High Tea Kits is a business that creates pre-made, homemade and quality snacks and baked goodies such as scones, cookies, pastries, etc. for sharing with friends and family. Facilitated through the Terrace Farmer’s Market and online services, it has the potential to be a profitable business with little or no direct competitors. HTK will primarily be run by myself for the first few years, as I have several years experience with customer service, retail selling, social media advertising and promotion, and baking several of the items included in the kits.
HTK has the projection to generate gradually increasing revenues over the first three years after an initial start-up investment of $2,865. The current projections for revenue are $463, $2,428, and $795.40 in years 1, 2 and 3 respectively, with the third year including the hiring of the first employee. Hiring of the first employee could take place as early as year 3 with the business still being able to turn a profit. The customer base is large, as High Tea Kits appeal to anyone generally between the ages of 20-80+, with a reasonably affordable pricing range and different sizes of kits to better suit customer needs.
If carefully managed, HTK could grow and expand to operate in other market areas such as Prince Rupert and Smithers, offer more customization and ordering options via the website, and potentially offer a home delivery service to customers within a set distance range for extra convenience. Subscription services could also be applied to allow repeat customers to save some money and encourage them to buy more.
Employees of HTK would make operations easier, allowing me or other involved parties to be more efficient by focusing on administrative and management-related tasks. Job positions could include but aren’t limited to Baker, Sales Rep, Customer Service Rep, Supplier, and Social Media Rep. HTK most likely could afford to bring on a new employee if demand grows at enough of a rate every 1-2 years as needed. All items made for the kits would be made with consideration of the Northern Health Guidelines for what can and can’t be made without a permit, as HTK will be operating without one. This still allows us to make a wide variety of items without having to pay for the permit and be subject to regular inspections from the health authority. This won’t compromise the quality of the products however, as all employees who have anything to do with the treats in any stage of the production/physical selling process will be required to have a BC Food Safe certificate, and where possible treats will be made in large batches to keep consistency.
For employees, limited benefits may be offered where affordable, with the mandatory 5 sick day policy and any other federal or provincial mandated employee benefits being provided. Scheduling will be somewhat relaxed to allow employees to work at a pace that is comfortable for them so long as they meet the needed quota of items for selling or do the work needed within a timely manner, such as replying to customers online, except for Saturday mornings where at least one employee will be needed to facilitate sales. Overall, HTK is a solid business plan that is profitable and has the potential to be a great success.