A Cannabis Business Plan Checklist for Cannabis Entrepreneurs

A well-crafted business plan is essential for cannabis entrepreneurs – it can be the difference between success and failure. Entrepreneurs that fail to create a comprehensive business plan will risk misunderstanding their target market, which will result in losing business direction, and facing financial instability. This will in turn result in poor risk management, a struggle to raise capital effectively, and inefficient resource allocation.

Hence taking your time to develop a comprehensive roadmap is crucial for your business’s success. With a good business plan, you will be able to successfully navigate the complex cannabis landscape and make informed decisions.

The 8 Key Elements of a Cannabis Business Plan

All good business plans should contain a few key elements, including an Executive Summary, Market Analysis, Licensing and Compliance, Products and Services, Financial Projections, Operational Plans, Marketing and Sales Strategy, and Risk Assessment and Contingency Planning.

Here is a checklist of what to cover in each that will help maximize your chances of success in the cannabis industry:

1. Cannabis Business Plan Executive Summary

An Executive Summary is a condensed version of your business plan, providing a snapshot of the key details. It should include your mission statement, company information, problem and solution, market analysis, business model, marketing and sales strategy, competition, financial overview, and funding requirements.

For instance, the mission statement for a cannabis business plan might look like this: “To provide high-quality, locally-grown cannabis products in a safe and welcoming environment.” The company information might highlight your team’s extensive experience in the cannabis industry and commitment to legal and responsible operations.

The problem and solution section could highlight the demand for a larger cannabis consumable selection, or maybe even identify a lack of reputable, quality cannabis retailers in your target area, with your business poised to fill that void.

Further building on that, your market analysis might introduce a wider range of edibles that are not currently being sold, or include data on the growing acceptance and legalization of cannabis and the demographic details of your potential customer base.

When discussing competition, you may analyze other dispensaries in the area and identify your unique selling points — perhaps your wide variety of strains or exceptional customer service.

The financial overview would present projected revenue, expenses, and profitability related to the expansion, and the funding requirements section would outline any capital needed to carry out the project. 

One of the most important things to remember is to keep your executive summary concise and free of jargon. Use visuals and bullet points for clarity, and edit thoroughly for readability. By following these guidelines, you can create an engaging and effective Executive Summary that captures the essence of your business plan.

2. Cannabis Business Plan Market Analysis

Conducting a thorough market analysis for a cannabis business is crucial for several reasons. It provides better understanding of the target audience, helps in new product development and marketing, and aids in determining the best market for your business. Market research also demonstrates your expertise in the industry, which can be beneficial when presenting your business plan.

An excerpt of an example of how your market analysis could be written is as follows:

“As per the latest projections, the global cannabis market is expected to reach significant heights by 2028. According to Vantage Market Research, the global cannabis market, valued at USD 20.05 billion in 2020, is projected to reach USD 128.92 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 26.19% (Vantage Market Research).

“Furthermore, the global medical cannabis market is anticipated to grow to USD 56.75 billion by 2028, with a CAGR of 22.9% (Market Data Forecast). Meanwhile, the legal cannabis market size is expected to be worth $91.5 Billion by 2028 (Bloomberg). These figures indicate a promising future for the cannabis industry.”

Performing a marketing analysis plan like the above will help you understand the market better, and will be crucial for your business forecasting.

3. Cannabis Business Plan Licensing and Compliance

Following is the Licensing and Compliance section. Licensing and regulatory compliance are especially crucial in the cannabis business, as they vary by state. Nevertheless, there are a few common requirements when it comes to opening a dispensary, regardless of the state. They are as follows:

1. Cannabis Business License: You must obtain a license from the state authority to operate a cannabis business. This involves an application process, including background checks, and a fee.
2. Local Approval: Before receiving a state license, you must have approval from the local city or county government where your business will operate. Each local government has its own regulations and requirements.
3. Environmental Compliance: In almost all the cities, cannabis businesses must comply with several environmental regulations, including waste management, water use, and pesticide use.
4. Tax Compliance: Cannabis businesses are required to obtain a Seller’s Permit from their local council. Additionally, they would usually also be expected to file tax returns and pay the local cannabis tax.
5. Labor Compliance: If you have employees, you must comply with labor laws, such as minimum wage, workers’ compensation, and training requirements.

The above are some of the common requirements for opening a cannabis dispensary in the United States. But another important thing to remember is that each type of cannabis business (e.g., retail, cultivation, manufacturing) will have specific licensing requirements. Always check with relevant local and state authorities or a legal expert to understand all requirements for your specific business.

If you have not decided where to open your dispensary, you can check out our blog on the ‘10 Best Cities to Open a Dispensary’.

4. Cannabis Business Plan Products & Services

When discussing the products and services in your cannabis business plan, it is crucial to provide detailed descriptions of each offering for a comprehensive understanding of your offering. This will contribute to more effective marketing, and better financial planning and regulatory compliance.

1. Product/Service Description: Begin by describing what you’re selling. If it’s a physical product, like cannabis flower, edibles, or oils, describe its appearance, texture, flavor profiles, potency, packaging, and other relevant details. If you’re offering a service, such as cannabis consulting or delivery, explain how the service works, what the customer can expect, and how is it beneficial.
2. Production/Delivery Process: Outline the steps involved in creating your product or delivering your service. This might include growing and harvesting for cannabis cultivators, extraction and formulation for manufacturers, or order placement and fulfilment for delivery services.
3. Differentiation: Highlight what sets your offerings apart from those of your competitors. This could be a unique strain of cannabis, the potency of your products, a proprietary extraction method, outstanding customer service, faster delivery times, or anything else that gives you an edge.
4. Market Trends: Identify trends in the cannabis industry that you can leverage to maximize profits. This might include growing demand for certain products (like CBD-infused items), shifts in consumer preferences (such as a move towards organic or sustainably-grown cannabis), or regulatory changes that create new opportunities.
5. Pricing Strategy: Discuss how you’ll price your products or services. Your pricing should reflect the value you provide, but also take into account factors like production costs, competitor pricing, and what your target market is willing to pay.

You need to remember that the goal of this section is to convince potential investors or lenders that your products or services are in demand, profitable, and superior to what competitors offer. Use concrete data and examples wherever possible to support your claims.

5. Cannabis Business Plan Financial Projections

Financial projections are a critical component of any business plan, cannabis or not. They provide an estimate of your business’s future financial performance based on historical data, market research, and assumptions about future growth.

The financial projections you derive from your research will be able to help you plan for the future by making informed business decisions, as well as convince investors that your business has the potential to be profitable.

The three key elements of financial projections are income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow projections:

1. Income Statement: is a financial document that shows your revenues, costs, and expenses over a specific period. Your income statement will help you understand your profits or losses during the period, guiding you to comprehend your profits or losses. It becomes especially valuable when fluctuations occur in subsequent periods. By dissecting these changes—be it a surge or decline in revenue, cost, or expenses—the income statement will empower you to identify their root causes. With these insights, you will be able to make informed business decisions for the upcoming business cycles.
2. Balance Sheet: will provide a snapshot of your business’s financial condition at a specific point in time. It lists all of your assets, liabilities, and equity to show your company’s net worth.
3. Cash Flow Projections: show how cash flows in and out of your business. It includes revenue from sales, loan proceeds, investments and other sources, and outflows such as operating expenses, debt payments, and capital expenditures.

Estimating start-up costs is another crucial part of your financial projections. Start-up costs for a cannabis business can be significant, considering expenses like licensing fees, real estate costs, equipment, inventory, legal fees, and more. Learn about cannabis start-up costs for each state at Alpharoot.

Finally, revenue projections and expenses are essential components of your financial plan. Revenue projections estimate the income your business will generate through its operations, while expenses include both fixed costs (like rent and salaries) and variable costs (like raw materials and utilities).

Remember, it’s essential to be realistic and accurate when making these projections. Overestimating revenues or underestimating expenses can lead to financial difficulties down the line. It is often helpful to create best-case, worst-case, and likely-case scenarios to prepare for different possibilities.

6. Cannabis Business Operational Plan

An Operations Plan is a crucial component of your business plan that outlines the practical aspects of executing your business strategy. It is a detailed document that outlines how a business’s strategic goals will be achieved by its team, and it provides a comprehensive blueprint for the day-to-day tasks and responsibilities of the team, as well as the resources required to perform these tasks.

An operational plan typically covers:

1. Business Objectives: The plan begins by stating the strategic objectives of the business. These are the high-level goals that the company aims to achieve, such as increasing market share, launching new products, or improving customer satisfaction.
2. Action Plan: This section outlines the specific actions that need to be taken to achieve the business objectives. It lists the tasks to be performed, who is responsible for each task, and the timeline for completion.
3. Resources: The operational plan details the resources needed to execute the action plan. This includes human resources (staff and their skills), as well as physical resources like equipment, technology, and facilities.
4. Budget: An important component of the operational plan is the budget. This section estimates the costs associated with the resources and activities outlined in the plan.
5. Performance Measures: Lastly, the operational plan defines how the success of the plan will be measured. This could include key performance indicators (KPIs), targets, or other metrics that align with the business objectives.

An Operations Plan is also typically divided into two sections: everyday short-term processes and long-term goals.

Everyday Short-Term Processes: This section details the daily operations involved in running your cannabis business. It includes various tasks such as:Marketing: Creating and implementing marketing strategies to promote your products and attract customers.

• Cultivation: The process of growing cannabis, which involves selecting the right strains, preparing the soil, planting seeds, watering, fertilizing, and harvesting.
• Product Development, Manufacturing, and Packaging: Transforming the harvested cannabis into final products, ensuring they are manufactured under controlled conditions, and packaging them appropriately for sale.
• Stakeholder Meetings: Regular interactions with potential distributors and retailers to expand your market reach.

Long-Term Goals: These are the milestones you aim to achieve over an extended period. They serve as benchmarks for measuring your business’s progress and success. Examples of long-term goals for a cannabis business might include:

• Signing a distribution contract with a specific number of retailers by a certain date.
• Achieving a particular revenue target by a designated time.
• Expanding your business operations to a new location at a predetermined future date.

By clearly defining your everyday short-term processes and long-term goals, your Operations Plan provides a roadmap that guides your team’s actions and helps measure your business’s progress.

Remember, an operational plan is not a static document. It should be reviewed and updated regularly to reflect changes in the business environment or company strategy.

7. Cannabis Business Plan Marketing and Sales Strategy

Building a successful brand in the cannabis industry involves creating a unique and memorable experience. Hype up your unique selling points, and what makes you stand apart from your competitors. Create strategic partnerships with dispensaries and market leaders to stay ahead of your competitors, and to create ‘stickiness’, maintain consistent messaging across your platforms.

You will need to ensure the quality of your products at all times, comply with all relevant regulations, and provide excellent customer service. Providing educational content about cannabis can also help establish your brand as an authority in the industry.

Due to the unique industry, the marketing and sales strategies for the cannabis industry will have to be carefully planned due to the industry’s stringent regulations and rapidly evolving nature. Here are some effective strategies for advertising in the cannabis industry:

1. Leverage Marijuana-friendly Ad Networks: Platforms like Mantis and Traffic Roots are specifically designed for cannabis businesses, making them a great choice for advertising your products and getting your brand noticed.
2. Use Affiliate Marketing and Influencer Marketing: Partnering with influencers and affiliates in the cannabis industry can help you reach a larger audience and drive more sales.
3. Maximize SEO: Optimizing your website for search engines can increase your visibility and attract more potential customers.
4. Social Media Engagement and Image-centered Platforms: Instagram is a particularly effective platform for cannabis companies due to its visual nature. Sharing high-quality images of your products can help draw in potential customers.
5. Create Rewards Programs: Reward programs can help attract new customers and incentivize repeat purchases.
6. Email Marketing: Regularly sending out newsletters and promotional emails can keep your customers engaged and informed about your latest products and offers.
7. Podcasting and Video Marketing: Creating engaging content like podcasts and videos can help you build a strong relationship with your audience and establish yourself as an authority in the cannabis industry.

It is important to understand your target market. The cannabis industry primarily caters to two types of consumers: medical patients who use cannabis for therapeutic purposes, and recreational users who use cannabis for relaxation or social enhancement.

In terms of the most profitable sectors, businesses focusing on legal medical and recreational markets tend to be the most successful.

Remember, the key to successful marketing in the cannabis industry is staying up-to-date with the latest regulations and trends, and constantly adapting your strategy to meet the needs and preferences of your customers.

8. Cannabis Business Plan Risk Assessment and Contingency Planning

The cannabis industry faces numerous risks, including regulatory changes, market volatility, and operational hurdles. Allegations of fraud, improper dosing, product contamination, and unsubstantiated health benefits claims can severely damage a company’s reputation. Theft, both in-store and in-transit, and insider threats are also significant concerns, along with product tampering and compliance adjustments. Cannabis businesses also face increased theft and security risks because they often deal entirely in cash.

As for risk management strategies, product liability, theft and fraud, general liability, and crop loss should be key considerations. It is also important to prepare for potential hazards such as electrical risks, exposure to airborne contaminants, flammable liquids and gases, and heat illness.

In terms of contingency planning, businesses should stay adaptable and open to technological advancements to keep up with market changes. As the industry is expected to continue expanding, especially with more states easing restrictions, companies should prepare for both unique challenges and opportunities. Due to the everchanging landscape, it is crucial for cannabis entrepreneurs to explore insurance solutions tailored to the cannabis industry.

Creating An Effective Cannabis Business Plan

Creating a business plan is crucial for cannabis entrepreneurs, given the unique risks and regulatory complexities of this industry. This document should be regularly updated to reflect changes in the market, new opportunities, and evolving legal landscapes.

The business plan should also reflect the planning needed to deal with the risks involved in an industry that is legal in some states, and not so in others, coupled with state-specific regulations and compliance procedures.

There are several resources that can help you craft a comprehensive business plan:

1. Templates: provide a useful starting point for structuring your business plan. For example, Growthink offers a dispensary business plan template. Depending on your specific business model, you may want to seek out templates for cultivation, dispensary, or pharmaceutical operations.
2. Industry Reports: provide valuable insights into market trends, growth projections, and competitive analysis such as this one on LinkedIn by Hancock.
3. Regulatory Websites: As cannabis regulations vary significantly by state, it is essential to understand the laws applicable to your business location. Many states have dedicated websites or online resources where these regulations are outlined.
4. Business Planning Guides: can offer step-by-step guidance on writing a business plan. Understanding Ecommerce, for instance, provides a guide on the best business planning software for start-ups.

Remember, a well-crafted business plan is more than just a requirement for securing investment. It is a strategic tool that can help you navigate the complexities of the cannabis industry and steer your business towards success.