is certified organic with no GMOs, antibiotics, or growth hormones. The fish will be sold by the pound.

Customer Focus

[Company Name] will primarily serve food processors, grocery stores, and restaurants throughout the area. The target customer profile is as follows:

45 processors
130 grocery stores
1,500 restaurants

Management Team

[Company Name] is led by [Founder’s name], who has been in the fish farming industry for [x] years. [Founder’s name] graduated from the University of ABC, where he majored in aquaculture. While he was in school, he worked for a small fish farm nearby, where he was able to participate in all aspects of fish farming. Upon graduation, he landed a job with one of the country’s largest salmon farmers, where he worked his way up. This experience equipped him with an in-depth knowledge of common practices in the salmon farming industry, from day-to-day tasks to management.

[Company name] will also employ an experienced sales executive to sell to grocery stores, restaurants, and food processors in the region. This will be a skilled salesperson with extensive experience in aquaculture sales.

Success Factors

[Company Name] is uniquely qualified to succeed due to the following reasons:

The Company will be providing a valuable product to those seeking the fresh salmon that is sustainably produced.
There are no other salmon farms in the area to serve the growing needs of local restaurants, grocery stores, and other food processors.
The management team has a track record of success in the fish farming industry and are proven experts in the field.
The pricing model is formulated to be slightly higher than the competition as it is a higher-quality product, but low enough that customers will perceive value when consuming.
[Founder’s Name] has lived in [company location] all his life and has raised his family there. He is well-connected in the community, and has the support of its citizens.

Financial Highlights

[Company Name] is seeking a total funding of $400,000 of debt capital to open its fish farm. The capital will be used for funding capital expenditures and location build-out, hiring initial employees, marketing expenses, and working capital.

Specifically, these funds will be used as follows:

Build-out of fish farm and equipment purchases: $200,000
Initial marketing expenditure: $10,000
Property down payment: $100,000
Working capital: $90,000 to pay for marketing, salaries, and property costs until [Company Name] reaches break-even

Top line projections over the next five years are as follows:

II. Company Overview

Who is [company name].

[Company Name], located in [insert location here] is a newly established fish farming company that will provide high quality sustainably farmed salmon for local restaurants, grocers, and food processors. The company uses the latest technology and fish farming best practices to ensure its salmon meets the strictest of regulations and exceeds the most discerning consumers’ flavor expectations.

[Founder] began researching what it would take to create his own fish farming company and did a thorough analysis on the costs, market, demographics, and competition. [Founder] has compiled enough information to develop his business plan in order to approach investors.

[Company Name]’s History

Once his market analysis was complete, [Founder’s Name] began surveying the local available commercial properties and located an ideal location for the fish farm. [Founder’s Name] incorporated [Company Name] as a Limited Liability Corporation on [date of incorporation].

Once the purchase is finalized, construction can begin to build-out the facility.

Since incorporation, the Company has achieved the following milestones:

Located available property for sale that is ideal for salmon farming
Developed the Company’s name, logo, and website located at [website]
Hired a general contractor for the build-out of the packaging warehouse, small farm, and distribution area
Determined equipment and necessary supplies for the fish farm
Began recruiting key employees with previous fish farming experience

[Company Name]’s Products/Services

Below are [Company Name]’s product offerings:

Fresh salmon by the pound
Bulk packaged salmon

III. Industry Analysis

The worldwide fish farming market is valued at $286 million and is forecasted to rise to $378 million over the next 10 years. Market growth is driven by changes in food consumption worldwide. The expansion of retail food channels allows more customers to be able to buy packaged fish. Additionally, consumers expect to be able to purchase fresh fish on demand, which contributes to the growing need for more fish farming operations in order to meet this demand.

The fish farming industry can be segmented by environment and fish type. Fish farming environments are fresh water, marine water, and brackish water. Fresh water is the highest revenue generating environment, followed by marine water. There is a wide range of fish types that can be farmed including grouper, snapper, milkfish, salmon, tilapia, catfish, tuna, tilapia, catfish, and sea bass. The most popular fish type is salmon.

Veganism and stringent animal cruelty regulations are some of the primary challenges for the fish farming industry, while increased popularity of protein rich diets is a major opportunity for industry operators.

IV. Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

[Company Name] will serve the community of [company location] and its surrounding areas. The Company will primarily sell its salmon to local restaurants, grocery stores, and food processors.

The community of [company location] has lots of restaurants that serve fish and other seafood, hundreds of grocery stores with fresh fish sections, and around 45 food processors that could benefit from a local source of fresh salmon. Fresh fish is becoming a popular choice for many people in the community and there is currently no other local salmon farm to meet this growing demand.

Customer Segmentation

The Company will primarily target the following three customer segments:

Food Processors: Food processors represent the largest proportion of industry sales. The emergence of large fish farming operations has increased processing capabilities, and consumer demand for ready-to-cook fish has grown with the availability of such processing.
Restaurants: While this segment represents a relatively small proportion of industry revenue, fish remains one of the most common ingredients in many local restaurant dishes.
Grocery stores: Demand from this segment has remained relatively steady, accounting for nearly 19% of sales.

V. Competitive Analysis

Direct & indirect competitors.

The following businesses are located within a 100-mile radius of [Company Name], thus providing either direct or indirect competition for customers:

Freshly Fish Established in 1958, Freshly Fish is a fish farming company approximately 60 miles outside [location]. Freshly Fish began its operations as a traditional fishing business. Over time, the company transitioned to become a sustainable fish farm, offering locals a selection of fresh fish and other seafood products.

Freshy Fish delivers fish to restaurants, wholesalers, and food processors across the area. The company raises and sells tilapia, tuna, and milkfish as well as other seafood products like shrimp and scallops. Pricing for Freshly Fish is based on quantity purchased. Customers who regularly purchase the fish in bulk get a 30% discount.

Freshly Fish is widely known for its varied selection of fish and seafood products, but the company doesn’t sell salmon.

Tilapia Time Tilapia Time is a tilapia farm that is approximately 30 miles away from [company location]. This fish farm operates a closed cage system, which is one of the less eco-friendly types of aquaculture systems. The company sells its fresh tilapia to local restaurants and grocery stores. Tilapia Time also allows the public to purchase fish directly from the farm. Tilapia Time focuses its farming operations solely on tilapia production, which allows the company to be the go-to source for fresh tilapia in the area. The company currently has no plans to introduce other types of fish into its inventory.

Super Salmon Super Salmon is a salmon farming company that is located approximately 50 miles outside [location]. The company sells its salmon primarily to large wholesalers and food processors across the country. Super Salmon has been in business for about ten years and has developed a large b2b customer base due to its efficient production and distribution processes.

While Super Salmon has a strong branding and following, it is a large operation that works with national customers on large scale contracts and does not serve small, local restaurants or independent grocery stores.

Competitive Advantage

[Company Name] enjoys several advantages over its competitors. Those advantages include:

Taste: [Company Name]’s salmon tastes refreshing, healthy, and delicious. Due to the company’s use of technology and fish farming best practices, [Company Name] is able to provide the tastiest and healthiest salmon on the market.
Known Expertise: Part of the marketing strategy is to showcase the founder’s expertise and knowledge in the salmon farming industry. As a proven fish farmer, he will be able to run a highly sustainable fish farm that produces the highest quality salmon on the market.
Management: The company’s management team has [xx] years of fish farming and business experience that boosts credibility and builds trust in the quality and value of its products.
Relationships: Having lived in the community for [xx] years, [Founder’s Name] knows all the local leaders, media, and other influencers. As such, it will be relatively easy for [Company Name] to build brand awareness and an initial customer base.
Location: [Company Name] will serve local restaurants, grocery stores, and food processors throughout the region. There are no other salmon farms nearby that cater to local businesses.

VI. Marketing Plan

[Company Name] seeks to position itself as a high-quality premium source of fresh salmon in the fish farming market. Consumers can expect the best tasting salmon on the market grown and harvested by skilled fish farmers in [location].

The [Company Name] Brand

The [Company Name] brand will focus on the Company’s unique value proposition:

Fresh, healthy, organic salmon
Contains no GMOs, antibiotics, or growth hormones
Farmed sustainably using the latest technology and best practices
Service built on long-term relationships
Transparency of operations to achieve customer assurance of organic quality

Promotions Strategy

[Company Name] expects its target market to be food processors and local restaurant and grocery store owners within a 50-mile radius of its location. The Company’s promotion strategy to reach these customers includes:

Targeted Cold Calls [Company Name] will initially invest significant time and energy into contacting potential customers via telephone and then by visiting their facilities. In order to improve the effectiveness of this phase of the marketing strategy, a highly-focused call list will be used; targeting food processors, local restaurant owners, and independent grocery stores with an expressed interest in organic salmon. As this is a very time-consuming process, it will primarily be used during the startup phase to build an initial customer base.

Industry Events By attending regional fish farming and aquaculture conferences, association meetings, and other events, [Company Name] will network with industry leaders and seek referrals to potential customers. [Founder’s Name] will often attend with the company sales manager, but both may attend separately in the future as they gain experience in this type of networking.

Networking Networking is one of the most effective methods for improving brand awareness in the fish farming market. The Company will attend seminars, trade shows, conferences, and other gatherings of the aquaculture community.

Local Directory Marketing [Company Name] will announce details about its products in local directories to keep readers informed about the Company’s offerings.

Social Media [Company Name] will invest in a social media advertising campaign. The marketing manager will create the Company’s social media accounts and invest in ads on all social media platforms. It will use targeted social media marketing tactics to appeal to the target demographics.

Local Publications The Company will also invest in advertising in selected local publications until it has achieved significant brand awareness. Publications such as local newspapers, magazines, and advertisements will be used to introduce the community to the company.

Website [Company Name] will invest heavily in developing a professional website that displays all the benefits of its fish farm and the quality of the salmon it offers. It will also invest heavily in SEO so that the brand’s website will appear at the top of search engine results.

Special Offers Offers and incentives are an excellent approach to assisting businesses in replenishing the churn in their customer base that they lose each year. The Company will introduce special offers to attract new consumers and encourage repeat purchases, which will be quite advantageous in the long run.

Pricing Strategy

[Company Name]’s pricing will be premium and higher than competitors due to the products being better quality. Consumers will feel they are getting the best value when purchasing salmon from the Company’s fish farm.

VII. Operations Plan

Functional roles.

[Company Name] will carry out its sales operations through phone calls and visits to customer offices. The sales manager will increasingly direct sales activities, although [Founder’s Name] will be heavily involved at first.

The assistant manager will run the day-to-day operations of the fish farm, including scheduling and assigning the work of fish farm personnel, sourcing and purchasing supplies and basic equipment, keeping the Company’s books, maintaining legal licenses, handling insurance, and ensuring that the Company meets government regulations. He will contact specialists for equipment repairs when needed.

In order to execute on [Company Name]’s business model, the Company needs to perform several functions. [Company Name] anticipates using the services of X employees, divided into the following roles.

Service Functions

Fish farming personnel
Office staff
Drivers for distribution
Operations manager on duty
Processing and packaging staff

Administrative Functions

General and administrative functions including legal/compliance, marketing, bookkeeping, etc.
Hiring and training staff
Delivery coordination with clients
Brand management/social media
Supply and materials procurement

VIII. Management Team

Management team members, hiring plan.

[Founder] will serve as the Owner and Manager of [Company Name]. In order to launch, he needs to hire the following personnel:

Assistant Operations Manager: 1 full-time employee to manage the day-to-day fish farming operations and assist [Founder] with managerial duties.
Processing & packaging staff: 5-6 full-time facility employees who will work every day from 8:00 am – 5:00 pm.
Delivery staff: 3–4 full-time drivers who will be responsible for delivering the salmon to the grocery stores, restaurants, and food processors.
Fish farming staff: 3–4 who will manage the day-to-day operations of the fish farm. Office staff: 3–4 employees who will manage the phone calls, scheduling, accounting, marketing, clerical, bookkeeping, billing, and any administrative task required.
Sales and marketing manager: 1 full-time employee who will be responsible for developing and launching the brand; manage the website, and social media accounts.
Janitorial staff: 2 employees who will clean the facility once it has closed for the day.

IX. Financial Plan

Revenue and cost drivers.

[Company Name]’s revenues will come primarily from its salmon sales. The Company will sell salmon by the pound to local restaurants, grocery stores, and food processing companies.

The property purchase and build-out, equipment, supplies, and labor expenses will be the key cost drivers of [Company Name]. The major cost drivers for the Company’s operation will consist of: