Many of us have known since we were young that we wanted to start our own business. For others, it’s about taking that passion for delectable desserts to the next stage. Yet others have found themselves unwilling to place their livelihood in the hands of another after 2020 industry lay-offs, saying, “never again.” Whatever your reason for starting your dessert business in 2021, there is one thing you must have to get started.

A Cornell University study found that if more food services businesses had this one thing, a much higher percentage would succeed in that first year and beyond. This one thing doubles their chance of surviving the startup phase and can help them grow their business 30% faster. That one thing isn’t the ability to manage food costs. It’s not better hiring practices. It’s certainly not passion or skill since most people starting a dessert business in 2021 have those. The thing that you need to succeed is a vision, a clearly defined plan to achieve–a business plan.

“Business plan” doesn’t have to be a scary word. A business plan is simply setting some goals and figuring out how you plan to get there, and there is a step-by-step way to create one that will work for your business.

A Business Plan Is Your Recipe for Success

Developing a business plan is similar to writing a recipe with a set number of ingredients, quantities, and steps. While you can certainly perform some substitutions, as needed, to achieve the most predictable, evenly textured A+ for presentation, award-winning desserts, you need to consistently follow the recipe. A business plan is a lot like that. It outlines the prep work you need to do and what you’ll do, in what order, to meet your goals.

It establishes what those goals are in the first place. Will this be a mochi-inspired doughnut or a classic cheesecake? You need to know what you plan to create before you begin.

We’ve all heard, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” This plays out in everyday life on a small scale. Starting a dessert business takes it to a whole new level. Additionally, when you start a business, it’s no longer just about you. You’ll have employees and their families counting on you to lead your dessert business into a bright future. But no pressure, as a well-designed plan goes a long way toward putting you on the path to success, and it helps you manage the unexpected to stay afloat in troubling times.

Who Needs a Business Plan?

ANY business from the niche Etsy baked goods shop to the home kitchen to the primely-located brick-and-mortar needs a plan. Even if your dessert business involves establishing yourself as a dessert influencer online and teaching online classes, you need a plan to generate revenues.

How to Create a Dessert Business Business Plan

A business plan is a living document you create to direct your business.

In it, you’ll find elements like these:

• What is your dessert business? – Are you creating your own line of baked goods? Will you be opening up a physical shop? Do you plan to teach others how to bake rather than selling actual pastries?
• How will you obtain startup capital? – A strong business plan is a vital tool to get funding.
• Who is your audience? – What do they like, and why will they choose you over other options?
• What will your marketing strategy be? -Traditional, SEO, social media, influencers, or all of the above?
• Who is the competition? – How will you gain market share as a new player?
• What revenue streams will you create? – Will you sell to restaurants, markets, or directly to customers online, in a shop, or food truck? Will you host virtual workshops, in-person classes, or create an online course? Will you use a subscription model or focus on ad revenues?

At a glance, this may seem overwhelming, but we like a dessert business planning software called LivePlan because it makes building an effective business plan simple and straightforward. We know that’s what our audience needs when they’re starting a business, and we appreciate that.

How Is LivePlan Helping Dessert Business Entrepreneurs?

LivePlan takes you step-by-step through building a plan that is rock solid and can help you achieve your dessert business dreams. LivePlan was built for the everyday entrepreneur who understands they need a plan but aren’t quite sure how to get from point A to point B. LivePlan built software that is very easy to use, and it’s more than business planning software. It is along for the ride as you endeavor on this venture. Here are some of the ways people are using LivePlan for their dessert businesses.

Business Planning

A robust business plan is key to securing funding. LivePlan helps those who have a dessert business idea turn it into reality by applying a formula that generates a plan that shows a potential investor or lender that this has been thought out and is a great investment. With it, culinary entrepreneurs can develop a plan that will allow them to grow their pastry business with confidence.

Create a One-Page Plan

Sometimes less is more. LivePlan also gives you the tools to refine and summarize your more extensive plan into one page that you can pitch to someone in under 60 seconds.

Automatic Projections

You can plug in some base numbers, and the tools do the rest, helping you forecast monthly costs, revenues, and profits based upon your researched assumptions. This minimizes the math required and the chance for error. It helps you set realistic goals for your business.

Financial Performance Tracking

The tools help you track your ongoing performance and regularly compare it to your projections to understand if your business is on track so you can make adjustments to your strategy.

Easy Payment Options

Finally, we appreciate that LivePlan is reasonably-priced and powerful software. That’s important when you’re starting a new venture. You can pay-as-you-go for $20 a month, choose the 6-month plan for $18 a month, or pay just $15 a month with the annual subscription. LivePlan lets you try the software for 60 days risk-free, so you can decide for yourself if this is the right tool for your new dessert business.