Business Plan for Mobile Library: Books on Wheels Concept

This report details a comprehensive business plan for a mobile library service, "Books on Wheels." The plan outlines the business concept, focusing on fostering reading habits by circulating books through mobile vans. It includes an executive summary, market analysis targeting local customers and students, and competitive analysis, acknowledging online retailers as potential competitors. The report delves into promotion, sales, marketing strategies, selling methods, and the management team's structure. Operational issues, including equipment and van routes, are addressed, along with financial forecasts. A questionnaire was used to gauge the viability of the business idea. The plan emphasizes the importance of multi-skilled personnel and a flat hierarchical structure for efficient operations. The report concludes with an analysis of the business's potential for success and its contribution to promoting reading habits. The appendix includes the questionnaire used for market research.

INTERNATIONAL HOTEL
MANAGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Executive Summary.....................................................................................................................3
The Business................................................................................................................................3
Markets and Competitors.............................................................................................................3
Main Competitors and Their Products.........................................................................................4
Promotion, Sales and Marketing..................................................................................................5
Selling Methods...........................................................................................................................6
Management Team......................................................................................................................6
Operational Issues........................................................................................................................6
Financial Forecasts......................................................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
APPENDIX......................................................................................................................................9
Questionnaire...............................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Entrepreneurship is basically the formation of a new and innovative idea that can be
moulded into a potential business setup that can be used for revenue generation (Zhang and
Cueto, 2017). The following report will present a business plan justifying the commercial
viability of the business idea and analysing and presenting different aspects that are associated
with the new business plan.
MAIN BODY
Executive Summary
The new business that has been planned is basically a mobile library where the reading
habit will be fostered and the company will target the habitual readers as well as learners. The
company i.e. Books on Wheels will be able to target the customers by developing an elaborate
business plan that will analyse the different potential aspects and the impact that they have.
The Business
The business is basically developed to create a strong network of book circulation and
enhanced exchange of books amongst the sellers as well as readers of the books. Here the books
would be collected from the different sellers as well as the readers who want to sell their books
and these are then again sold to the potential buyers at their doorstep through the operation of
mobile van and a strong network (Welch and Yates, 2018). The idea took around 6 months to
formulate and it gradually evolved into the business idea that has been developed at present. We
have engaged in an extensive research and the main aim was to develop a business that would
earn profit by serving the people around us in a beneficial manner where the person as well as
our business develops together. The overall process of moulding the business idea from the
initial thought of setting up a social entrepreneurship to developing this business idea has been
extremely insightful. The main owners of the idea and the entire concept are only two people and
the remaining are the contributors. The main idea was initiated by two people and slowly some
people who found the idea appealing joined them over the course of time.
Markets and Competitors
The main target market for the business would be the local customers and local area right
now where the strong network of mobile vans throughout the city would be used to execute the
idea that has been developed regardless of the age factor boundations (Senko, 2016). A child as
well as their grandfather both can buy books that they want to buy from us. The population of the
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city and the number of household dwellings in the city have been growing continuously and this
ultimately presents the vast opportunity to increase the potential sources of revenue. The
emergence of technology and the use of mobile has significantly reduced the number of potential
readers where it is now very rare to find a girl or a couple quietly reading in a corner of the park
which used to be a very common sight. The business idea is not necessarily for the readers but
the university as well as school students can be benefitted as the van would have educational
books as well as the other interesting books as well (Antikainen and Valkokari, 2016). The best
feature is that the customers can tell the names of the books that they want to the mobile van
operator and they in turn convey to us and we try to make that book available to the reader as
soon as possible. The idea has become incredibly popular where we have started to receive
orders for the complete set of Harry Potter books in advance as well.
Main Competitors and Their Products
As such the competition for the business is comparatively lower because there is no other
business at present that operates in a similar manner but yet the company can face competition
from online retailers of books such as Amazon, Barnes and Nobles etc. Since they also supply
books that can be easily ordered online, there are chances that the business might have to
compete from them (Aghion and et.al., 2018). However, even if the competition arises for Books
on Wheels it would be favourable because online business has been present for a long time and
yet the sales have not surged but at present, watching someone else buy a book automatically
makes oneself also look for an interesting read.
As it has been presented by Wang and et.al. (2016), as well, the reading is the greatest
form of relationship building as well as the practice that needs to be in trend again because the
declining number of avid readers is a matter of serious concern today. Another research paper by
Wema (2018), states that the increasing the support for the book sellers and publishing houses is
necessary as they have been dying out slowly due to the e- books, lack of reading habits etc.
The competitors might not even notice in the initial period that they have been losing up on
their business but slowly as the business grows and expands; the competitors might emerge in a
similar manner where there might be multiple companies that sell books through the mobile
vans. This however will be the ultimate achievement of our objective of entrepreneurship where
we encourage and foster reading and readers throughout the country. In both cases, the business
will be in a profitable situation.
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The market research was conducted by developing a questionnaire that was distributed to
around 150 people randomly all over the city so that their views could be obtained regarding the
potential business idea and it could be identified that whether the idea is a viable business idea
with a great potential or not. There were a series of questions that were presented before them
and overall the results indicated that the idea was an extremely innovative and likeable concept
where the interest of the people spiked immediately. It was ascertained that the frequency of
buying if such mobile bookstore is launched would be as quick as twice a week or immediate
buy whenever anything interesting comes up (Toro-Jarrín, Ponce-Jaramillo and Güemes-
Castorena, 2016). It was also ascertained that children and teenagers would be benefitted
immensely by this kind of business and the number of respondents who indicated that they were
extremely excited for the idea were also very high.
Therefore, it can be said that thorough primary and secondary research indicates that the
business idea is an exciting concept for which people are waiting and will be a hit amongst them
if maintained properly.
Promotion, Sales and Marketing
The customers for the business is anyone who intends to buy a book from the mobile van.
They can either buy it directly or if it is not available then the name of the book(s) can be
conveyed to either the main office or the van operator and the book will be made available to the
customer as soon as possible. The role of suppliers will also be imminent as anyone who wants
to sell a book can do this by Books on Wheels and the local bookstore operators can be included
in the overall network increasing the chances of revenue generation for all.
The product will be positioned cheaper in terms of price and higher in terms of quality of
service as the main aim is to increase readership (Mahaffey and et.al., 2018). Buyers can buy
new or second hand books according to their buying capacity.
The price would mainly depend on the books ranging as low as £5 for comics and as high
as £500 for certain acclaimed authors. The quality of the service however would be excellent as
the books are being delivered at the doorstep and there will be one main office as well so that
any complaints or queries can be resolved. The response time can be as short as 2 to 3 hours or
as long as 2 to 3 days depending on the book that has been demanded and its availability. The
after sale services on the other hand would be in the form of taking feedbacks regarding the
overall service and recommending certain good books.
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Selling Methods
The selling method that will be used is mostly personal where the mobile van operator will
be the actual seller and all the promotional activities would be done using traditional and modern
promotional platforms (Jenkinson, 2018). The maximum time it might be required to get a sale
would be one week and the chances of the repetition of the sales are very high because reading
can be very addictive and is a good habit that must be fostered collectively.
Management Team
The multi skilling of the limited management personnel is the key aspect on which the
success of the entire business depends. There would be 5 key personnel and 10 workers. There
are 2 co- owners or partners of the business, 1 finance manager, 1 marketing manager and 1
sales/ logistics manager. There are 10 mobile vans that have been procured and hence there will
be 10 operators who will be given fixed salary and commission on the amount of sales they are
able to generate every day. The 10 drivers will operate in different areas and the flat hierarchical
structure will be followed where the mobile van operators can communicate directly with the
owners of the business.
The finance manager is the certified accountant and has been working with start-ups for
past 5 years and the marketing manager has been in this field for the past 4 years where the jest
to make the idea of Books on wheels successful is very high. The sales manager has is the most
experienced persons working for 8 years in this field where the knowledge about management of
sales people and the sales target is very high.
Operational Issues
Anybody who wants to sell any text book or other book can contact the main office and
they can sell their products to them and the business will also have a good liasioning with the
local and other booksellers so that books can be procured. Then the van will have some of the
pre- requisites in their van always such as Harry Potter, Agatha Christie, Nicholas Sparks, The
Bronte Sisters etc. so that needs of customer segments can be met. The main equipment that will
be required is the vans to operate and otherwise the main office i.e. premises is equipped with a
GPS tracker on the vans, the necessary equipments like phone, a few laptops and some software
(Garces-Bacsal and Yeo, 2017). The capacity however right now is limited to serve the local
areas only and the business will expand slowly over the time. The van drivers however would be
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selected as those who have good knowledge about each and every route in the city connecting
every part.
Financial Forecasts
The sales forecast can be prepared for the business Books on Wheels in following manner:
It is predicted that the excitement of the people will help in hitting off the business right
away where the different segments of the types of books that will be sold can also be predicted.
The amount of textbooks is highest because students are often in need of money and the books
are very expensive and hence they are always seeking cheaper options (Bharuthram, 2017). With
the Books on wheels they will be able to obtain books at much cheaper rates. The marketing and
promotional activities that have been carried out are very extensive and hence people are aware
of the manner in which Books on Wheels will be operating.
The overall monitoring of the business activities will be done regularly using the
benchmarking or the standard costing techniques etc. so that corrective strategies can be adopted
and implemented easily.
CONCLUSION
The analysis conducted in the report above indicates that the development of an innovative
business plan is the key aspect in the better resource generation and the overall business
performance. The plan above indicates the integration of different aspects that need to be
managed and the manner in which the funds can be invested to increase potential profits.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Aghion, P., and et.al., 2018. The impact of exports on innovation: Theory and evidence.
Antikainen, M. and Valkokari, K., 2016. A framework for sustainable circular business model
innovation. Technology Innovation Management Review. 6(7).
Bharuthram, S., 2017. The reading habits and practices of undergraduate students at a higher
education institution in South Africa: a case study. The Independent Journal of
Teaching and Learning. 12(1). pp.50-62.
Garces-Bacsal, R.M. and Yeo, S.D., 2017. Why and what they read when they don’t have to:
Factors influencing the recreational reading habits of gifted students in
Singapore. Journal for the Education of the Gifted. 40(3). pp.247-265.
Jenkinson, A.J., 2018. What do boys and girls read?: an investigation into reading habits with
some suggestions about the teaching of literature in secondary and senior schools.
Routledge.
Mahaffey, K.P., and et.al., 2018. Distributed monitoring and evaluation of multiple devices. U.S.
Patent Application 16/111,137.
Senko, C., 2016. Achievement goal theory. Handbook of motivation at school. 75.
Toro-Jarrín, M.A., Ponce-Jaramillo, I.E. and Güemes-Castorena, D., 2016. Methodology for the
of building process integration of Business Model Canvas and Technological
Roadmap. Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 110. pp.213-225.
Wang, P., and et.al., 2016. Why read it on your mobile device? Change in reading habit of
electronic magazines for university students. The Journal of Academic
Librarianship. 42(6). pp.664-669.
Welch, D. and Yates, L., 2018. The practices of collective action: Practice theory, sustainability
transitions and social change. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour. 48(3).
pp.288-305.
Wema, E., 2018. Investigating reading culture among students in higher learning institutions in
Tanzania. University of Dar es Salaam Library Journal.13(1). pp.4-19.
Zhang, S . X. and Cueto, J., 2017. The study of bias in entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship theory
and Practice, 41(3). pp.419-454.
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APPENDIX
Questionnaire
Name:
Age:
Gender:
1. Do you prefer the concept of mobile van bookshop?
 Yes
 No
2. What would be you frequency of buying books if such mobile library is presented?
 Twice in a week
 Once in a while
 Twice in a month
 Whenever I like something I will buy it
3. Do you think it would be valuable and feasible for children and students to be able to obtain
books at cheaper rates thus benefitting them?
 Yes, it would be valuable
 No, I don’t think it would really affect
 I don’t know, it depends on the buying behaviour of the parents
4. How unique or innovative do you find this idea of mobile library?
 Very innovative
 Innovative
 Neutral
 Not innovative
 Extremely non innovative
5. Are you excited for this mobile library venture?
 Yes, I would buy something as soon as it begins
 Neutral, I would wait for the response of the public
 No, this is not practically successful
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