Starting a butchery business is a profitable and highly rewarding venture. The butchery is one of the oldest business models known to omnivorous man. It is a remarkably versatile and diverse business model that can range from a very small outlet to great commercial multinational corporations. Because of our love of meat, it is one of those enterprises that is unlikely to ever go out of fashion. This article will outline how to start a butchery business, and the butchery business plan – PDF, Word and Excel.
The demand for meat and meat products is always consistently high. This is why more and more people continue to embark on livestock production and still get to realize huge returns. Consequentially this means that starting and running a butchery is an exercise laden with great returns. The prospects are even further enhanced because not only can you just focus on selling meat but you can also include the processing of meat products. You can engage in meat processing which produces various products such as sausages, pickles, biltong and burger patties. Read on for more information on starting a butchery business and the meat shop business plan.
Make sure you have a comprehensive butchery business plan
The failure to plan is the beginning of business failure. The butcher shop business plan must be clear and succinct enough to give your potential partners, clients and investors an overview of what your objectives are. At the same time, it must be detailed enough to explain your business well. Your meat shop business plan should have financial statements which show that your business is viable and profitable.
Market Research
Obviously the butchery market is vast but don’t let that fool you; market research is mandatory. There’s a wide array of meats spanning from beef, pork, chicken to meats like lamb, sausages and goat meat. So you must conduct research to help you make up your mind on which meat you’ll provide and to which market. Basically you need to find out the size of your potential market, its buying habits, levels of income and general meat preferences. Don’t forget to study about competitors so that you come up with ways to edge past them once operational.
Selecting A Location for Butchery Business
One of the most important things when starting a butchery business is selecting the right location. The best places for setting up a butchery are those that have a lot of foot traffic. You should consider areas which are easily noticeable. Places like shopping centres, shopping malls and city centres are usually ideal. Butcheries which are located on busy roads and close to public transport pickup points generate more revenue. Locating your butchery business in dense residential areas can also be ideal depending on your target market. You can also locate your butchery business close to recreational and leisure areas such as braai spots, liquor pubs, parks and lakes. Butcheries that are located in recreational areas usually generate more revenue during weekends, public holidays and event days. There should be good roads so that driving customers can easily access your butchery.
Butchery Premises & Facilities
There are 3 options for your butchery premises: you can buy land & construct the butchery buildings; you can purchase an already established building structure or you lease an existing building. The first 2 options are obviously more expensive as compared to the last option of leasing butchery space. Leasing butchery space also has the advantage of location flexibility – you can locate your butchery business at a busy place where land might no longer be available for purchasing. Renovations are usually required when leasing so that you make the shop suitable for a butchery business. Your butcher shop premises must be large enough to provide adequate space for butchery equipment, fittings, area for meat cutting & processing and space for customers to move freely around selecting the meat that they want. The meat shop should be designed in such a way that customers cannot access the processing side of the butchery, which should be restricted to only staff members. The butchery premises should be easy to clean so as to maintain hygiene at all times in the butchery. The material and structure of the butchery building should not become a source of contamination eg flaking paint, rusty iron fixtures, toxic materials and porous material which can harbor bacteria. The butchery premises should have adequate water supply, access to electricity, good solid & liquid waste disposal, a good ventilation system and good lighting system. There should also be a meat offloading bay which should be separate from the customers entrance. The costs of purchasing or leasing the butchery premises should be included in the butchery business plan.
Equipment And Machinery For A Butcher Shop
You require different types of machinery & equipment for your butchery shop. These include :
- Bandsaw/Meatsaw/Meat Cutter : This is a machine which is used to cut large blocks of meat in a butchery into small pieces. These are strong butchery machines which can even cut meat with thick muscles and bones. The meat cutter an important butchery equipment thus you need to select a good bandsaw brand and have it serviced regularly.
- Refrigerators/Freezers : They are used to freeze and store meat in the butchery. Should always be in good working condition so as to maintain good quality meat.
- Cold Rooms : These are large walk in refrigerating chambers which are used for meat storage in the butchery. Meat carcasses are hanged using hooks in the cold room.
- Display Freezers : They are used for storage and display of fresh meat in butcheries. Display freezers allow chilled meat to be attractively presented to customers. They should always be clean and smart so as to increase the butchery sales.
- Butchery Scales : They are used to weigh meat before packaging it and selling it to customers. It’s important that your butchery scale is calibrated so that it provides accurate weights. The butchery scale should have a double display system so that both the customers and butchery staff will see the weight. Some butchery scales also have a label printer which automatically prints out a label containing the weight & price of the meat plus a barcode. There are also other types of butchery scales used to weigh bulky meat such as carcass scale, platform scale and hanging scale.
- Meat Grinders/ Meat Mincers : This is a meat processing machine which grinds meat – very useful for making sausages and other meat products
- Butchery Knives : These are used for cutting meat in the butchery. They are specialized knives which are stronger than the regular chicken knives. Types of butchery knives include boning knife, clam knife and scimitar knife.
- Other Equipment : There are several other butchery equipment that include : Hamburger Presses, Chicken Slicers, Meat Smokers, Sausage Filler Machine/Meat Stuffers, Mixers, Sinks, Shelves, Tables, Carts, Protective Clothing and Meat Slicers.
The costs of purchasing the butchery machinery & equipment should be included in your meat shop business plan.
Products & Services
There are several products & services that your butcher shop business can provide. The core purpose of the butchery business is selling meat. You can sell a variety of meat including beef, pork, chicken, fish, lamb, sausages, goat meat, game meat, mince, offals etc. You can also offer braai services at your butchery premises – this will attract many customers to your shop. The butchery business can also provide other services such meat cutting & meat processing. You can also offer meat deliveries – customers can order meat from the comfort of their homes and you deliver it. Ensure that you provide good quality meat always. Good quality meat will attract more customers to your business. The butchery business plan should include list of the products & services that you are going to provide.
Source of Meat Products
You can source your meat from abattoirs, meat wholesalers or directly from farmers. They say that your butchery is only as good as the meat stock that you have. This means you should identify farmers or meat suppliers who go through the right production process. When you have selected the suppliers that you will partner with, you will need to make arrangements for delivering the stock. Remember that meat is a perishable product and can go bad pretty fast. If you do not store the meat under the right temperature, then the meat could end up being unfit for human consumption, and your butchery business will fail. In some instances, it is even preferable to purchase your own refrigerated truck to use for distribution. These trucks will require good maintenance. Your butcher shop business plan should obviously cater for the costs of purchasing the stock/meats.
Staff And Management
The number of staff required will depend on the size of your butchery business. The two major service fronts that individually need someone manning them are sales and the butchering. It’s advised to hire properly trained butchers so as to provide quality service.
Operating a butchery business requires both business and professional skills. For example, the cutting process may take years to master and yet it is a prerequisite for good produce. With the right machinery and trained staff, you will be able to provide exceptional meat. Your staff should be trained on how to use all the machinery correctly.
Your staff also need to master the art of selecting the best cuts for the customer. Some consumers are very specific about the cuts they want and how they want them to be prepared. Meat preservation skills and equipment could also be a useful addition to your stock of material. Some customers go as far as asking for advice on the most appropriate cooking methods for given cuts. Your sales staff should have this information at hand. The meat shop business plan should obviously budget for the salaries of all your employees.
The business case for a butchery
The butchery business is a lucrative opportunity precisely because it specializes in the provision of a product that is in high demand. Many cultures have a diet that is very heavy in meat. That means that you are marketing a product that is already capable of selling itself. In order to retain your place at the top of the production pyramid, you have to ensure that you sell meat that is fresh. The meat should also be of the highest quality. Above all, this is a social business which calls for constant contact with the general public. Therefore, your communication skills must good for you to be successful in the butchery business. Find out ways to price your meat and meat products in a way that lures customers more to you. Running periodic specials or discounts can also help immensely in that regard. Be rest assured that if you do all this your butchery business will bloom perpetually. Your butchery business plan should obviously have a proper marketing plan to guarantee success of the business.
Pre-Written Butchery Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel): Comprehensive Version, Short Funding/Bank Loan Version and Automated Financial Statements
For an in-depth analysis of the butchery business, we encourage you to purchase our well-researched and comprehensive butchery business plan. We introduced the business plans after discovering that many were venturing into the meat shop business without enough knowledge and understanding of how to run the business, lack of understanding of the financial side of the business, lack of understanding of : the industry, the risks involved , costs and profitability of the business; which often leads to disastrous losses.
The StartupBiz Global meat shop business plan will make it easier for you to launch and run your meat shop business successfully, fully knowing what you are going into, and what’s needed to succeed in the business. It will be easier to plan and budget as you will be aware of all the costs involved in setting up and running the butchery business.
Uses of the Butcher Shop Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
The meat shop business plan can be used for many purposes including:
- Raising capital from investors/friends/relatives
- Applying for a bank loan
- Start-up guide to launch your butchery business
- As a butchery business proposal
- Assessing profitability of the butcher shop business
- Finding a business partner
- Assessing the initial start-up costs so that you know how much to save
- Manual for current business owners to help in business and strategy formulation
Contents of the Butchery Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
The butchery business plan include, but not limited to:
- Marketing Strategy
- Financial Statements (monthly cash flow projections, income statements, cash flow statements, balance sheets, break even analysis, payback period analysis, start-up costs, financial graphs, revenue and expenses, Bank Loan Amortization)
- Industry Analysis
- Market Analysis
- Risk Analysis
- SWOT & PEST Analysis
- Operational Requirements
- Operational Strategy
- Why some people in the butchery business fail, so that you can avoid their mistakes
- Ways to raise capital to start your butchery business
The butchery business plan package consists of 4 files
- Butchery Business Plan – PDF file (Comprehensive Version – 81 Pages)
- Butchery Business Plan – Editable Word File (Comprehensive Version – 81 Pages)
- Butchery Business Plan Funding/Bank Loan Version- Editable Word File (Short version for applying for a loan/funding – 39 pages)
- Butchery Business Plan Automated Financial Statements – (Editable Excel File)
The business plan can be used in any country and can be easily edited. The financial statements are automated. This implies that you can change eg the price of meat, amount of meat sold etc, and all the other financial statements will automatically adjust to reflect the change.
Click below to download the Contents Page of the Butchery Business Plan (PDF)
Get the Butchery Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
Click Buy Now below to purchase using Paypal, Credit Card, or Debit Card. After you have purchased, you will immediately see the download link for the business plan package on the screen. You will also immediately get an email with the business plan download link.
The Pre-written business plan package (PDF, Word, and Excel) costs $30 only!
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The business plan package is a zipped compressed file containing the PDF, Word and Excel documents. To open the package after downloading it, just right click, and select Extract All. If you have any problems in downloading and opening the files, email us on shop@startupbizglobal.com and we will assist you.
We wish you the best in your butchery business! Check out our collection of business plans , and more business ideas.
