Blantyre Organic Juice Company is a small-scale entity that focuses on the production and selling o organic juice. Because it is a production or manufacturing line kind of small-scale enterprise, the raw materials needed are improved in the production process through the addition of various flavours which enhance the quality and taste of the final products. Besides, preservatives and additives will be added to the juice to increase the products’ shelf life. Importantly, there will be no needed for adding sugar to the products as the fruits have natural sugars. The fruits that are available during the season will be harvested whereby, a portion of the harvest will be used in the manufacturing process and what is left will be frozen for out-of-season use. The company will commence its operations as a sole proprietor business with the hope of growing to a limited liability business in the future. Further, the business is to be strategically situated to cab a good target market, accessibility to a good transport network, water, among other essentials. In this regard, the establishment will be based in Lilongwe, on 8,000 square feet building which will also make it possible for expansion as the company expires.

The company aims to produce organic fruit juices to target all age groups in Malawi at large for the first two years of its operations. The juice will contain a branded name titled “Juice Punch” with a conspicuous attractive packaging to attract the buyer’s attention. The juice is to be packed in a designed plastic bottle. On the package, the juice will also contain branding of the contact, address, date of manufacture, ingredients, expiry date, product philosophy mantra which states “Healthy Living, the Organic Way”, among other information.

Mission

The mission of Blantyre Organic Juice Company is to “create partnerships with different stakeholders to expand and also enhance the quality of the juice through value addition.”

Vision

The vision of the company is to become the leading manufacturer of organic juice in Malawi.

Objectives

Long-term Objectives

To be the largest manufacturer of organic juice in Malawi;
To diverge from a partnership to a firm within six years;
To transition from a labour-intensive approach to a huge capital-intensive company in four years; and
To increase the sales numbers from 30% in one year to 70% within the next 5 years.

Short-term Objectives

To increase the company sales to 35% in the next twenty-four months;
To grow the sales and production beyond Lilongwe in the next two and a half years; and
To increase the labour force to 25 in the next three years.

Business and Organization Structure

In the beginning, the administration of the company will be small. The main employees will include the founders, who will be in charge of operations. The business will hire staff through a recruitment agency to fill certain job roles. The staffs will operate in unison with continuous communication via staff meetings (weekly), message boards, and memos. All activities are interrelated, and as a result, the performance of one impacts the other; thus, every employee anticipates the best from the other.

As part of a plan to establish a successful organic juice company in Malawi, plans of realizing the goal have been laid out from the onset. This starts with the designation of roles and responsibilities to qualified employees. The employees have to competent, customer-centred, hardworking and share the same vision with the founders. The business structure that will guide the operations of Blantyre Organic Juice Company includes directors, a manager, a sales and marketing officer, a cashier or accountant, drivers or distributors, cleaners, and machine operators. Over time, other designations such as a human resource manager will be created as the company grows.

Market Research

Based on the analysis conducted, the justification gained demonstrates that the projections of the business are worthwhile and the business idea is fit to compete in the market. When it narrows down to organic juice, there is a wide range of consumers. The company’s target market can be limited to a group of consumers, but all those who seek to lead healthy lives as well as those who want to try out the products. Blantyre Organic Juice Company is in the business of engaging in wholesale distribution as well as retailing in a wide range of organic juice to the following market segments;

Children
Households
Sportspersons
Tourists
Students
All those people who live in the company’s target locations

Competitive Advantage

A study of the industry shows that the market has grown to be competitive over the years. As a result, the company has to be customer-centric, creative, and proactive to survive. The firm is aware of the competition and is ready to compete favourably. Notably, the startup has a good market position, efficient cost controls as well as the ability of franchising operations. The company’s location also gives the business a competitive advantage over its rivals. Finally, the business workforce will be taken care of and their welfare packages will be the best in the sector. This means that the employees will be more willing to build the company and assist it to deliver on its set objectives and goals.

SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis is a management framework that allows a company like Blantyre Organic Juice Company to benchmark its operations and performance in comparison to the industry and competitors. The framework analyzes the firm’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. In the company’s SWOT analysis, the weaknesses and strengths are internal factors while the threats and opportunities are external forces that affect the business (Gürel & Tat, 2017).

Strengths

The firm’s strengths lie in the fact that it has a wide range of organic juice products which can satisfy the needs of various consumers. The company has modern equipment and facility which position it to meet the demands of the buyers even if the demand double overnight or if it has a huge order to deliver. The other factor which counts to Blantyre Organic Juice Company’s advantage is the background of the management. The team has experience in the industry and also a commendable academic background to match the experiences acquired which put them among the top professionals in Malawi. Additionally, the company does not ignore the fact that providing consultancy services and also running an accredited and standard training centre will also count as a plus for the business.

Weaknesses

The fact that Blantyre Organic Juice Company is setting up a venture in a region that boasts of other organic juice manufacturers can present a challenge when it comes to breaking into the already flooded market in Malawi. Essentially, the main weakness is that the business is yet to establish itself in Lilongwe and other parts of the country. The marketing budget is also limited thereby making the product awareness endeavour challenging. Nevertheless, the entity will eventually succeed in creating a positive impression and have a good hold when it gets to building on the already acquired momentum.

Opportunities

The opportunities that are available to the company are unlimited. A significant portion of the population consumes organic juice daily and this implies that the demand for organic juice is set to grow. Additionally, the company will be undertaking regular investigations and audits to identify the opportunities for improving effectiveness and efficiencies. Furthermore, the company will ensure frequent workshops and training for the employee to sustain their knowledge and empower them.

Threats

Among the threats that the business faces include market forces where more companies are entering the new market. The other threat is the economic forces such as recessions which reduce consumer disposable income and spending. The final threat is the unpredictable weather patterns which will low the yield of fruits.

Marketing Plan

The plan refers to a strategic roadmap which a company uses to organize, track, and also execute its marketing strategy over a specified period. The plan can encompass distinct marketing strategies for different marketing teams across the organization. However, all the teams work toward identical business objectives. Advertising is an essential activity in planning for a business venture. As a new venture, the company intends to adopt several promotional strategies. This includes networking, advertising, banners, and social media. Banners will be put strategically on prime locations regarding the launch date as well as the long-term campaign message.

Networking as a strategy is the first and foremost promotional technique in the quest for developing a robust client base. The approach will help the enterprise in a variety of ways. If individuals met us and had an idea of the product being rendered, they can refer clients to the company or consume the services themselves. Also, networking with hoteliers, supermarkets, among others, will provide a chance to meet new people whose services can be valuable in the production and supply of organic juice.

Concerning advertisement, the firm will begin by advertising in newspapers for a week before the launch or inauguration date. The first phase of advertising will focus on creating awareness regarding the existence of a healthy organic juice that targets the region’s health-conscious population.

The second phase of advertisement, after the business has been launched, will entail a full-page brochure about the company’s activities, production as well as other related subjects. The ads will also be on the company’s website to reach every potential client. Finally, the posters will be through mobile operator platforms so that cellphone owners can be aware of the existence of the company.

The final advertising strategy is the use of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. The entity will create social media accounts which will be linked to the official website. This way, the young and technologically savvy audience who are interested in improving their health or are keen on living a healthy lifestyle can be attentive to the company’s offerings. Through the platforms, feedback regarding the services rendered can be obtained.

In any marketing mix, pricing is a vital element. As a new entrant into the organic juice arena, the firm is cautious about the price of its products. As a result, competitive price strategy will be used where the costs of the services are based on what the other businesses are charging (West, Kujawski & Schmitt, 2016). With the pricing approach, different juice varieties will retail at different prices, depending on the cost of production.

Competitors

Even though the venture is a startup, it draws inspiration from the renowned traditional notion of going above and beyond what is anticipated each time. Being a startup, there are both existing and potential competitors in the market. Among the current competitors include Bowler Beverages, Cargowide Wines, Gold Crest Enterprises, and Chita One Investments. The four companies are the main competitors because they offer almost the same services as Blantyre Organic Juice Company thus posing as potential threats. The potential competitors are those businesses which will penetrate the market after the company has started operating. As a result, the firm will be on the lookout for such competitors to see what they are offering, to stay a step ahead of the competition. The non-existent or low exit or entry barriers further compound the competition ground. Thus, the lack of barriers can be challenging to the growth of the business as the industry matures. For the competitors who have been in the business for some, the disadvantage is that the longer they have been around, the more the customers have faded away as a result of the limited changes they have made on their products.

Financial Needs

In setting up the venture, the cost will vary, depending on the scale and approach to be adopted. In this regard, the business intends to start from a small venture and grow over time. However, the main areas that the company will spend most of its capital will be in the purchase of equipment, renting the space from which the company will operate from, paying for the supplies or raw materials and remunerating the employees. Since the business will be financed and owned by the family, it does not plan to welcome outside partners. As a result, the sources of finance for the startup are limited to three. This include sell of stocks and personal savings, soft loans from friends and family members, and loans from financial institutions. The financial needs of the venture in terms of where the money will be spent on, as well as the projected costs, are detailed in the table below.

Details	Amount ($)
Registration of the business	300
Legal expense for acquiring permits and licenses	778
Marketing expenses	1230
Insurance (property-casualty, workers; compensations, and general liability)	1000
Rent for one year (at $1.21 per square feet)	9680
Other expenses such as stationery, utility and phone deposits	700
Operational costs for the first quarter (employee salaries, payment of bills etc.)	3000
Start-up inventory (packaging materials and raw materials	11000
Equipment	10000
Distribution van (one)	10000
Gadgets and furniture (telephone, printers, tables, chairs, etc.)	2000
Miscellaneous	35000
Total	84688

Blantyre Organic Juice Company needs approximately $85,000 to successfully set up the business in Lilongwe. It is imperative to note that the family has generated $35,000 from personal savings and $15,000 as soft loans from friends and family members. The enterprise is in the final stages of acquiring a bank loan of $35,000 to get the business off the ground. All the documentation have been signed, submitted and approved by the bank and at any moment, the funds will be credited to the business’s bank account.

Possible Investors

The company is keen on remaining as a family business until it is fully established and gains a footing in the industry. This, therefore, means that there will be no potential investors, at least for the first five to seven years of operation. After that, the company will now be open for investors to join the business and help it expand to other regions in Malawi.

Action Plan

Action plans contain details of achieving a certain goal or objective. Generally, this includes an outline of objectives, goals, measurement, responsibilities, and action steps. In some occasions, a budget and dates are also covered. In this way, action plans mimic small-scale projects. A business cannot thrive with no definite action plan focused on growth. The possible areas that Blantyre Organic Juice Company’s action plan should cover include the potential competition, creation of partnerships (such as those with suppliers), a two-year profit projection, and operational costs for a duration until the company is stable. By expanding the mentioned areas of the concern, a plan that is implementable and workable can be set forth.

The Bigger Picture Plan

The entity’s profitability will grow steadily as the company improve its operations and increases the workforce and equipment to service the increasing demand for the products.

Timeline	Description
Where the company is at the moment	Not making any profits as most of the capital is geared toward the setting up of operations. Further, the company has 6 employees and all the minimum vacancies have been filled
Where the business will be in the third quarter of the fiscal year	All the employees will be familiar with the operations of an organic juice manufacturing company and skilled in production as well as acquainted to the improvement of profitability in the company.
Where Blantyre Organic Juice Company will be in a year	The company will be very close to breaking even and start realizing profits, 10 employees, no vacancies, and an increasing market share.
Where the company will be in the next three years	Increase sales by 35%. Grow the workforce to 25 employees, and sale the juice beyond Lilongwe region.

How the Company will Achieve the Set Goals and Objectives

Strategy	Action plan	Duration – Completion Date
Training	Training of employees on the modern ways of producing fruit juices as well as the handling of the state-of-the-art production equipment. The personnel will also be trained on the maintenance and the expected production standards required in the process	From 15^th to 25^th July 2020
Recruitment plan	Identify the needed skillsets for the different job roles and engage the services of a recruitment agency to help in the hiring of the best talents in the industry	From 15^th to 30^th June 2020
Improve production and distribution of the products	Make a significant investment in the establishment of partnerships and marketing campaigns and promotions	From August 2020
Increase sales	Convey a meeting with random organic juice customers and identify the different approaches that can help in increasing sales per customer	January 2021
Increase sales	Create and widely distribute product brochures all over Lilongwe	From August 2020
Increase customer base	Review the competitors’ products and capitalize on their weaknesses.	April 2021
Increase customer base	Locate the regional selling event and make bookings to showcase the company’s products	May 2021

Conclusion

In a promising business environment, opportunities can only be awarded to firms which have the creativity and ingenuity of meeting the consumers’ needs for consuming organic fruit juices. Consequently, Blantyre Organic Juice Company has the potential of coming up and making its name in the industry due to the uniqueness of services as well the various strategies adopted to achieve certain goals. The marketing and pricing strategies, the competent workforce, and the appropriate location of the business ensure that the company commences the production on a good footing thus ensuring that it succeeds in the long-term. Being a startup, the challenges are many but over time, as the operations gain traction, and reliable suppliers of raw materials are sourced, the long-term vision of the company will be realized.

References

Gürel, E., & Tat, M. (2017). SWOT analysis: a theoretical review. Journal of International Social Research, 10(51).

West, S., Kujawski, D., & Schmitt, P. (2016, June). Service pricing strategies in maintenance services. In Proceedings of the 23rd EurOMA conference.

Business Plan: Blantyre Organic Juice Company

Introduction