Executive Summary 

Opportunity

Problem

Companies need to make sure their employees have the best training and
tools available.  They use the retreats to help colleagues get together and
work well together which helps avoid turnover. Happy coworkers mean
happy customers

Solution

The Corporate Retreat Professionals (CRP) is an event planning company

specializing in corporate customers.  CRP will offer two types of services,
retreat training services as well as product launch event planning.  The
retreat training services will be either leadership development training or
teaming skills training.  For both types of retreats, CRP can take care of the
planning of the event, as well as actually hosting the training through the
use of one of CRP’s strategic business partners.

Market

The corporate market for event planning is steady and profitable.  For
some large companies, economic downturns mean cuts in training. This is,
however, only the case for short sighted companies.  The benchmark
companies may trim down the workforce during a downturn, but they do
not cut funds for training.  They recognize that investing in human
resources is always a good investment.  CRP intends to profit nicely from
this.  Additionally, even in economic downturns, companies still have
product launches and will still need someone to organize these events.  In
short, the need for corporate event planning/hosting services rarely
diminishes, it is a steadily increasing demand that CRP will capitalize on.

Competition

In the past, the buying patterns for the larger corporations was in the past
to have an in-house solution. This pattern is is disappearing in favor of
outsourcing as there is the constant drive for gains in efficiency,
something outsourcing can offer.

Why Us?

Corporate Retreat Professionals will provide companies with the highest

level of event planning.  We exist to attract and maintain customers. 
When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall into place.  Our
services will exceed the expectations of our customers.

Expectations

Financial Highlights by Year

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Financing Needed

We will be getting $50,000 from the owner and founder of the company. 
Opportunity

Problem & Solution

Problem Worth Solving

Companies need to make sure their employees have the best training and
tools available.  They use the retreats to help colleagues get together and
work well together which helps avoid turnover. Happy coworkers mean
happy customers

Our Solution

Corporate Retreat Professionals will provide companies with the highest

level of event planning.  We exist to attract and maintain customers. 
When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall into place.  Our
services will exceed the expectations of our customers.

Target Market

Market Size & Segments

CRP will serve the corporate customer in the event planning market.  CRP
will be specializing in two important niches.  The first is leadership
development and teaming skills development.  With the recent trend in
corporate downsizing, corporations are ditching their in-house solutions
in favor of outsourcing.  Even though we are in the midst of an economic
downturn, investments in human capital are generally not reduced. 
Corporations still have the need for leadership development and teaming
skills development.  These are investments that cost a bit up front but pay
nice returns in the long run.  These are the services that CRP will specialize
in.

Additionally, CRP will offer event planning for product launches.  Product
launches are an integral stage in the release of a new product,
communicating to the public about the new "thing" the company has just
released.  Our customers will be companies seeking to raise awareness
about their new product release.  CRP will provide a complete service of
planning and hosting these product release events.

4.1 Market Segmentation

CRP is providing services to corporate customers only.  We will not be

going after the "social market" which is an alternative market within the
event planning niche. 

The corporate customer is a company that contracts with CRP to plan and
typically host an event for the company.  Corporations will be turning to
CRP to plan the events because:

1. It is cost effective for a third party to plan the event.  This is the case
because the third party only does event planning so they can plan
and host the event more efficiently.
2. The company does not have additional people that can be taken
away from their daily tasks to invest time in this infrequent event.

Our event planning services for corporate retreats will typically be

utilized by larger corporations.  A larger company can be generally defined
as one with more than 40 employees.  Smaller companies sometimes will
utilize this service of ours, however, it is the larger corporations that
typically have the budget for this activity.

For our product launch event planning, we will be servicing companies of

all different sizes.  Typically the companies that use this service will
be product based companies, but we will also offer this service to service-
based companies who desire to announce a new service that they are
offering.

CRP is targeting large companies for our corporate retreat event

planning.  The large corporations typically have the budget and the
foresight to recognize the value in corporate retreats.  In addition, it is the
larger corporations that typically use the corporate retreat as a training
session for their employees.  The training is typically in leadership
development or teaming skills.  While they do have these retreats at
different intervals through the year,  it is more cost effective for them to
hire a service such as CRP to plan the events when needed instead of
paying the carrying costs of having a full-time, trained employee ready to
do the planning when it is needed.

CRP’s product release planning services will be targeted at all different size
companies.  Companies of all sizes have product release and it is unusual
for them to have product release many times a year requiring someone to
be a full-time planner on staff.  Therefore, it makes sense for them to hire
an outside service to plan the event using their expertise in event planning
to drive down the costs of production and hosting.

Competition
Current Alternatives

Currently there are three other companies that offer event planning
specifically to corporations. They however, tend to do events that are
more general in scope such as parties to reward customers or employees,
or events to change the company image. There is no company that
specializes in event planning of corporate training and product release
events. There are companies that offer corporate training, but these
companies provide the actual training and do not do any of the actual
event planning/ logistics of the entire event.

There are companies that provide product-release services, but they do

not specialize in it. Because event planning is a tight market, CRP will
benefit from their specialization in this area.

Our Advantages

CRP’s competitive edge will be based on two factors, specialization and

strategic relationships. CRP will be specializing in two distinct areas of
corporate planning. While specializing essentially precludes CRP out of a
lot of different markets, it allows CRP to excel in the markets that it has
chosen to participate in. Specialization allows CRP to be an expert in the
two areas that it is in. Additionally, the expert knowledge allows CRP to
provide the service as a cost saving to the company because the fewer
services CRP offers, the more they can concentrate on improving the
current offerings. Improvements that CRP strive for is a reduction in cost
charged to the client and an improvement to the level of services offered.
CRP’s second competitive edge is based on the use of strategic
relationships. CRP clearly realizes that they cannot be good at everything.
CRP believes it is better to concentrate on a few things, excel in those
areas, and form strategic partnerships with companies that excel in the
service areas that CRP doesn’t. Applying this philosophy, CRP has decided
in addition to planning corporate retreat training sessions, they want to
offer the service of hosting/leading these events as well. The service of
hosting/leading however, is quite different than planning and CRP believes
that it would be more cost effective to form a strategic relationship with
an expert in this field instead of trying to become proficient themselves.
CRP then is able to offer a top-notch service offering of hosting/leading
the training seminars but does not have to invest heavily in developing the
program.

The use of strategic relationships is unusual in the event planning space.

Most event planners are generalists and try to do a little of everything.
CRP is following the model of benchmark companies in other industries
that have recognized the value of specialization and the use of strategic
relationships.

Keys to Success

Keys to Success

Our keys to Success are: 

 Create a service-based company whose #1 value is exceeding

customer’s expectations.
  Utilize of CRP’s services in 10 of the 100 top performing companies
as listed by the Seattle Business Journal.
 Increase our number of served clients by 20% per year through
superior service.
 Develop a sustainable, profitable start-up business.

Execution

Marketing & Sales

Marketing Plan

CRP is targeting large companies for our corporate retreat event

planning.  The large corporations typically have the budget and the
foresight to recognize the value in corporate retreats.  In addition, it is the
larger corporations that typically use the corporate retreat as a training
session for their employees.  The training is typically in leadership
development or teaming skills.  While they do have these retreats at
different intervals through the year,  it is more cost effective for them to
hire a service such as CRP to plan the events when needed instead of
paying the carrying costs of having a full-time, trained employee ready to
do the planning when it is needed.

CRP’s product release planning services will be targeted at all different size
companies.  Companies of all sizes have product release and it is unusual
for them to have product release many times a year requiring someone to
be a full-time planner on staff.  Therefore, it makes sense for them to hire
an outside service to plan the event using their expertise in event planning
to drive down the costs of production and hosting.
 

Sales Plan

CRP will, for the most part, be using the sale strategy of personal selling.
With his five years of consulting for larger corporations, Jeff has formed
relationships throughout the business community. Jeff will initially
leverage these relationships to form some initial clients. Once things get
rolling and CRP has developed some satisfied clients, Jeff will be
developing relationships with his network of friends developed through
the Chambers of Commerce and trade shows.

Jeff’s spiel to prospective customers will be based on the high level of

service offered and cost advantages by going with CRP. The cost savings
can be quantified and shown to the customer while the higher level of
service can be guaranteed as well as communicated through testimonials
from satisfied clients.

Additionally, the website will be used not only to communicate

information to prospective customers but also a method of
communication where CRP can provide more specialized information such
as cost estimates as well as answering questions through the site.

Operations

Technology

CRP will offer event planning for the corporate market.  CRP will
concentrate on two types of event planning:
 1. Corporate retreats– These events are typically used for two
different reasons.  They are either a leadership training or teaming
skills training where employees of the corporations are sent away to
develop these skills.  In addition to the planning of the events, CRP
will be able to host the event as well.  While CRP’s core competencies
are not in hosting, CRP will align itself with a well-respected host of
leadership development/teaming skills programs and have them
assist CRP in the hosting aspect.  Using a strategic partner, in this
case, allows CRP to stick with a narrow focus but still offer the
service to our customers.
2. Product launches– These are events where the corporation is
releasing a product and they have an event that is open to people
outside of the corporation.  The purpose of the product launch
event is to create visibility for the new release. 

Milestones & Metrics

Milestones Table
Milestone Due Date

Q1 Review Mar 08, 2018

Q2 Review June 08, 2018

Q3 Review Sept 13, 2018

Q4 Review Dec 08, 2018

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Key Metrics

Our Key Metrics are: 

 # of monthly customers, we would like to slowly increase our

monthly customers 
 #of return customers 
 # of reviews and recommendations 
 food and drink inventory turnover
 each even cost of goods 
 cost of training our staff 
 # of events and of rooms occupied to break even 

Company

Overview

Ownership & Structure

CRP is a Washington corporation whose sole stock holder is Jeff Organizer.

Jeff will be incorporating to protect himself from personal liability.

Team

Management Team
Jeff Organizer, Founder and President, has a degree in Business from the
University of Washington. After college, Jeff spent five years working for
Andersen Consulting. During these years, Jeff became familiar with a large
number of companies and the important players in the Seattle business
community. While working for Andersen, Jeff attended an MBA night
program and received his MBA in 1996.

After completing his degree, Jeff decided to join Boeing in their PR

department. It was at Boeing where Jeff learned the bulk of his organizing
and event planning skills. These skills, in conjunction with his MBA
education, gave Jeff the confidence to handle a wide range of business
propositions. After three years at Boeing, Jeff decided to start his own
business. Corporate Retreat Professionals was finally born

Personnel Table
2018 2019 2020

HouseKeeping (2.67) $72,000 $108,000 $108,000

Kitchen (2.67) $76,800 $115,200 $115,200

Manager / Activities
$43,200 $44,064 $44,945
Coordinator (Jeff)

Account Manager $40,800 $41,616 $42,448

Totals $232,800 $308,880 $310,593

Financial Plan 

Forecast

Key Assumptions

Our key assumptions are: 

 Personnel are the difference between customers choosing one

company over the other, training is key 
 happy bonded coworkers mean longer hours and better products 
 there are a set number of events we need to breakeven. more will
make us a profit. 

Revenue by Month

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Expenses by Month

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Net Profit (or Loss) by Year

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Financing

Use of Funds

Start-up Expenses

Legal 1,000

Stationery etc. $300

Brochures $300

Consultants $300

Insurance $200

Rent $1,000

Office equipment $300

TOTAL START-UP EXPENSES$3,400

 
In addition we will be having $5,000 of long term assets.  The remainder of
the $50,000 will be used as cash to help fund the operations. 

Sources of Funds

We will be getting $50,000 from the owner. 

Statements

Projected Profit & Loss

2018 2019 2020

Revenue $969,000 $1,240,000 $1,355,000

Direct Costs $290,700 $372,000 $406,500

Gross Margin $678,300 $868,000 $948,500

Gross Margin % 70% 70% 70%

Operating Expenses

Salaries & Wages $232,800 $308,880 $310,593

Employee Related Expenses $46,560 $61,776 $62,119

Rent $30,000 $30,000 $30,000

Marketing expenses $48,450 $62,000 $67,750

Total Operating Expenses $357,810 $462,656 $470,462

Operating Income $320,490 $405,344 $478,038

Interest Incurred $1,526 $357 $96

Depreciation and Amortization $1,250 $1,250 $1,250

Gain or Loss from Sale of

Assets

Income Taxes $47,657 $60,561 $71,503

Total Expenses $698,943 $896,824 $949,811

Net Profit $270,057 $343,176 $405,189

Net Profit/Sales 28% 28% 30%

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Projected Balance Sheet

Starting Balances 2018 2019 2020
Cash $41,600 $224,158 $537,029 $928,803

Accounts Receivable $182,000 $206,667 $225,834

Inventory

Other Current Assets

Total Current Assets $41,600 $406,158 $743,696 $1,154,637

Long-Term Assets $5,000 $5,000 $5,000 $5,000

Accumulated
($1,250) ($2,500) ($3,750)
Depreciation

Total Long-Term
$5,000 $3,750 $2,500 $1,250
Assets

Total Assets $46,600 $409,908 $746,196 $1,155,887

Accounts Payable $14,200 $19,333 $21,010

Income Taxes Payable $17,525 $15,147 $17,875

Sales Taxes Payable $0 $0 $0

Short-Term Debt $0 $11,526 $1,883 $1,979

Prepaid Revenue

Total Current
$0 $43,251 $36,363 $40,865
Liabilities

Long-Term Debt

Long-Term Liabilities

Total Liabilities $0 $43,251 $36,363 $40,865

Paid-In Capital $50,000 $100,000 $100,000 $100,000

Retained Earnings ($3,400) ($3,400) $266,657 $609,833

Earnings $270,057 $343,176 $405,189

Total Owner’s Equity $46,600 $366,657 $709,833 $1,115,022

Total Liabilities &

$46,600 $409,908 $746,196 $1,155,887
Equity

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Projected Cash Flow Statement
2018 2019 2020

Net Cash Flow from

Operations

Net Profit $270,057 $343,176 $405,189

Depreciation & Amortization $1,250 $1,250 $1,250

Change in Accounts
($182,000) ($24,667) ($19,167)
Receivable

Change in Inventory

Change in Accounts Payable $14,200 $5,133 $1,677

Change in Income Tax

$17,525 ($2,378) $2,728
Payable

Change in Sales Tax Payable $0 $0 $0

Change in Prepaid Revenue

Net Cash Flow from

$121,032 $322,514 $391,677
Operations

Investing & Financing

Assets Purchased or Sold

Net Cash from Investing

Investments Received $50,000

Dividends & Distributions

Change in Short-Term Debt $11,526 ($9,643) $96

Change in Long-Term Debt

Net Cash from Financing $61,526 ($9,643) $96

Cash at Beginning of Period $41,600 $224,158 $537,029

Net Change in Cash $182,558 $312,871 $391,773

Cash at End of Period $224,158 $537,029 $928,803

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