Executive Summary
Kuwabara Photography is offering customized and pre-set postcards and posters. I ensure that all our products are very great quality and affordable prices
Kuwabara Photography is based in Toronto, Ontario. The company is owned and run by Thomas Jackman Kuwabara.
We are a profit based company, who is donating a percentage of our revenue to help with education in third world countries. We are a international business, we are going to ship everywhere on the globe.
Kuwabara Photography is a sole proprietorship. I will run all the aspects of the company, from the finances to the sales.
We will need a minimum of $265 to start production. First, we will go to my bank, and we will try to get a loan to start. If I am unsuccessful to get a loan at the bank, I will go towards family and friends to get loans from them to start up Kuwabara Photography. In our first year, we are expected to have a profit of $400-500. We will expect to be profiting by our eight or ninth month, form starting.
In the first four months, I expect a 75-100 sales. 75% of the sales will be done online, through websites such as Amazon, during the first 4 months. In the first year, I predict to have approximately a thousand sales.
The markets for postcards and posters are very large. Both markets are worth hundreds of millions and possibly billions of dollars. The markets are declining, as advancement in technology has been quickly advancing. In our first year, I expect to have less than 0.3% of the market. As years go by, our market share will rise up to 3-5%.
Company Profile
My company name is Kuwabara Photography
I got the company name because the company photography based, therefore, I wanted to have photography in my business name. Then, I knew that potential customers need to know who we are and who I am, so I put my last name, Kuwabara, in front of printing.
Kuwabara Photography’s purpose is to give the opportunity to RSGC senior school students to share their photos by products like postcards and posters. We plan to help education in third world countries with a percentage of our revenue.
My business is a business that sell paper products, products designed by myself and other students, and customized products chosen by future customers. We will donate a percentage of each sale to help education in third world countries. We will cover all the specific details between customer and third party.
We will sell nature and travel based postcards and posters. And, We will offer the service of taking caring all the work between a customer and the producer.
From my research about the postcard and poster, there is no exact company that sells student photography online. There are many businesses that sell postcards and posters, they sell through their website, social media, and/or another website, such as Amazon. There are companies that sell regular postcards and posters though. There are many businesses in the market that sell postcards and posters for a wide range of products
Opportunities & Operations
The postcard business is slowly on the decline. As technology and online has messaging has quickly on the incline, in the past year, there is a smaller and smaller use for postcards. There are many people who collect certain postcards when they travel, but people are tending to buy less than years past.
Our target market is people who are interested in photography, especially nature and travel. The specific ages will be 15-25, since many people in the younger generation collects postcards and puts posters in their room or dorms. Aswell, we will target people who are ages 70 and above, this generation is the least technologically advanced, therefore, they use postcards often to connect with other. We will target no specific gender over the other.
Kuwabara Photography will work by contacting RSGC students and ask them if they would want Kuwabara Photography to sell some of their best photography. We will buy postcards, posters, and photos in bulk. For every sale for a students photo, they will get a percentage of the sale. I will sell photos through social media, my website, and amazon and ebay. For the customized products, customers will submit a photo(s) to us and we will print the what they want.
At Kuwabara Printing, there will be no employees. There will be many people involved in the supply chain. The production line will start at the producer of postcards, postcards, etc. The products will shipped to myself, and then shipped out to customers.
Market Research
In 2018, over 2,700,600,000 were sent, via First-class. There is still a use for postcards, even though the number of postcards sent each year, over the past 1-2 decades, have declined.
Around Canada, 500-1,500 people order customized postcards and/or posters, no big businesses.
The average cost of a postcard ranges from $1-$1.50
With my survey, which received 13 responses, had questions about postcards and posters. A sample question was asking, what are you willing to pay for a postcard and a poster.
Much cheaper cost per lead then other marketing materials, such as emails and ads. If a other company want to buy bulk postcards, for their company, it will statistically help compared to other ad tactics.
An estimated 1.5 Trillion photos were taken in 2018.
Kuwabara Photography’s would be people ages from 60 and above and people ages 15-25. As online messaging has improved drastically in the past year, many people have moved towards messaging on their phones. The older generation has moved towards technology, there are many who have
Vistaprint is a good company that people can buy customized postcards and posters, which is why I will be printing from the,. They have very good deals with good quality products. But, you don’t know the quality of the products until you actually get them.
Staples in another company that also makes really excellent products. The issue with Staples in their days to ship. They have a larger range of days to receive products compared to Vistaprint.
Printing Companies from Alibaba have the lowest prices for postcards and posters. The biggest issue with ALibaba companies is their location and their shipping. Alibaba is Chinese holding company, since it is located across the globe, it can take a week or two to ship, depending on the company’s choice.
I expect to get somewhere between 0.1-2% of the total market the postcard and poster markets. There are many companies that make postcards and posters, such as Vistaprint, Staples, and many smaller businesses. At the beginning of Kuwabara Photography, we will have less then a 0.1% of the market, but after a few months of business, we can get 0.1-0.2% of the total market. After a several months, and 1-2 years, we can get a 1-2% of the total market, as we grow and expand our business.
Marketing Plan
Our products are postcards and posters. These postcards and posters are travel/global based. Kuwabara Printing also offers the service of ordering and receiving postcards, posters, and printed photos, chosen by customer.
There is still a demand for postcards, even though the use and total sales of postcards have went down. Posters are still useful for many more people. Companies use posters to advertise their products or services. Aswell, many high school and college students have posters up in their bedroom and/or dorm room.
For our postcards, the price will vary between quality and custom, but the price will range from $0.75-$1.00. Our posters will be anywhere from $8 and above. The price of each poster will depend if it was printed on paper or another material, black and white or colour, and size. For customers photos they want to get printed, the price will 4 for $1.00. Atop of the regular prices, there will be shipping cost added.
The price of postcards and posters will depend on the competitor. The average postcard cost between $0.50-$1.50 and the average poster costs anywhere from $5-$30. For postcards, competitor’s profit between 30 cents to a dollar. Competitors who make posters will profit between 3 dollars to 25 dollars.
The pricing strategy of Kuwabara printing is the increase the price our products from when we bought them and to make a profit after the percentage that is given to the photographer for the photo of each sale. I will buy products from Vistaprint. The reasoning for buying from them is because of the quality of their products, speed, and their prices,
I will buy products from Vistaprint. The reasoning for buying from them is because of the quality of their products, speed, and their prices.
Customers can buy our products from our social media. Customers will be able to see our products on our website, but they won’t be able to buy it from the website.
Promotion
Three ways Kuwabara Photography will use to advertise our company and products is by magazines, posters, and through trade shows
I would need to have a minimum of $265 to start my business. $31.49 would go to 100 postcards, with my choice of paper and size. I would spend $89.99 for 100 posters, with my choice of size. I would need $55.19 for 25 Shipping tubes. For 100 bubble mailers, I would need to have $27.29. For the remaining $60, it would go towards being able to have an online store on our website.
I chose magazines because there are many travel and nature magazines because our products are travel and natured based. I chose posters because we already are making posters. Creating posters will be an easy and cheap way to advertise our business. I chose trade shows because, it is a way to connect with customers.
Kuwabara Printing’s main ads will be local and/or national newspaper and global magazine ads.
I chose to create newspaper and magazine ads because of our products. Our products are paper products, therefore I saw the connection with newspaper and magazines. I would a majority of our ads in travel and nature magazines. Since most of our product will be travel and nature based, it will be connected with travel and nature magazines.
My advertisement will be placed on local and national newspaper and international magazines.
Financial Plan:
I will use loans from my family to start up Kuwaba Photography. Since I need to have a minimum of $265 to start, I will need to get a small loan, since I can fund the majority of the $265.
In the first month, I expect to have up to six sales. I would expect to have 3 postcards and 3 poster sales, which would be in person. In the second month, I would expect to have 15-20 sales, as Kuwabara Photography will be expanding towards online selling. In third month, I would have an expected 30-45 sales, as we expanded online and connecting to more people in person. We will buy some 100 more posters and postcards at the end of the 3rd month. As this time, we will be at a deficit of 191. By the sixth month, I would expect 80-100 sales. In the seventh and eighth month, I would expect to see a flat line or a small decrease in sales, since we are a small business and there will be a declined in in-person sales. In the ninth month, I would see a growth in sales up to 90-105 sales. Aswell we would buy 50 new postcards and 50 new posters at this time. In this month, we will by profiting just over $200. In the next few months, sales will steadily increase. By the twelfth month, I would expect to see sales, in that month, to be between 110-130.