Given that every business needs a business plan, how do you write one for alpacas? We don't want to manufacture millions of widgets or raise thousands of cattle no matter how well these business models are documented. There are some books and web sites that give you the outline of an alpaca business plan, but I found them lacking. I am a technical writer by trade, so I dived into those dry books on how to write business plans and applied it to my alpaca business.
I took home the message that you need goals. What gets managed, gets tracked. What gets tracked, gets done.
I acknowledged the need for a financial plan, if not actual financials. Not only answering the question of am I making money, but how will I make money.
Detailing where my alpaca business is today and where I want it to be in the future opened my mind to more possibilities. How many acres do I want, how many alpacas, do I want machinery or material goods to help . In an ideal world, what do I see as my end goal? Now how do I get there?! What are the risks?
Business Plans are the roadmap to success. Once you have the goals set for your one year and 5 year plans, it is easy to make day to day decisions. Should I put in the new pasture, or buy a new alpaca is transformed into the question "Does buying this new alpaca fit into my business plan, does putting in a new pasture fit into my business plan?" I have passed up many alpacas because they do not fit into my business plan. I raise black alpacas, with some brown and fawn sprinkled in. Fawn does not always cover black... But I digress. Even though the alpacas were quality and were well priced, I saved my money for the new pasture because my 5 year goal is to have 10 production black females. To do that, I need more room. Fencing is the priority.
Deciding on which breedings to do is easier with a business plan. Which male will drive my business forward towards my goals? If you have the 20/20 goal of 20 pounds of fiber at 20 microns, then you would want to look at the males that will add density and fineness to your females instead of say color.
The business plan is the way to tell the IRS you are serious and not a hobby. It is one of the criteria for a business, along with stationary, and a bank account. :)
A business plan helps you budget your expenses and income.
Given the scarcity of business plans amongst alpaca breeders, I think there must be a reluctance about writing them. They can be a long or short as you want. They can include financials or just a general goal. The can be involved or simple. It really is up to you. I thought it might help for me to walk you through the steps of a business plan with an alpaca slant on the information. Many of the books that are out there are thinking along different lines of manufacturing or production of one item. Farming and ranching have their own unique issues.
Follow along with me for the next couple of weeks as I rewrite my business plan and talk about the steps involved.
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