Bookstore Business Plan Template

Business Plan Outline

Start Your Bookstore Plan Here

Bookstore Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your own bookstore business plan.

We have helped over 100,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their bookstores.

You can download the Bookstore business plan (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here

To write a successful bookstore business plan you will first need to decide what type of bookstore business you want to open. Will you be a specialty bookstore, a children’s bookstore or a religious bookstore?

You will need to gather information about your bookstore business and the bookstore industry. This type of information includes data about customer demographics, a marketing plan, and a financial plan (full financial projections including income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement).

Sample Bookstore Business Plan

The following bookstore business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning bookstore business plan:

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Company Overview
  3. Industry Analysis
  4. Customer Analysis
  5. Competitive Analysis
  6. Marketing Plan
  7. Operations Plan
  8. Management Team
  9. Financial Plan
You can download the Bookstore business plan (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here

Bookstore Business Plan FAQs

A bookstore business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your bookstore business. Among other things, a bookstore business plan outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your bookstore business plan using our Bookstore Business Plan Template here.

There are many types of bookstores to consider when writing your bookstore business plan. Many stores are independently owned and carry a variety of new books from many different publishers. Independent bookstores are able to dictate which authors and genres they want to sell in their store. Other retail bookstores are large national retail stores that have a wide selection of books and accessories. There are also bookstores that focus exclusively on used books to sell. They accept donations of used books and sell them at a discount price.

The primary source of revenue for bookstores is the products sold at the store.

The key expenses for a bookstore business are the cost of purchasing the product inventory. Other expenses are the overhead costs for employees, rent, utilities, and any marketing for the store.

To start a bookstore business, you will need to do the following:

  1. Establish a bookstore business plan and track your progress. This will help you stay organized and on task.
  2. Secure funding. This can be done through investors, a small business loan, or personal savings/equity.
  3. Choose a location. This should be based on your target customer, what's available in the area, and your budget.
  4. Stock your shelves with books. You can order them from distributors or buy them used from other bookstores.
  5. Market your business. Use social media, print advertising, and word-of-mouth to get the word out about your store.

Learn more about how to open a bookstore business:

Bookstore businesses, along with other businesses in the bookstore industry, are most likely to receive funding from banks. Typically you will find a local bank and present your bookstore business plan to them. Another option for a bookstore is to obtain a small business loan. Outside investors, crowdfunding, and/or friends or family are other typical funding options.

This is true for a business plan for an independent bookstore business plan and an online bookstore business plan.