HND I BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

COMPLIED BY:

AYINLA OLAWUNMI IDAYAT

BA/HND/F21/5754

Present:

EED ASSIGNMENT

TITLED: BOUTIQUE BUSINESS PLAN

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
 COMPANY
CROWN STAR boutique is a start-up retail establishment that will sell
fashionable clothing, shoes and caps to women of this generation. We will
locate CROWN STAR boutique in Lagos, State. While our initial goal is
to open one boutique, expansion plans include potentially franchising our
retail store and/or building a well-recognized brand name. In turn, we
would hope to penetrate a sizable portion of the online retail market.
 PRODUCTS & SERVICES
The fashion and retail industry tends to be overly youth focused. However,
by closely following generational fashion trends as well as our own
customers’ purchasing preferences, we will tailor our inventory to meet the
specific needs of our clientele. We will solely focus on the styles, colors
and fits to flatter the ladies, meeting the needs of her figure will be our
specialty.
 MARKET ANALYSIS
The total sales reported in Nigeria retail industry in 2007 (including food
service and automotive) exceeded N4trillion. There are roughly 75 million
ladies. In Ikeja the current population is just fewer than 200,000. 54
percent of the total population is women who have a median age of 48.
The median income is N20,000, We will initially seek customers locally,
but will increase our reach as we build our brand and secure our image.
 MANAGEMENT IBRAHIM ABDULLAHI OLADIMEJI are co-
owners and will co-manage CROWN STAR boutique .

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  FINANCIAL PLAN
CROWN STAR boutique requires N1,500,000 to launch successfully.
We’ve already raised N700,000 through personal investments and a small
community grant.
We are currently seeking additional funding from outside angel investors
and business loans. Start-up funds will be used for renovations, inventory
and operating expenses such as rent, utilities and payroll.
Further, most of our initial investment will also be used to purchase retail
equipment and inventory software – all of which will produce future
benefits for the company.
A small portion of our investment will be used to create an online clothing
store. There are inexpensive e-commerce tools that provide a very easy
way to create an online boutique store where we can sell our fashions all
over the world.
COMPANY
 COMPANY & INDUSTRY
CROWN STAR boutique will be located in Lagos State. Our company is
a retail establishment selling fashionable women’s clothing, shoes and
caps. COMPANY HISTORY TO DATE
The Company is a new business aimed at providing women stylish
clothing options to buy and wear. As the company’s founders, we found
that Lagos current ladies wear market is missing the mark.
In fact, most clothing shops for the 55+ set are still selling clothes that our
grandmothers would have worn. As our local population ages and more
ladies reach retirement-age and migrate to Lagos, we recognize the need
for a shop that caters to the up-beat who want to look and feel young.

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  FACILITIES
Presently, CROWN STAR boutique does not have a bricks-and-mortar
location. However, we have identified an ideal spot in Lagos State. The
gorgeous area includes numerous restaurants, an art gallery, coffee shop,
candy store and a picturesque park in the town square. We have signed a
three-year lease for a shop at N150,000.

 KEY ASSETS
Our key assets are our co-owners, IBRAHIM NAFIU and IBRAHIM
TAIWO, who bring tremendous experience and relationships to this
business.
Once we launch CROWN STAR boutique, our primary asset will be our
brand, which will convey style, quality and a great shopping experience. In
the long-term, it is this brand that will separate CROWN STAR boutique
from other retailers both locally and nationally.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
 DESCRIPTION
CROWN STAR boutique will sell a combination of widely recognized
name brands as well as clothing lines from select fashion designers. We
will closely follow generational fashion trends as well as our own
customers’ purchasing preferences. Moreover, we will tailor our inventory
to meet the needs of our clientele. Solely focusing on the styles, colors and
fits to flatter the ladies figure will be our specialty. While apparel, such as
business clothing, casual wear, jeans and formal wear will be our main
staple, we will also offer some accessories such as belts, scarves, and hats.
We will earn profits by selling our merchandise. Our pricing structure will
remain flexible, as we will implement suggested retail pricing on common

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brands as well as the standard practice of keystoning prices. Additionally,
we will use a value-based pricing structure, which measures the value of
our products to our customers such as easy access, quality, customer
service and styles flattering to our target consumer. We will implement
end of season sales, holiday and overstock sales, multi-buy savings and
promotional coupons at strategic intervals.
 DEVELOPMENT
As our company grows and our boutique earns a positive reputation,
several opportunities will open to us. And we are considering some
options already. Should we choose to remain a small local boutique, we
will develop and grow our company by increasing existing clothing lines
and expanding our selection to include additional products such as swim
wear, lingerie, or sportswear. Within five years, we will assess the
potential for franchising our stores in select locations.
Additionally, as we build our business, we plan to simultaneously develop
an online clothing store for CROWN STAR boutique. The power and ease
of an online storefront is obvious to us, and we plan to develop one
quickly and efficiently. We also see the potential for regional and/or
national expansion at some point.
Our online clothing store will help to spread awareness of our product line
and brand to a wider community.
MARKET ANALYSIS
 TARGET CUSTOMER
CROWN STAR boutique is a business-to-consumer retail company.
Ladies are our clear target customers. However, we do realize that we will
likely attract some younger women with our peripheral products
(handbags, scarves, etc.). Moreover, we expect a portion of our products to

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catch on with the younger generations. It’s important that we do not offer
products that are exclusive to the older audience.
 MARKET SIZE
Lagos accommodates a robust retail market. While car dealerships, grocers
and home improvement retailers account for a sizable portion of the retail
market, the main local shopping district is Ikeja With tree-lined streets and
quaint shops and restaurants, the Ikorodu retail district is the social and
shopping hub of the community. The current population of Lagos is just
fewer than 500,000. 54 percent are women who have a median age of 48.
Their median income is above the national average at N48,000. Moreover,
according to National News, Lagos is one of the 2008 Top 6 Cities to
ladies.

SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths
 Experience and understanding of the fashion industry
 Unique shopping experience with exceptional customer service
 Great downtown location
 Large and growing consumer base
Weaknesses
 Untested market in Lagos
 While market is large, it is a niche market
Opportunities
 Outstanding shopping experience will lead to repeat business
 Growing online clothing store CROWN STAR boutique
 Establish a CROWN STAR boutique clothing line

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Threats
 Cost and effectiveness of marketing to ladies
 New retail shops that may or may not open in the future
 INTERNET STRATEGY
As the Internet has become a staple of Nigerian life and retail
merchandising, CROWN STAR boutique will build a website on which
we will sell our products, too. We have secured the domain name
CROWN STAR boutique.com and will begin site development using
Shopify or Wix. These platforms allow us to create an online storefront
quickly and will manage all aspects of it including creating shipping
labels, accepting payment, and monitoring inventory. Customers will also
be able to create wish lists for items they want to purchase later.
Having this online presence will allow us to build our email marketing list
and send regular promotions to customers with new product
announcements, discounts, specials, birthday coupons, and fashion ideas.
Foremost, we intend to showcase our brand, our clothing and provide
customers with the ability to purchase items online. As the site progresses,
we will include features such as fashion advice, designer interviews,
newsletters, and Internet-only specials. Eventually, we hope to establish
and nurture an online social community where women can gather and
discuss topics of the day, network and share clothing secrets.
 OPERATIONS
As a retail establishment, CROWN STAR boutique will conduct business
seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, from
10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
During the holiday seasons and during special events, we will extend store
hours. At this point, the retail store will take require approximately 2/3 of

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the building’s available space. We will use the remaining space for stock
and administrative purposes. In addition to the two full-time co-owners,
we will hire three part-time employees to serve customers.
Our company will secure merchandise from local manufacturers with
showrooms in Ikorodu and Ikeja. We’ll also have access to the Lagos
Apparel Market, which is the largest wholesale merchandise warehouse in
the state. Buyers receive product displays and promotional materials with
purchase. Additionally, we will work closely with our regional sales
representative. We will also attend relevant pre-season fashion trade
shows.
To control costs, track inventory and manage stock levels, we will put an
inventory control system in place. This will include the standard bar code
with its related equipment and software. Staff will conduct annual
inventory audits and hire outside auditors when necessary. We will
maintain all accounting and finances using Quickbooks online.
 GOALS
The following is a list of business goals and milestones we intend to
accomplish our first year of operations.
 Complete renovating, stocking, hiring and initial marketing.
 Host a successful grand-opening event.
 Penetrate and raise awareness in 60 percent our targeted consumer
market.
 Achieve a profit margin of 50 percent.
 Build a solid customer base and mailing list.
 Generate repeat and referral sales.
 Become a profitable business with expansion potential.
 Establish a solid reputation as quality retail establishment.

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Our first major milestones will be securing funds and setting up our
business. This is our major focus right now. In five years, we hope to have
established our retail business within the community and within our
industry. Furthermore, as co-owners, we would like to see the growth of
our store with an increase in product lines, further penetration of the
national market with online sales and, under the right set of circumstances,
the opening of franchise CROWN STAR wears collection in strategic
locations.
 OUR VISION STATEMENT
Our vision is to intrigue our clients with our fashion pieces while
identifying with the uniqueness in each of our clients. We also intend to
become a worldwide brand name in the year 2023 here in Lagos, State.
 OUR MISSION STATEMENT
In order to achieve our vision, we have laid down procedures that would
ensure that most of our target market is aware of our products. We also
have competent and professional employees that would ensure that that
our vision is actualized.
FINANCIAL PLAN
 REQUIREMENTS
CROWN STAR boutique will need N1,500,000 to get our business off the
ground. We are currently seeking funding from outside investors and
business loans.
At this time we have raised N700,000 in equity capital and an additional
N300,000 for a specific-use grant. Both co-owners, IBRAHIM NAFIU
AND IBRAHIM TAIWO, have invested N350,000 each into CROWN
STAR boutique. We are seeking investors for an additional N550,000 in
equity investment and N700,000 in loans.