THE MAD HATTERS

BUSINESS PLAN

ByAshwini Mane Monalisa Das Peer M Muna Supriya

Executive Summary Mad Hatters Services is a start-up firm with a unique service line of fun events specially designed to suit the entertainment needs of the student population IIM Trichy. The concept includes organizing group activities in the IIM campus. Our objective is to grow as a market leader in this space by providing custom made events to the students and delight them with our excellent service. We plan to come up with a club at IIM Trichy which promotes fun through group activities and learning through outbound fun trips to the places in and around Trichy in future. This is a first of the kind initiative and the USP is providing a social alternative for the bored souls of the in the history of IIM Trichy. We are also planning to other activities like tours to historical places in and around Trichy and also factory trips. The critical success factors of the company lies in attracting customers, providing best services at affordable prices and catering to the fun needs of the customers. Vision All work and no play make Jack a dull boy. So it is our vision to provide opportunities to the brightest minds of IIM Trichy to take a break from their routine and have fun to renew their energy levels and refresh their grey cells. Mission We encourage people to get out of their cocoons and participate in group activities and increase interaction so as to promote interpersonal bonds and ideas exchange among students. Values Demonstrating initiative and an individual positive approach in all interactions. Acting in an ethical manner in all situations. Showing accountability for accuracy and excellence in all work undertaken.

Our Services WHAT - Organising fun games and social gatherings WHO - Services to be offered to IIM Trichy students of both the batches (2014 and 2015) WHEREInside or outside IIM Trichy campus WHEN - Time and date convenient to students The context IIM Trichy students usually have lot of free time despite their busy schedules, but there isnt much scope in the city or within the campus to have fun as Trichy is a city with very few options for entertainment and outdoor activities. Because of the lack of good

alternative for entertainment, most of them end up sleeping, doing their chores or spending time on the internet. As a solution to this we came up with an idea of giving them a break in which they can participate, play games, have fun, have a good time, mingle with their friends, explore new things, have good food and start afresh.

Differentiation & Sustainability: We will deliver our services to our customers as a complete experience that will be difficult to replicate. The focus would be on service with quality interactions with the event customers. Best possible game ideas would be developed to enhance the fun element of the evening parties. Music and dance would be added attraction. Corporate social responsibility: Being responsible in our actions and practicing responsibilities is critical to our business. So it is our intention to share our profits with the needy in the society. We plan to provide food to the inmates of an orphanage from the profits, so that all the fun we had in organizing events could be converted into food for the hungry. Marketing plan: Market size: Our target market is PGP 12 and 13 batches of IIM Trichy. The two batches would together consist of about 200 students which are substantially big enough for customer base. Customer Profile: Our ideal customer would be Competition: Our service is unique and as of now we dont have any competitors who provide similar services. But there are other few groups who are considering implementing similar ideas of games and other activities. Young (between between 22 to 28 years) Fun loving (loves parties, games, movies etc.) Outgoing (large group of friends and always on the lookout for more) Open minded student (eager to learn more and more by all ways possible) Loves exploring new things Enjoys exploring new places and food

USP: A break from the normal, monotonous and boring routine of academic life for students of IIM Promotion and routes to marketing: Since our customers are students and most of them are regular users of internet and social networking sites, we will focus more on Internet based advertisement. Posters Social media like Facebook Networking personally Direct mail Word of mouth

Pricing: Customer value is important for us and hence our approach for pricing would be value based pricing. We will try for the perceived value to be much higher than the actual value by following the steps given below. Assess customer needs and value perceptions Set target price to match customer perceived value Determine costs that could be incurred Design service to deliver desired value at target price Sales Forecast: To better understand our customers we conducted a market research study through an online survey. We designed a questionnaire having 8 questions to understand their interest in visiting historical places, amusement parks and indoor fun events. Also questions on their willingness to pay were asked to the respondents. The survey questionnaire link was sent to the students of IIM Trichy and responses were sought. About 60 % of the people participated within the limited timeline allotted and the responses were collected and analysed. From survey it was understood that about 90% of the students are interested in a fun event at college campus. So a group of 40-50 students are expected for a evening fun event. A significant 40% is willing to pay more than Rs. 200 for evening party and 36% and 14% (approx.) are willing to pay Rs. 150-200 and Rs.100-150 respectively. On the basis

ofReturn on Investment analysis and these market research conclusions, we areexpecting a profit of Rs.13,000.

Competitor Analysis The competition faced by this initiative is from the other groups who are also conducting similar events like fun parties. Group 4 is conducting parties of similar kind for the same target market (PGP 2014 and 2015 batch students). They have chosen to organise their party in the class rooms in the college on weekends at an entry free of Rs75.Another group is conducting games like dart board, ring games etc to the same target customer,but the plan is to conduct the event on weekdays during class breaks. Their ticket is supposed to be priced Rs.10 per game.

Risk analysis: Economic model failure because of inability to attract enough customers. Consumer interest shifts to focus on study rather than on other activities. Inability to find suitable dates and time to organize fun event.

SWOT Analysis Strengths conducted) Weakness Opportunities Innovative ideas for games and group activities A lot of historical places nearby to explore The targeted market is not fully aware of the places to visit Limited resources like time, staff Inexperience of staff Unique service Effective marketing strategy (in accordance with the market research Committed team

Threats Competitors who are offering similar services Last minute changes in class schedule, surprise quizzes Restrictions from NIT

Operational plan:

Production: We are going to outsource foods from nearby cafeteria and shops. Staff operation: We, the four members of team Mad Hatters are involved in this business idea. We are going to distribute work as per our skills, ability and interest. We will try to utilize our managerial skills to the fullest. Service design and development: We have done SWOT analysis for our business plan to understand our strengths and weakness better and to explore our opportunity and overcome the weaknesses. We will try to improve and develop our service to meet the needs and aspirations of our customers.

Client services: We will provide them good/tasty/healthy food and goodies. We will try to improve and take the complaint seriously and resolve customer problem from our side. We will conduct online survey after every event for feedback. We will reward customer loyalty by giving them discount for permanent member

Management Plan

The work involved in the implementation and planning stage is divided among the group members and is well coordinated for effective results. Monalisa Ashwini

Food and Transport

Strategy and Marketing

Finance

Survey and documentation

Supriya

Peer Muna

Food and logistics: Arrangement of food according to the preference of the people coming for the events. Logistics to ensure timely delivery of the food items.

Strategy and marketing: Finance: Handling all the cash collected and maintaining an updated balance sheet. Supervising all the monetary transactions involved in each event or activity. Scheduling of the events in accordance with the class schedules and other available resources. Planning of the marketing approach to ensure that maximum participation in the events. Branding exercise to increase their perceived value of the whole package.

Survey and Documentation: Conduct market survey before each event to gather market information . Analysing market research data and understanding the interest of students, their willingness to pay and convenient schedules which would be referred before formulating plans for the activities.

Moulding our services in accordance with the customers requirement resulting in better customer satisfaction. Timely feedback from students and members to increase the quality and extent of satisfaction, addressing complaints, improve the services and plan future events accordingly.

Financial planning:

Estimates for fun event Expenses/Costs Initial investment Capital amount Advertisement and marketing expenses Other cost(phone calls) Revenue generated from tickets Snacks Other expenses Total expenses Profit

100x40 50x40

800 100 100 4000 2000 500 2700 1300

Estimates for Trichy trip Expenses/Costs Initial investment Capital amount Advertisement and marketing expenses Other cost(phone calls) Revenue generated from trip package Lunch and Snacks Transport expenses Other expenses Total expenses Profit

1250x40 700x40

800 400 200 50000 28000 8000 7000 43000 7000

Expansion Plans We plan to expand our services to offer industrial visits to students who are interested in visiting industry and factories. This is advantageous for those without any work experience or first-hand knowledge about how a factory set up works. Since it is an excellent opportunity to gain practical exposure, students would be greatly interested and this could be developed as a premium product. Even though there are good picnic places in Trichy or places of historical significance, people are mostly unaware of them as majority of the students are coming from other states majorly from northern part of India. Language is an issue for them to roam around. We are also planning to conduct trips to historical trips nearby Trichy.