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A Sample Biotech Company Business Plan Template

Are you about starting a biotech company? If YES, here is a complete sample biotech business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE . Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a biotech company.

We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample biotech company marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for biotech companies. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.

Why Start a Biotech Company?

No matter the profession you find yourself in, you can still become your own boss, as there are several business opportunities available in your field of study / training. In essence, if you are a scientist and you wish to start your own business, you can decide to start your own biotech company; it is an industry that is still green and open to creative scientist cum investors.

Starting a biotech company requires trainings, experience, creativity, reasonable startup capital, license and detailed business plan. The truth is that you can’t just wake up and launch your own biotech company; you must follow establish protocols.

This industry is highly regulated because of the potential risk involved; it is all about making use of living organism and system to develop new products. To start with, one might want to ask, what does biotech companies produce?

There are several fields that need the input of biotech companies. Fields like medicine and pharmacy, agriculture (hybrid food production, hybrid bird production and hybrid animal production et al.) and non-food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al).

Although some people still have their reservation when it comes to the use biotechnology in agriculture, but the fact remains that it has contributed in no smaller measure in the increase and ease of cultivating crops and rearing of birds and animals.

If you are sure this type of business is what you truly want to do after you must have undertaken your research, the next step to follow is to write a good business plan. Below is a sample biotech company business plan template that will help you successfully write yours without much stress;

1. Industry Overview

Companies that operate in the Biotechnology industry primarily make use of living organisms or molecular and cellular techniques to provide chemicals, food and services that meet human needs. It is important to state that the Biotechnology industry does not include companies that are involved in developing small-molecule pharmaceuticals, performing contract research or manufacturing biological equipment.

A close study of the Biotechnology industry shows that the industry is growing rapidly, with revenue increases over the last five years driven by rising use of ethanol, demand for improved crop yields and the increasing medical needs of an aging population.

Even though the industry has grown, a consolidation trend has emerged as large pharmaceutical companies have increasingly targeted industry firms for acquisition, to expand their product portfolios ahead of impending patent expirations. Sustained spending on research and development, including by the federal government, will benefit the industry going forward, driving growth in revenue generation and of course profit.

The Biotechnology Industry is indeed a thriving sector of the economy of countries like Israel, Japan, India, China, United Kingdom, Germany and the united states of America. Statistics has it that in the United States alone, the industry generates a whooping sum of well over $109 billion annually from more than 2,230 registered and licensed biotechnology companies scattered all around the United States of America.

The industry is responsible for the employment of well over 218,610 people. Experts project the industry to grow at a 1.8 percent annual rate from 2011 to 2016. AbbVie, Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Monsanto and Gilead, have the lion share of the available market in the Biotechnology industry in the United States of America.

A recent report published by IBISWORLD shows that in the Biotechnology industry’s short history, its diversity of product offerings, markets, company sizes and funding sources have largely buffered it against major volatility from market fluctuations.

The report further stated that, high labor costs and the need for significant upfront investment in research and development (R&D) render the industry somewhat vulnerable to declines in venture capital and government funding. In the years following the recession, cutbacks across these funding sources caused industry revenue to fall.

However, growth boomed in 2015 as companies began to experience returns on their research, which can take years to develop into fully approved products. Capital markets have recovered from the recession, moderately improving the availability of industry investment capital.

The bottom line is that; the Biotechnology industry is still very much open for new entrant; the competition within the industry is not as stiff as similar industry. If your product is good, it can gain fair share of the available market in any country or region you intend launching the business.

2. Executive Summary

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is a licensed and standard generic biotechnology company that will be located in an industrial area in Saint Paul – Minnesota. We have been able to secure a long-term lease agreement for a facility in a strategic location with an option of a long-term renewal on an agreed terms and conditions that is favorable to us.

The facility has government approval for the kind of production business we want to run and the facility is easily accessible and we are deliberate about that because we want to facilitate easy movement of raw materials and finished products.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is in the biotechnology industry to make use of living organisms or molecular and cellular techniques to provide chemicals, food and services that meet human needs. We will engage in DNA coding, mapping and sequencing, processing biotechnologies, sub cellular organisms engineering, cell and tissue culture engineering, protein sequencing, and synthesis and engineering.

We are also in business to make profits at the same to give our customers value for their money; we want to give people and businesses who patronize our biotech products the opportunity to be part of the success story of our brand.

We are aware that there are several big scale and small scale biotechnology companies scattered all around the United States and Canada whose products can be found in every nooks and crannies of The United States and Canada, which is why we spent time and resources to conduct our feasibility studies and market survey so as to enable us locate the business in an area that can easily accept our products and brand.

We ensured that our facility is easy to locate and we have mapped out plans to develop a far-reaching distribution network for wholesalers of biotech products all around Saint Paul – Minnesota and throughout the United States of America.

Much more than producing quality, effective and safe biotech products, our customer care is going to be second to none. We know that our customers are the reason why we are in business which is why we will go the extra mile to get them satisfied when they purchase any of our biotech product and also to become our loyal customers and ambassadors.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC will ensure that all our customers (wholesale distributors) are given first class treatment whenever they visit our factory. We have a CRM software that will enable us manage a one on one relationship with our customers (wholesale distributors) no matter how large the numbers of our customer base may grow to.

We will ensure that we get our customers involved when making some business decisions that will directly or indirectly affect them.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is a family business that will be owned and managed by Dr. Bennie Polestar (PhD) and his immediate family members.  Dr. Bennie Polestar who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Company has PhD in Biotechnology.

He has well over 20 years of experience working in related industry as a senior production manager prior to starting Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC. He will be working with a team of professionals to build the business and grow it to enviably height.

3. Our Products and Services

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is going to run a standard and licensed biotechnology company whose products will not only be sold in Saint Paul – Minnesota but also throughout the United States of America and Canada. We are in the Biotechnology industry to make profits and also to give our customers value for their money.

We will ensure that we do all that is permitted by the law in the United States of America to accomplish our business goal and objective. These are some of the products that we will be offering;

• DNA coding, mapping and sequencing
• Processing biotechnologies
• Sub cellular organisms engineering
• Cell and tissue culture engineering
• Protein sequencing, synthesis and engineering
• Human health technologies
• Animal health, marine and terrestrial microbial technologies
• Environmental remediation and natural resource recovery
• Agriculture and aquaculture technologies
• Industrial technologies

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

• Our vision is to establish a standard Biotechnology Company whose products will be not only be sold in Saint Paul – Minnesota, but also throughout the United States of America and Canada.
• Our mission is to establish a standard and world class Biotechnology Company / brand that in our own capacity will favorably compete with leaders in the industry. We want to build a business that will be listed amongst the top 20 biotechnology companies in the United States of America and Canada.

Our Business Structure

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is a business that is established with the aim of competing favorably with other leading biotech product brands in the industry. This is why we will ensure that we put the right structure in place that will support the kind of growth that we have in mind while setting up the business.

We will ensure that we only hire people that are qualified, honest, hardworking, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that will benefit all the stake holders (the owners, workforce, and customers).

As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our senior management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more depending how fast we meet our set target. In view of that, we have decided to hire qualified and competent hands to occupy the following positions;

• Chief Executive Officer (Owner)

Senior Research Fellow / Biotech Scientist

Human Resources and Admin Manager

Merchandize Manager

Sales and Marketing Manager

• Laboratory Assistant / Plant Breeder / Glass washer
• Accountants / Cashiers
• Customer Care Executive
• Distribution Truck Driver

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

Chief Executive Officer – CEO (Owner):

• Increases management’s effectiveness by recruiting, selecting, orienting, training, coaching, counseling, and disciplining managers; communicating values, strategies, and objectives; assigning accountabilities; planning, monitoring, and appraising job results; developing incentives; developing a climate for offering information and opinions; providing educational opportunities.
• Creates, communicates, and implements the organization’s vision, mission, and overall direction – i.e. leading the development and implementation of the overall organization’s strategy.
• Responsible for fixing prices and signing business deals
• Responsible for providing direction for the business
• Responsible for signing checks and documents on behalf of the company
• Evaluates the success of the organization.
• Responsible for research and development in collaboration with others on projects. He or she makes detailed observations, analyzes data, and interprets results. Research associates prepare technical reports, summaries, protocols, and quantitative analyses. An incumbent maintains familiarity with current scientific literature and contributes to the process of a project within his or her scientific discipline, as well as investigating, creating, and developing new methods and technologies for project advancement.
• Responsible for identifying patentable inventions and acting as principal investigator in conducting his or her own experiments.
• Performs a variety of greenhouse research tasks and experiments. He or she may be required to make detailed observations, detecting horticultural or pest problems, and instituting corrective action.
• Determine optimal cultural requirements and perform tasks related to disease and pest prevention; they often are required to collect, record, and analyze data, as well as interpret results. In addition, a greenhouse assistant may be called upon to perform troubleshooting and equipment maintenance.
• Participates in scientific conferences and contribute to scientific journals.
• Ensures operation of equipment by completing preventive maintenance requirements; calling for repairs.
• Ensures that the plant meets the expected safety and health standard at all times.
• Responsible for overseeing the smooth running of HR and administrative tasks for the organization
• Updates job knowledge by participating in educational opportunities; reading professional publications; maintaining personal networks; participating in professional organizations.
• Enhances department and organization reputation by accepting ownership for accomplishing new and different requests; exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments.
• Defines job positions for recruitment and managing interviewing process
• Carries out staff induction for new team members
• Responsible for training, evaluation and assessment of employees
• Oversees the smooth running of the daily office and factory activities.
• Manages vendor relations, market visits, and the ongoing education and development of the organizations’ buying teams
• Responsible for the purchase of raw materials and packaging materials
• Responsible for planning sales, monitoring inventory, selecting the merchandise, and writing and pricing orders to vendors
• Ensures that the organization operates within stipulated budget.
• Manages external research and coordinate all the internal sources of information to retain the organizations’ best customers and attract new ones
• Model demographic information and analyze the volumes of transactional data generated by customer purchases
• Identifies, prioritize, and reaches out to new partners, and business opportunities et al
• Responsible for supervising implementation, advocate for the customer’s needs, and communicate with clients
• Develops, executes and evaluates new plans for expanding increase sales
• Document all customer contact and information
• Represents the company in strategic meetings
• Helps to increase sales and growth for the company

Accountant / Cashier

• Responsible for preparing financial reports, budgets, and financial statements for the organization
• Provides managements with financial analyses, development budgets, and accounting reports; analyzes financial feasibility for the most complex proposed projects; conducts market research to forecast trends and business conditions.
• Responsible for financial forecasting and risks analysis.
• Performs cash management, general ledger accounting, and financial reporting
• Responsible for developing and managing financial systems and policies
• Responsible for administering payrolls
• Ensures compliance with taxation legislation
• Handles all financial transactions for the organization
• Serves as internal auditor for the organization

Client Service Executive

• Welcomes guests and clients by greeting them in person or on the telephone; answering or directing inquiries.
• Ensures that all contacts with clients (e-mail, walk-In center, SMS or phone) provides the client with a personalized customer service experience of the highest level
• Through interaction with clients on the phone, uses every opportunity to build client’s interest in the company’s products and services
• Manages administrative duties assigned by the manager in an effective and timely manner
• Consistently stays abreast of any new information on the company’s products, promotional campaigns etc. to ensure accurate and helpful information is supplied to clients
• Receives parcels / documents for the company
• Distributes mails in the organization
• Handles any other duties as assigned by the line manager

Laboratory Assistant/ Plant Breeder / Glass washer:

• Responsible for performing a wide variety of research laboratory tasks and experiments, making detailed observations, analyzing data, and interpreting results. He or she maintains laboratory equipment and inventory levels for laboratory supplies. He or she may also write reports, summaries, and protocols regarding experiments.
• Performs limited troubleshooting and calibration of instruments.
• Responsible for the design, development, execution, and implementation of plant breeding research projects in collaboration with a larger research team. He or she may be responsible for project planning and personnel management within the project. Plant breeders may use exotic germ plasma and work with various mating systems and integrate them with biotechnology as needed to enhance selection methods and accelerate product development.
• A plant breeder’s diverse responsibilities can include making contributions to and developing good public relations with scientific and other professional communities. He or she may also act as an adviser to company management about long-range goals for a plant breeding department. He or she may participate in the development of patents or proposals and assist with the management and development of a plant breeding group.
• Performs routine maintenance of glass-washing equipment and performs other related duties as required

Distribution Truck Drivers

• Assists in loading and unloading biotech products
• Maintains a logbook of their driving activities to ensure compliance with federal regulations governing the rest and work periods for operators.
• Keeps a record of vehicle inspections and make sure the truck is equipped with safety equipment
• Assists the transport and logistics manager in planning their route according to a delivery schedule.
• Local-delivery drivers may be required to sell products or services to pharmaceutical stores and businesses on their route, obtain signatures from recipients and collect cash.
• Transport finished goods and raw materials over land to and from manufacturing plants or retail and distribution centers
• Inspect vehicles for mechanical items and safety issues and perform preventative maintenance
• Complies with truck driving rules and regulations (size, weight, route designations, parking, break periods etc.) as well as with company policies and procedures
• Collect and verify delivery instructions
• Reports defects, accidents or violations

6. SWOT Analysis

We are quite aware that there are several biotechnology companies both large and small in the United States of America and Canada which is why we are following the due process of establishing a business so as to compete favorable with them. We know that if a proper SWOT analysis is conducted for our business, we will be able to position our business to maximize our strength, leverage on the opportunities that will be available to us, mitigate our risks and be welled equipped to confront our threats.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC employed the services of an expert HR and Business Analyst with bias in start – up business to help us conduct a thorough SWOT analysis and to help us create a Business model that will help us achieve our business goals and objectives.

This is the summary of the SWOT analysis that was conducted for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC;

Part of what is going to count as positives for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is the vast experience of our management team, we have people on board who are highly experienced and understands how to grow business from the scratch to becoming a national phenomenon.

So also, our state of the art biotech machines and equipment, the wide varieties of biotech products that we produce, our large national distribution network and of course our excellent customer service culture will definitely count as a strong strength for the business.

A major weakness that may count against us is the fact that we are a new biotech company in the United States and we don’t have the financial capacity to engage in the kind of publicity that we intend giving the business especially when big names like AbbVie, Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Monsanto and Gilead et al are already determining the direction of the market both in the United States and in the global market.

• Opportunities:

The opportunities available to biotech companies with a wide range of products that cuts across many industries are enormous. As a result of that, we were able to conduct a thorough market survey and feasibility studies so as to position our business to take advantage of the existing market for biotech products and also to create our own new market. We know that it is going to requires hard work, and we are determined to achieve it.

We are quite aware that just like any other business, one of the major threats that we are likely going to face are economic downturn and unfavorable government policies. It is a fact that economic downturn affects purchasing power. Another threat that may likely confront us is the arrival of a new biotech company in same location where ours is located and where our target market exists.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

• Market Trends

A close study of the trends in the Biotechnology industry shows that the industry is growing rapidly, with revenue increases over the last five years driven by rising use of ethanol, demand for improved crop yields and the increasing medical needs of an aging population.

The fact that there are several fields that need the input of biotech companies boost production makes it an industry that is worth paying attention to. Fields like medicine and pharmacy, agriculture (hybrid food production, hybrid bird production and hybrid animal production et al.) and non-food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al).

8. Our Target Market

When it comes to selling biotech products, there is indeed a wide range of available customers. In essence, our target market can’t be restricted to just an industry, but all the industries that make use of biotech products. In view of that, we have conducted our market research and we have ideas of what our target market would be expecting from us.

We are in business to engage in developing and producing biotech products, marketing and distributing biotech products and gaining regulatory approval for biotech products. Hence our target markets are;

• Medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies
• Hybrid food processing and production companies
• Hybrids crops cultivators
• Hybrid animal breeders
• Hybrid bird / poultry farmers
• Non – food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al).

Our competitive advantage

A close study of the biotech industry reveals that the market has become much more intensely competitive over the last half decade. As a matter of fact, you have to be highly creative, customer centric and proactive if you must survive in this industry.

We are aware of the stiffer competition and we are well prepared to compete favorably with other biotech companies in Saint Paul – Minnesota and throughout the United States and Canada. Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is launching a standard biotech product brand that will indeed become the preferred choice of residence of Saint Paul – Minnesota and every city where our biotech product will be sold.

Part of what is going to count as competitive advantage for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is the vast experience of our management team, we have people on board who are highly experienced and understands how to grow business from the scratch to becoming a national phenomenon.

So also, our state of the art biotech production machines and equipment, the wide varieties of biotech products that we produce our large and far reaching national distribution network and of course our excellent customer service culture will definitely count as a strong strength for the business.

Lastly, our employees will be well taken care of, and their welfare package will be among the best within our category (startups biotech companies) in the biotechnology industry, meaning that they will be more than willing to build the business with us and help deliver our set goals and achieve all our aims and objectives. We will also give good working conditions and commissions to freelance sales agents that we will recruit from time to time.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

• Sources of Income

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is established with the aim of maximizing profits in the biotech industry in both the United States of America and Canada and we are going to go all the way to ensure that we do all it takes to sell a wide range of biotech products to a wide range of customers.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC will generate income by selling the following biotech products;

10. Sales Forecast

One thing is assured when it comes to biotech company, if your products are meet the expected industrial standard and if your production plant is centrally positioned and easily accessible, you will always attract customers cum sales and that will sure translate to increase in revenue generation for the business.

We are well positioned to take on the available market in Saint Paul – Minnesota and every city where our biotech products will be sold and we are quite optimistic that we will meet our set target of generating enough income / profits from the first six month of operations and grow the business and our clientele base.

We have been able to critically examine the biotechnology industry and we have analyzed our chances in the industry and we have been able to come up with the following sales forecast. The sales projections are based on information gathered on the field and some assumptions that are peculiar to similar startups in Saint Paul – Minnesota.

Below is the sales projection for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC, it is based on the location of our business and other factors as it relates to small scale and medium scale biotech company start – ups in the United States;

• First Fiscal Year-: $250,000
• Second Fiscal Year-: $550,000
• Third Fiscal Year-: $950,000

N.B : This projection is done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown and there won’t be any major competitor manufacturing same biotech products and customer care services as we do within same location. Please note that the above projection might be lower and at the same time it might be higher.

• Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

Before choosing a location for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC and also the kind of biotech products we will produce, we conduct a thorough market survey and feasibility studies in order for us to be able to be able to penetrate the available market in our target market locations.

We have detailed information and data that we were able to utilize to structure our business to attract the numbers of customers we want to attract per time and also for our products to favorable compete with other leading biotech brands in the United States of America and Canada.

We hired experts who have good understanding of the biotechnology industry to help us develop

In other to continue to be in business and grow, we must continue to sell our biotech products to the available market which is why we will go all out to empower or sales and marketing team to deliver our corporate sales goals. In summary, Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC will adopt the following sales and marketing approach to sell our biotech products;

• Introduce our biotech products brand by sending introductory letters to Medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, Hybrid food processing and production companies, Hybrids crops cultivators, Hybrid animal breeders, Hybrid bird / poultry farmers, and Non – food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al) and other stakeholders in Saint Paul – Minnesota and other cities both in the United States of America and Canada
• Engage in road show in targeted communities from time to time to market our products
• Advertise our products in community based newspapers, local TV and radio stations
• List our business and products on yellow pages ads (local directories)
• Leverage on the internet to promote and market our biotech product brands
• Engage in direct marketing and sales
• Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing (referrals)
• Join local chambers of industry and commerce with the aim of networking and marketing our products.

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

In spite of the fact that our biotech manufacturing plant is a standard one with a wide range of biotech products that in few years from now will favorably compete with other leading brands in the industry like AbbVie, Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Monsanto and Gilead we will still go ahead to intensify publicity for all our products and brand. We are going to explore all available means to promote Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC has a long-term plan of distributing our biotech products in various locations all around the United States of America and Canada which is why we will deliberately build our brand to be well accepted first in Saint Paul – Minnesota before venturing out. As a matter of fact, our publicity and advertising strategy is not solely for selling our products but to also effectively communicate our brand.

Here are the platforms we intend leveraging on to promote and advertise Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC;

• Place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and magazines) and electronic media platforms
• Sponsor relevant community programs
• Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook, twitter, et al to promote our biotech product brand
• Install our Bill Boards on strategic locations all around major cities in the United States of America and Canada
• Engage in road show from time to time in targeted communities
• Distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas
• Position our Flexi Banners at strategic positions in the location where we intend getting customers to start patronizing our products.
• Ensure that our products are well branded and that all our staff members wear our customized clothes, and all our official cars and distribution vans are customized and well branded.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

When it comes to pricing for products such as biotech products, there are two sides to the coin. We are aware of the pricing trend in the biotech industry which is why we have decided to produce various sizes of biotech products as regulated by the industry.

In view of that, our prices will conform to what is obtainable in the industry but will ensure that within the first 6 to 12 months our products are sold a little bit below the average prices of various biotech product brands in the United States of America. We have put in place business strategies that will help us run on low profits for a period of 6 months; it is a way of encouraging people to buy into our generic pharmaceutical product brands.

• Payment Options

The payment policy adopted by Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is all inclusive because we are quite aware that different customers prefer different payment options as it suits them but at the same time, we will ensure that we abide by the financial rules and regulation of the United States of America.

Here are the payment options that Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC will make available to her clients;

• Payment via bank transfer
• Payment with cash
• Payment via credit cards / Point of Sale Machines (POS Machines)
• Payment via online bank transfer
• Payment via check
• Payment via mobile money transfer
• Payment via bank draft

In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will enable our client make payment for biotech products purchase without any stress on their part. Our bank account numbers will be made available on our website and promotional materials to clients who may want to deposit cash or make online transfer for the purchase of our products.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

Starting a standard biotech company is indeed a capital – intensive business. This is so because the amount required in setting up a biotech production plant is not a piecemeal. The bulk of the start – up capital will be sent on leasing or acquiring a facility, acquiring license and in purchasing biotech lab machines and equipment.

Aside from that, you are not expected to spend much except for purchase and servicing of distribution trucks, purchasing raw materials, paying of your employees and utility bills. These are the key areas where we will spend our start – up capital;

• The total fee for registering the Business in the United States of America – $750.
• Legal expenses for obtaining licenses and permits as well as the accounting services (software, P.O.S machines and other software) – $1,300.
• Marketing promotion expenses for the grand opening of Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC in the amount of $3,500 and as well as flyer printing (2,000 flyers at $0.04 per copy) for the total amount of – $3,580.
• The cost for hiring Business Consultant – $2,500.
• The cost for insurance (general liability, workers’ compensation and property casualty) coverage at a total premium – $2,400.
• The cost for payment of rent for 12 months at $1.76 per square feet in the total amount of $105,600.
• The cost for construction of a standard biotech lab / production plant – $100,000.
• Other start-up expenses including stationery ( $500 ) and phone and utility deposits ( $2,500 ).
• Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees, payments of bills et al) – $100,000
• The cost for start-up inventory (mixing, blending, compounding and packaging equipment, raw materials, and packaging materials et al) – $80,000
• Cost for store equipment (cash register, security, ventilation, signage) – $13,750
• Cost of purchase of distribution vans – $60,000
• The cost for the purchase of furniture and gadgets (Computers, Printers, Telephone, Fax Machines, tables and chairs et al) – $4,000.
• The cost of launching a website – $600
• The cost for our opening party – $10,000
• Miscellaneous – $10,000

We would need an estimate of $500,000 to successfully set up our biotech company in Saint Paul – Minnesota. Please note that this amount includes the salaries of all the staff for the first 3 month of operation.

Generating Funds / Startup Capital for Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is a family business that is owned and financed by Dr. Bennie Polestar (PhD) and his immediate family members. They do not intend to welcome any external business partner which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of the start – up capital to 3 major sources.

These are the areas we intend generating our start – up capital;

• Generate part of the start – up capital from personal savings and sell of stocks
• Source for soft loans from family members and friends
• Apply for loan from my Bank

N.B: We have been able to generate about $200,000 ( Personal savings $150,000 and soft loan from family members $50,000 ) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $300,000 from our bank. All the papers and document have been signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited with the amount.

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

The future of any business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If all of these factors are missing from a business (company), then it won’t be too long before the business close shop.

One of our major goals of starting Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC is to build a business that will survive off its own cash flow without the need for injecting finance from external sources once the business is officially running. We know that one of the ways of gaining approval and winning customers over is to sell our biotech products a little bit cheaper than what is obtainable in the market and we are well prepared to survive on lower profit margin for a while.

Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and training and re – training of our workforce is at the top burner.

As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of three years or more. We know that if that is put in place, we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry; they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.

Check List / Milestone

• Business Name Availability Check: Completed
• Business Registration: Completed
• Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
• Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
• Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
• Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
• Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
• Application for business license and permit: Completed
• Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
• Leasing of facility and construction of standard biotech lab / production plant: In Progress
• Conducting Feasibility Studies: Completed
• Generating capital from family members and friends: Completed
• Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
• writing of business plan: Completed
• Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
• Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
• Design of the Company’s Logo: Completed
• Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: In Progress
• Recruitment of employees: In Progress
• Purchase of the needed biotech machines and equipment, furniture, racks, shelves, computers, electronic appliances, office appliances and CCTV: In progress
• Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
• Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
• Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
• Opening party / launching party planning: In Progress
• Establishing business relationship with Medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, Hybrid food processing and production companies, Hybrids crops cultivators, Hybrid animal breeders, Hybrid bird / poultry farmers, and Non – food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al): In Progress

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How to Write a Business Plan for Your Biotech Startup

Last Updated on 

August 9, 2022

Do you always need a written business plan? Keeping track of every part of your business in your head is an impossible task, and the components of cash flow–sales, costs, expenses, assets, liabilities, capital, and profits–are much easier to understand and manage when laid out in an organized way.

Not only that, having everything documented will help show others that you have a good idea on your hands, one worthy of investment—whether that be labor or capital.

There are many different types of business plans, however, each type generally falls under one of two categories: traditional or lean startup. Whichever you choose, writing a business plan can give you a roadmap, guiding you through each stage of starting and managing your company, and can help convince people to invest in or lend to you.

That said, does a business plan guarantee success? Sadly, it does not. If all you needed to succeed was a business plan, then everyone with a business plan would be successful. Nonetheless, it is an excellent exercise and decision-making tool, and will help you flesh out a solid business strategy. In fact, scientific studies have shown that many successful businesses planned ahead.

In this article, we’ll review the traditional business plan format used to outline the company’s mission statement, structure, products or services, growth strategy, and more—information that will all be necessary if you’re going to secure outside investment, such as investor funding and business loans. Furthermore, we’ll provide a few examples of business plan templates we stand behind.

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How Does a Business Plan Help?

If you’e starting a small business, your business plan can be a highly useful tool to help you run your business. It can be the blueprint for how you structure, run, and grow your company.

They’re also an excellent way to flesh out key elements of your company, such as capital needs, product-to-market fit, competition, marketing plans, and potential to make a profit. Documenting all this will give you a much better grasp on your chances for success.

Most importantly, traditional business plans are an essential part to securing funding or bringing on new business partners. By providing in-depth detail on how you plan to operate your business, you make it that much more attractive to prospective investors or lenders.

This is because any investor is more likely to put their money and resources into someone who has made the effort to think out and document how the business will run—the business owner is more likely to be viewed as committed, thoughtful, and strategic.

Furthermore, creating a business plan lets you spot opportunities and challenges as you grow. This is due, in large part, to the fact that business plans have become less static.

(It used to be the case that many business plans were long, formal, and static documents that did not change much.)

Nowadays, many business owners revisit and revise their business plan as the company grows, as they gather new and different information and experience, and as the market changes. This allows for more flexibility and strategic planning and pivoting.

Now, some people may see writing a business plan as a chore or necessary “evil” required to attract financing or investors.

It may be seen as a chore, but it should also be seen as a low-cost—if not free—way to explore the viability of your potential business and avoid costly mistakes. At the end of the day, it’s not just about funding, it’s about the process.

By writing a plan out, you show not only yourself but those around you that you have a good idea on your hands, one worthy of time, effort, and money.

What Does Your Business Plan Need to Include?

Traditional business plans, or standard business plans, are highly detailed and provide a comprehensive look at the inner workings of your business.

These types of plans are necessary when requesting funding from an prospective investor or lender. They can be dozens of pages long, and usually take more time to write than other types of business plans, such as a lean startup plan.

Lean startup plans are typically shorter, focusing on key elements from a high-level. They are useful tools for measuring performance regularly and tracking your financials and milestones against what you projected so you can respond to opportunities and react to challenges quickly.

This type of business plan is faster to write, but doesn’t always provide enough information to potential investors or lenders. Nonetheless, it is a great option for startups looking to move quickly and decisively.

When writing a traditional business plan, the outline should include these topics:

Executive summary

Company description.

• Company structure & management
• Products or services
• Market analysis
• Sales & marketing plan
• Funding request
• Financial plan & projections

The order in which the topics are included is not incredibly important. The level of detail is what investors are looking at. Let’s briefly review each section.

This is one of the most important sections of your business plan, as many investors will make a decision to invest in your business based on this summary.

Often, these investors won’t read the rest of the business plan unless your executive summary is convincing enough. It shouldn’t be longer than one page, and should provide a high-level overview of your business idea that persuades an investor to continue reading.

Your executive summary should include every section described below, but condensed to include the most important information so a busy reviewer can get the idea quickly.

This is where you’ll go into detail about your business concept and company, explaining what you do, why you do it, and the problems you plan to solve.

You should include information regarding your business’s structure, goals and objectives, as well as the consumers or businesses you plan on serving. You can also include your cultural philosophy, principles, and ideals.

All this should be written to explain why your business is a good investment bet.

Company Structure & Management

If you plan on raising money from investors, they will want to know how you structure your business and who runs it. This means determining how your business is structured legally, and including that information in your business plan.

State whether or not you are or plan to incorporate as a C-corporation, S-corporation, or limited liability company (LLC), and show who will be running each part of the business and describe how each member will contribute to the company..

Documenting the legal structure and management team in your business plan regardless of fundraising strategies will ultimately be helpful, as you will have all your business entity information recorded for any future needs.

Products or Services

Explain what you plan to sell and why. How will it benefit your customers or the businesses you plan to serve? In the life sciences sector, sharing how you plan to handle intellectual property is incredibly important.

If you’re performing research and development, you’ll want to include comprehensive details.

Market Analysis

Many investors will want to know an analysis of your target market, the size and growth of that market, and why you’re targeting it.

Market research—specifically, researching your competitors—should give you a good idea of what your target industry and market looks like. It will show you what other businesses are doing and whether or not it’s working.

This type of competitive analysis will also help you understand their strengths and weaknesses, and how you can position yourself.

Looking for themes and trends can help you get an idea of what successful companies do, why they do it, and how you can improve on it. Including this information in your business plan will help investors see how your business fits into the target market, and whether or not you have any competitive advantages.

Sales & Marketing Plans

Creating these two documents is extremely important because it will define how exactly you will market to customers, as well as how you will convince them to purchase the product or service you’re offering.

While sales strategies and marketing strategies are somewhat different, they are often talked about together, as sales and marketing departments work closely to achieve business goals.

Although there is no single way to approach creating a marketing strategy, there are some best practices that many entrepreneurs in various industries typically follow. These best practices include:

Include your marketing and sales strategy in your business plan by outlining your current marketing plan. Explain what your ideal customer demographics are and why, show how your strategy fits that actual or potential customer, and include your value propositions. Incorporate how you plan to attract and retain their business as well.

As well, this section should also describe how you’ll actually make a sale. Refer back to this section when describing your financial projections.

Funding Requests

If you’re looking for outside investments to fund or finance your company, you’ll need to include a funding request section. If you’re not planning to ask, you can skip this section entirely.

Although investors are an excellent resource (large cash injections, wide network to leverage), there are other ways to fund your business without using investors.

Use this section to include important information on your business’s funding needs, as well as future financial plans and projections.

Include how much funding you may need and when you’ll need it, whether you prefer equity or debt, the terms you’d like, and the length of time this request will cover. Furthermore, describe how you’ll use your funds.

Specify whether it’s for hiring and salaries, equipment and supplies, or bills that need to be paid. (It could be for all of these.)

Include a description of your future financial plans. It should include any loan repayment schedules and plans to sell the business. You’ll also want to include your exit strategy , letting investors know how they will be able to exit the deal should they wish.

An exit strategy can be a number of things, from initial public offering (IPO) or merger and acquisition (M&A) to a management buyout.  

Financial Plan & Projections

The financial plan section is used to illustrate your projected financial position, as well as a number of financial statements.

It can be used to supplement your funding request and should show your company’s stability.

You’ll want to include the most important views of your financials, to showcase your business’s financial health. If you have income statements , balance sheets , and cash flow statements you can provide, make sure you do.

Depending on your audience, it may also be helpful to provide a financial forecast for the next five years. Include projected income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and capital expenditure budgets, and describe your projected cash-flow statement.

It can identify gaps or negative cash flow, helping you adjust your operations accordingly. Lastly, match these projections with your requested funding so investors understand why you’re requesting that specific amount.

Business Plan Template Examples

You can use a business plan template to write an effective business plan. These templates typically provide step-by-step instructions, or enough detail about each section, to help guide you through the process.

We’ve gone ahead and collected a few resources we believe in, and have provided them here for you:

• USBA Business Plan Template
• Bplans Business Plan Template for Small Business and Entrepreneurs
• Shopify Free Business Plan Template
• My Own Business Free Business Plan Template
• Score Business Plan Template for Startup Businesses

In conclusion

As tedious as it may sound, writing a great business plan can help convince others that you have a viable business idea on your hands.

With an excellent business plan, you’ll likely have an easier time getting people to work with you, whether as a fellow founder, an employee, or as an investor.

Lastly, even if you’re not actively seeking out funding, it’s an excellent exercise that will leave you understanding your business inside and out.

These articles are designed to be informational and do not represent legal advice. Before making any legal or financial business decisions, you should consult with a professional who can advise you based on your individual situation.

Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups

• Great for beginners
• Ready-to-use, fully customizable Subcategory
• Get started in seconds

As a biotech startup founder, you understand the importance of a well-crafted business plan to secure the resources and funding needed to bring your scientific discoveries to life. That's why ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups is an essential tool for entrepreneurs like you!

With this template, you can easily outline your research and development plans, target markets, commercialization strategies, and financial projections in a comprehensive and professional manner. It's designed specifically for the biotech industry, so you can confidently present your ideas to investors and stakeholders.

Don't let the complexities of the biotech world hold you back. Use ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups to validate your business ideas and strategies, and take your venture to new heights!

Get started today and make your biotech dreams a reality.

Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups Benefits

A Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups provides numerous benefits for founders and entrepreneurs in the biotech industry, including:

• Streamlining the process of creating a comprehensive business plan specifically tailored for the biotech sector
• Ensuring all essential components, such as scientific discoveries, R&D plans, and commercialization strategies, are included
• Helping founders present a clear and compelling case to potential investors, increasing the likelihood of securing funding
• Assisting in the validation of business ideas and strategies, setting the foundation for successful execution
• Providing a framework for financial projections, enabling founders to make informed decisions and attract necessary resources.

Main Elements of Biotech Startups Business Plan Template

ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups provides a comprehensive framework to help you outline your scientific discoveries, research and development plans, and commercialization strategies. Here are the main elements of this template:

• Custom Statuses: Track the progress of each section of your business plan with statuses like Complete, In Progress, Needs Revision, and To Do, ensuring that you stay on track and meet your goals.
• Custom Fields: Use custom fields such as Reference, Approved, and Section to add important details and categorize information within your business plan, making it easy to track and organize.
• Custom Views: Access five different views, including Topics, Status, Timeline, Business Plan, and Getting Started Guide, to visualize your business plan from different angles and gain valuable insights into its progress and overall structure.

With ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups, you can confidently present your ideas and strategies to investors, securing the resources needed to bring your biotech venture to life.

How To Use Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups

If you're a biotech startup looking to create a comprehensive business plan, follow these four steps using ClickUp's Business Plan Template:

1. Define your vision and mission

Start by clearly defining your vision and mission for your biotech startup. What problem are you aiming to solve? What is your long-term goal? This will help guide your business plan and provide a clear direction for your company.

Use the Docs feature in ClickUp to write down your vision and mission statements.

2. Identify your target market and competitors

Next, conduct thorough market research to identify your target market and understand your competitors in the biotech industry. Determine your unique selling proposition (USP) and how you can differentiate yourself from other companies.

Create tasks in ClickUp to track your market research and competitor analysis.

3. Develop your product or service

Outline the details of your biotech product or service in your business plan. Explain how it addresses the needs of your target market and how it provides a solution to their problems. Include information about your technology, intellectual property, and any regulatory considerations.

Use the Table view in ClickUp to create a detailed product development plan and track key milestones.

4. Create a financial plan

Finally, develop a comprehensive financial plan for your biotech startup. Include projected revenue, expenses, and cash flow projections. Identify potential funding sources and outline your plan for profitability and growth.

Use the Goals feature in ClickUp to set financial targets and track your progress towards them.

By following these steps and utilizing ClickUp's Business Plan Template, you can create a well-structured and comprehensive business plan for your biotech startup.

Get Started with ClickUp’s Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups

Biotech startup founders and entrepreneurs can use the Business Plan Template for Biotech Startups in ClickUp to streamline the process of creating a comprehensive business plan that will attract investors and secure resources for their ventures.

To get started, hit “Add Template” to sign up for ClickUp and add the template to your Workspace. Make sure you designate which Space or location in your Workspace you’d like this template applied.

Next, invite relevant members or guests to your Workspace to start collaborating.

Now you can take advantage of the full potential of this template to create a winning business plan:

• Use the Topics View to organize your plan into different sections, such as scientific discoveries, research and development plans, target markets, commercialization strategies, and financial projections.
• The Status View will help you track the progress of each section, with statuses like Complete, In Progress, Needs Revision, and To Do.
• The Timeline View will allow you to visualize the timeline of your business plan and set deadlines for each section.
• The Business Plan View will give you an overview of your entire plan, allowing you to easily navigate between sections and make updates.
• Use the Getting Started Guide View to access helpful resources and tips on how to create a successful business plan.
• Customize the template by adding custom fields like Reference, Approved, and Section to provide additional context and information.
• Collaborate with team members and stakeholders to gather input and feedback on each section of your business plan.
• Monitor and analyze progress to ensure that your business plan is comprehensive, compelling, and investor-ready.
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Biotech Business Plan Sample

JUL.15, 2016

Biotechnology has helped to improve the lives of millions if not billions of people from all across the globe. The high demand for biotech products and services has resulted in an influx in the number of individuals want to venture into this industry. If you are planning to travel this road, it is important that you hire an expert to write a professional business plan for biotech for you.

For many years, OGSCapital has been helping entrepreneurs like you who have a goal and a dream to run a profitable business succeed. One of the corner pillars that our biotech startup business plan service packages are founded on is professionalism. Over the years, we have worked smart to come up with a set of protocols and processes that enable us to deliver nothing but the best biotech startup business plans to our clients. Our team undertakes regular training courses that help them to stay abreast of the new business plan writing techniques. Unlike other business writing firms, we do not use or have any business templates in our possession. Instead, we use our deep understanding of the business world and inherent ability to write quality biotechnology business plans.

Here are the primary reasons why you need an expertly written biotechnology business plan.

Scale Up Existing Business

If you already have a business already, but you want to focus on biotechnology to scale it to greater heights, you can do that by using a business plan as the roadmap to your success. The plan will clearly articulate the specific amount of resources that you should allocate to the new business as well help you create a winning strategy to help you achieve your short and long-term goals and objectives. Our professional business analysts, researchers, and writers will come together and write a quality business plan that will elevate the business to the next level.

Support Loan Application

Submitting loan application forms to the financial institution or individual lender does not guarantee you financing. You need to show the bank or investor that you have what it takes to ensure that the biotech business takes off successfully and becomes profitable. Ultimately, the bank will need you to service the loan, and the investors will want a return on the investment group with a business plan after a given period.

When you contact us, we will carefully evaluate your business proposal and come up with a plan that you can present to the finances as proof that you are committed and capable of establishing and running the business like a professional in the biotech industry. The business plan for biotech company will cover all the main point and explain why your idea is feasible to the investors.

Chronologic Steps of Creating a New Business

One of the major hurdles that companies are faced with when launching a new business is knowing the specific steps that they should take to avoid pitfalls and regrets along the way. By trusting a legally accredited and reputable business writer with your plan, you will be able to identify the right steps that you should take during the initial stages and even after the business is fully operational. For instance, we will use of expertise, knowledge, and skills to determine the specific resources that you will need at every stage of the business. We will also go an extra mile and explain to you some of the scenarios that you can expect along the way and how you should respond to them.

Guidance When Hiring Professionals

It is not possible to biotech company on your own. You need to have a team of experts to help you make solid decisions that will catapult and point your business in the right direction. For example, you need accountants to help you budget and file tax returns at the end of the financial year correctly. The company will also need a group of legally accredited and reputable attorneys to deal with all legal matters. With a group of committed, highly trained and well-educated business plan biotech writers and consultants on your side, you will be able to know the professionals that you should hire.

The plan will also give you clear guidelines on how to go about the hiring process to get the best candidates from the job market. If you need expert assistance to interview applicants, our experts can come to your rescue and conduct the interviews for you without charging you a fortune.

Bring On Board Business Partners

If you want to scale up the business faster and more conveniently, it is recommended to look for business partners who can work with you to establish and grow the business. The ideal partners should have similar business goals and objectives as you, and committed to ensuring that the business achieves the set goals and objectives. With a biotech startup business plan roadmap, you will be able to discuss all the business strategies with the partners before signing the agreement. To avert any inconveniences along the way, our team can come in and collect all the views and recommendations put across by the partners and use them to come up with a comprehensive and implementable plan for the company.

Cementing New Business Deals and Alliances

Once the business is up and running, many enterprises will present proposals to join you as business partners. It is paramount to make sure that such alliances are made diligently and carefully to ensure that all the decisions agreed upon in the boardroom meets are informed and incapable of spelling doom for your business.

We take pride in the fact that we have a task force of professionals who have the past helped oversee alliance business meetings. Using their vast knowledge and understanding of the process, they will help you make intelligent decisions. We will also give you a detailed plan on how to set targets for the new partnerships as well as recommend the most appropriate channels that you should use to communicate with the alliances to foster good co-existing and a favorable working environment.

Propose Professional Ways of Dealing with Displacement

Displacement is a valuable and an essential business concept that you need to understand and deal with professionally at different stages of the business growth. Our business experts will help you to understand the plausible active and negative impacts that this concept could have on your business. They will also give you a set of clear recommendations to help you deal with displacement like a professional. All this information will be chronologically included in the business plan. For more details about this practical business concept, contact us today. We will also give you a few biotechnology business plan examples to help you understand the concept better and how it can affect your business.

Raising enough capital to meet all the business operating costs is a major problem to most startup in the biotechnology industry. We can assist you to jump this hurdle by not only giving you ideas on where you can get financing. Our financial experts will also help you manage the capital that you get from investors and financial institutions in form of loans well.

Here are tips for raising startup capital for your new biotech startup business. We have tested and used them in the recent past to secure capital for our clients.

Get to Know the Investor Audience

This is one of the most crucial yet a staggering number of people who want to venture into the biotechnology pay little attention to. The two ways of knowing your audience are by evaluating the investor’s firm and the partner which in this case is you. The ideal investment firm should have at least managed to raise a fund over the last four years or so. If not, there is a high probability that they are just out to meet you to stay relevant and credible in the market. Our professionals will give you a list of investment firms that are trusted and reliable. We also help you write a credible business plan to increase your chances of getting funding.

Understand your Strengths and Weakness

Excellent work.

excellent work, competent advice. Alex is very friendly, great communication. 100% I recommend CGS capital. Thank you so much for your hard work!

The most successful companies in the world today are owned and managed by business experts who understand their strengths and weaknesses. You need to have a vivid mental picture and understanding of what you are and what you are not. Trying to do everything in this industry is counterproductive and will most likely result in wastage of resources. Focus on one thing and be true to it. Unlike other business writing firms that shoehorn business plan biotechnology templates to a conventional biotech startup script with the hope that it will appeal the investors is a prescription for failure.

Our expert business plan writers will help you to discover your strengths and weakness. They will work smart and hard to come up with a script that is based on an in-depth understanding of the target audience and your capabilities.

Base your Business Valuation Expectations on the Current Economy

Just a few years ago, the world economy collapsed and depressed virtually all valuations of biotech startups business. Luckily, the current lively IPO market is encouraging investors to channel money to the future biotech businesses across the globe. The current market clearing price is the right valuation for your startup. That said; it is important to note that the current market trends are very volatile. They can change at any time, and so it is imperative to put in place plans for ensuring that your business stands the test of time when the economic tide changes course. We will help you come up with an accurate valuation that will promote sustainability of your business. To do this, our professionals will spend time evaluating the current economy and the various factors that have a direct impact on the success of companies in this niche.

How you introduce the Business to Venture Firms Matters

Gone are the days when cold calling would help a new business to get funding. Another strategy that is no longer relevant is hiring an investment advisory firm to help you raise your first round of financing in a bid to get to the top level venture firms. Use your creativity and zeal to come up with a unique and exciting way of introducing your business idea to the trading partners or investment firms that you want. This being probably your first time to try this new method of presenting your company to venture firms, it is understandable to be confused at first. However, that should not hold you back. We will help place you miles ahead of the competition by giving you tested and proven ways of introducing yourself to venture firms.

Consider the Long Term Capital Needs of your Business and its Liquidity Paths

If you look at the biotech startup business plan example that we sent you, you will clearly see the great lengths that our teams go to create a long-term business plan for our clients. In addition, we make sure that the plan puts into consideration the liquidity paths. One of the strategies that we use to ensure that the plan is as close to reality or the situation on the ground as possible is by coming up with plausible descriptive scenarios of a liquidity event that could rock your business such as an IPO. Our business consultants will carry out liquidity and funding analysis and use the results to come up with a solid plan that you can count on to safeguard the financial stability of your business.

Focus on Science and Research Studies Data

One of the main reasons why most biotech business plans fall short of expectations is because they concentrate on discussing why particular conditions such as heart failure and Alzheimer are “big” diseases that need to be resolved. The venture firms that you want to engage most likely have this information. To avoid your proposal being rejected, you should focus more on the investment decisions. The investor needs to know that the company will have a real positive impact on patients. We will help you do this by professionally framing your business plan. We will also collect, analyze, and layout the data supporting your business idea in a thoughtful and easy to understand way.

Take Legal Advice Seriously

Skimping on legal advice when laying out the foundations for your business will make it difficult to achieve your entrepreneurial skills. Nothing compromises a new biotech business fundraising momentum during the initial stages than weak corporate fundamentals, cap tables, unusual structures, and poorly designed licensed agreements. By hiring us, we will make sure that all legal matters are well-taken care of. Over the years, we have fostered good working relationships with experts in the biotechnology industry whom we reach out to for advice when writing business plans.

Also, our legal team of experts will carefully review the options and the proposed license framework before submitting it to the venture firms to ensure that it meets all the requirements. Doing so will greatly help in ensuring that your business succeeds and eliminate unnecessary hurdles along the way.

Laser Sharp Understanding of Risk Management and Mitigation Mechanisms

Just like any other business venture, you will need to take calculated risks once in a while. Knowing how to mitigate the risks will help your business to stand the test of time. Our risk management experts will help you come up with the plans. We will also create a “de-risking” timeline to encourage investors to come on board and invest in your company before the next risk reduction phase. Concisely, we will craft a business plan that will paint a thoughtful image of your company to the venture firms.

In a nutshell, here is what you can expect from us:

• A team of hired trained business consultants and business plan writers who are committed and determined to ensure that you succeed
• Unbiased, professional, and diligent engagement
• Accurate and implementable recommendations
• Timely completion and submission of the business plan to investors
• In-depth research and market analysis before we make any recommendations or embark on writing the business plan

Indeed, when starting a biotech business, it is paramount to have a team of reliable, experienced, and professional business consultants, OGSCapital, on your side to make the right decisions. We do not outsource projects to third parties as we have the skills and ability to get the job done not only within the agreed timeframe but also correctly. For more details about the company and the services that we offer, do not hesitate to contact our able support team by filling the contact us form. Feel free also to request for a biotechnology business plan example to get a clearer understanding of our capabilities.

Download Biotech Business Plan Sample in PDF

Professional OGS capital writers specialized also in themes such as budget planning, hi-tech technology business plan , business plan technology model , web hosting company business plan , semiconductor business plan , computer store business plan and many others.

OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.

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Pharmaceutical Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Pharmaceutical Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 500 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their pharmaceutical companies.

If you’re unfamiliar with creating a pharmaceutical business plan, you may think creating one will be a time-consuming and frustrating process. For most entrepreneurs it is, but for you, it won’t be since we’re here to help. We have the experience, resources, and knowledge to help you create a great business plan.

In this article, you will learn some background information on why business planning is important. Then, you will learn how to write a pharmaceutical business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here >

What is a Pharmaceutical Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your pharmaceutical business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategies for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

Why You Need a Business Plan for a Pharmaceutical Company

If you’re looking to start a pharmaceutical business or grow your existing company, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your pharmaceutical company to improve your chances of success. Your business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Sources of Funding for Pharmaceutical Businesses

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a pharmaceutical business are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans, and angel investors. When it comes to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to ensure that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business. Personal savings and bank loans are the most common funding paths for pharmaceutical businesses.

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How to write a business plan for a pharmaceutical company.

If you want to start a pharmaceutical company or expand your current one, you need a business plan. The guide below details the necessary information for how to write each essential component of your pharmaceutical business plan.

Executive Summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your executive summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the kind of pharmaceutical business you are running and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a company that you would like to grow, or are you operating pharmaceutical companies in multiple markets?

Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan.

• Give a brief overview of the pharmaceutical industry.
• Discuss the type of pharmaceutical business you are operating.
• Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers.
• Provide a snapshot of your marketing strategy. Identify the key members of your team.
• Offer an overview of your financial plan.

Company Overview

In your company overview, you will detail the type of pharmaceutical company you are operating.

For example, you might specialize in one of the following types of pharmaceutical businesses:

• Generic Pharmaceutical Manufacturing : this type of pharmaceutical business develops prescription or over-the-counter drugs products that do not have patent protection.
• Vitamin & Supplement Manufacturing: this type of pharmaceutical company primarily develops products that contain ingredients intended to supplement the diet.
• Brand Name Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: this type of pharmaceutical business engages in significant research and development of patent-protected prescription and over-the-counter medications.

In addition to explaining the type of pharmaceutical business you will operate, the company overview needs to provide background on the business.

Include answers to questions such as:

• When and why did you start the business?
• What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of patents awarded, the extent of your product portfolio, reaching X number of distributors under contract, etc.
• Your legal business Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.

Industry Analysis

In your industry or market analysis, you need to provide an overview of the pharmaceutical industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the pharmaceutical industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.

Secondly, market research can improve your marketing strategy, particularly if your analysis identifies market trends.

The third reason is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section:

• How big is the pharmaceutical industry (in dollars)?
• Is the market declining or increasing?
• Who are the key competitors in the market?
• Who are the key suppliers in the market?
• What trends are affecting the industry?
• What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
• What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential target market for your pharmaceutical company? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your local population.

Customer Analysis

The customer analysis section of your business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: healthcare providers, chain pharmacies, independent retailers, and consumers.

As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of pharmaceutical business you operate. Clearly, individuals would respond to different marketing promotions than hospitals, for example.

Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, including a discussion of the ages, genders, locations, and income levels of the potential customers you seek to serve.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can recognize and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.

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Competitive Analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.

Direct competitors are other pharmaceutical businesses.

Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t directly competing with your product or service. This includes imported alternatives, herbal remedies, or customers’ nutritional self-care. You need to mention such competition as well.

For each such competitor, provide an overview of their business and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as

• What types of products do they manufacture?
• What are their research and development capabilities?
• What is their pricing (premium, low, etc.)?
• What are they good at?
• What are their weaknesses?

With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:

• Will you provide product development?
• Will you offer products or services that your competition doesn’t?
• Will you provide better customer service?
• Will you offer better pricing?

Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.  

Marketing Plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a pharmaceutical company, your marketing strategy should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of pharmaceutical business that you documented in your company overview. Then, detail the specific products or services you will be offering. For example, will you manufacture patent-protected prescription medications, or a range of vitamins?

Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your plan, you are presenting the products and/or services you offer and their prices.

Place : Place refers to the site of your pharmaceutical business. Document where your company is situated and mention how the site will impact your success. For example, is your pharmaceutical company located in an industrial district, near a major medical and/or scientific hub, or near input markets? Discuss how your site might be the ideal location for your customers.

Promotions : The final part of your pharmaceutical marketing plan is where you will document how you will drive potential customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

• Advertise in local papers, radio stations and/or magazines
• Advertise in trade publications
• Reach out to websites
• Distribute flyers
• Engage in email marketing
• Advertise on social media platforms
• Improve the SEO (search engine optimization) on your website for targeted keywords

Operations Plan

While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your pharmaceutical company, including meeting with potential customers, creating and distributing product information, developing and manufacturing products, etc.

Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to produce your Xth product, or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your pharmaceutical business to a new city.  

Management Team

To demonstrate your pharmaceutical company’s potential to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.

Ideally, you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing pharmaceutical businesses. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act as mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing a pharmaceutical business or successfully running a R&D company.  

Financial Plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statements.

Income Statement

An income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenue and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.

In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions including your sales projections. For example, will you manufacture a line of general sales products, or will you specialize in manufacturing controlled drugs? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.

Balance Sheets

Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your pharmaceutical company, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a lender writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.

Cash Flow Statement

Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and ensure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.

When creating your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a pharmaceutical company:

• Cost of equipment and supplies
• Payroll or salaries paid to staff
• Business insurance
• Other start-up expenses (if you’re a new business) like legal expenses, permits, computer software, and equipment

Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your facility blueprint or a list of products you manufacture.  

Writing a business plan for your pharmaceutical business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will understand the pharmaceutical company industry, your competition, and your customers. You will develop a marketing strategy and will understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful pharmaceutical company.  

Pharmaceutical Business Plan Template FAQs

What is the easiest way to complete my pharmaceutical business plan.

Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily write your pharmaceutical business plan.

How Do You Start a Pharmaceutical Business?

Starting a pharmaceutical business is easy with these 14 steps:

• Choose the Name for Your Pharmaceutical Business
• Create Your Pharmaceutical Business Plan
• Choose the Legal Structure for Your Pharmaceutical Business
• Secure Startup Funding for Your Pharmaceutical Business (If Needed)
• Secure a Location for Your Business
• Register Your Pharmaceutical Business with the IRS
• Open a Business Bank Account
• Get a Business Credit Card
• Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits
• Get Business Insurance for Your Pharmaceutical Business
• Buy or Lease the Right Pharmaceutical Business Equipment
• Develop Your Pharmaceutical Business Marketing Materials
• Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Pharmaceutical Business
• Open for Business

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Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success.   Click here to see how Growthink’s business plan writers can create your business plan for you.

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

/ Article

Building effective business development in pharma.

By  Mark Lubkeman ,  André Kronimus , and  Filip Hansen

At a time of rapidly evolving scientific breakthroughs and, coincidentally, of the expiration of many blockbuster drug patents, the key to innovation and revenue growth is pharmaceutical business development. While some innovation and new revenue can come from internal pipelines and assets, business development teams are under intense pressure at most companies to supplement internal efforts with external licensing agreements and M&A. Unfortunately, those teams are frequently unable to deliver the transactions needed for innovation and growth.

Often a major reason for this shortfall is that executive team members are not fully aligned on the role of business development in achieving the company’s strategic priorities. They may agree in theory that business development should pursue partnerships, ecosystems, and collaborations, but that consensus falls apart when it comes to making decisions about specific deals.

We have identified six success factors that enable more rapid and effective decision making, which, in turn, will lead to substantially enhanced business development performance.

Subscribe to our Biopharma E-Alert.

Biopharma m&a and licensing remain strong.

Biopharma M&A deal value more than doubled between 2017 and 2019, from $138 billion to $336 billion, and valuations reached all-time highs. Most of those deals involved midsized biotech companies, for which the average premium paid was close to 70%, with an average EV/sales multiple of nearly 8x. All in all, close to 60% of new therapeutic drugs in the last five years have been externally sourced.

The COVID-19 pandemic slowed biopharma M&A activity in 2020, especially in the first half of the year. But since the core drivers of deals remain intact—scientific breakthroughs, expiring patents, and an increasing focus on key therapeutic areas or on modalities such as cell and gene therapy—deal activity will continue to rebound. A recent example is AstraZeneca’s acquisition in late December of Alexion for $39 billion.

Moreover, biopharma companies can finance transactions cheaply with today’s very low interest rates. They also have significant financial resources to pursue business development. BCG’s ValueScience team estimates that the top 20 biopharma companies have more than $700 billion in cash, short-term investments, and additional debt capacity. But as a result, many companies are pursuing the same assets, driving up valuations and the risk of overpaying.

Six Success Factors for Pharma Business Development While we focus here on M&A, the six success factors we have identified will enable business development teams to create value through both M&A and licensing. (See Exhibit 1.)

1. Prioritize what business development needs to accomplish for the company. Executive team members often have differing views about how to prioritize business units, technology areas, and technology platforms and what types of deals to pursue (early- versus late-stage R&D deals, for example, or transformative versus tuck-in acquisitions). To ensure alignment, it’s critical that team members agree on how and where they want to create value. Will they use business development to generate near-term revenues or to build the pipeline for future innovation? Will they seek to maximize the core, expand into adjacent markets, or explore new frontiers? (See Exhibit 2.)

As part of this prioritization process, the executive team needs to regularly review and agree on how much revenue growth the current internal portfolio or pipeline will deliver. Only then can it determine the revenue gaps that business development needs to address in which specific therapeutic areas or modalities—and with what urgency. It’s astonishing how often management teams are misaligned on this simple setting of objectives, which often results in business development teams wasting time assessing opportunities that are fundamentally unattractive to the executive team and will never get approved. To avoid such situations, the team should ask itself two key questions about every transaction early on: What revenue gap will the transaction fill? And who on the executive committee will champion the transaction from start to finish? By forcing these decisions early, the team can avoid a lot of wasted time.

2. Build relationships with prospective targets. Executive teams should commit to building relationships with potential partners or acquisition targets for two or three years. Proactive sourcing, screening, and relationship building are far better for deal execution than simply showing up at the target’s headquarters with a banker and an offer. An established relationship will give a prospective buyer an edge over other bidders, perhaps even preempting the bidding process altogether. Such relationships can also accelerate due diligence.

Active engagement with potential targets over several years also gives companies a better grasp of the range of potential deals available. It might, for example, make a pharmaceutical company more likely to take small equity stakes in a number of promising biotechs, perhaps supporting Phase 1 trials with its own clinical and regulatory expertise.

3. Agree on how to assess value. Depending on one’s assumptions when valuing a target, the same transaction may seem spectacularly attractive or exceptionally unattractive. So teams need to agree about how they will value all aspects of each deal and then apply that valuation with discipline. Too often, companies end up redoing their analysis and engaging in repetitive decision making because they haven’t agreed on valuation approaches or metrics from the start.

One common valuation pitfall is to focus only on core asset value, that is, the value of the cash flow generated by current and future products in the market. Valuation models need a wider lens, encompassing multiple dimensions of value, including the following:

• Synergies. What is the value of cost, revenue, and capability synergies across the value chain—for example, in R&D, manufacturing, and sales?
• Platform Value. What is the value of the future products a technology platform might make possible?
• Strategic Value. What is the value of preempting a competitor from acquiring an asset, gaining access to a large proprietary data set, or being recognized as a leader in an emerging field?

Because these advantages are less tangible than core assets, large swings in valuation are possible depending on the underlying assumptions. We have found that companies with a clearly defined and endorsed valuation approach are able to use a common “language” in their deliberations, leading to better, faster decision making. These advantages are amplified when the company is highly transparent about the underlying assumptions and entertains a range of scenarios and associated probabilities.

4. Define integration issues early. Executive and business development teams are frequently so focused on due diligence and valuation that they don’t consider the integration process until after a term sheet has been signed. Integration issues should be considered at the outset, when assessing the deal’s attractiveness and viability, and in parallel with due diligence. Teams should ask such questions as: Will the acquired company be a distinct entity or be integrated into the acquiring company? What governance will be applied to the acquired assets? How will cost synergies factor into the valuation?

Knowing the answers to these questions early on is critical to realizing the full potential of the transaction. Our research shows that successful integration can drive 8% to 10% more value compared with the average transaction. Planning for that success right from the start is essential.

5. Enable agile business development teaming and governance. Even when a company has a clear vision for the transaction, it still needs an agile process and governance to execute the deal quickly and effectively. But because the business development process is highly cross-functional (and often involves many junior-level people), it can be unclear who has the authority to make decisions and who will provide the necessary analytical resources. In addition, preexisting governance committees (such as executive committees) often meet too infrequently to keep up with the fast pace of business development decision making.

To address these challenges, we recommend three best practices:

• Designate resources. Within each function, several senior staff members with business development experience and authority should be on call. This will help build continuity and organizational learning.
• Establish clear processes and responsibilities. All members of a business development project team should be aligned on processes, deliverables, and timelines. That should include who is responsible for what and who has what decision rights. For example, who in R&D will calculate the probability of success of a specific asset under review?
• Create nimble governance. A few members of key governance committees should meet more frequently than the entire group (perhaps even on a weekly basis, depending on deal volume) and have the authority to mobilize the entire committee within 24 or 48 hours if there’s an urgent issue to be addressed.

6. Design an organizational structure suited to strategic priorities. Because companies have different revenue gaps and objectives and use business development in different ways, there is no single “right” organizational structure. One company might focus on early-stage and another on late-stage acquisitions. One company might be looking for deals to strengthen the core business, another to build up new therapeutic areas. A company’s business development organization must be suited to its strategic purpose, whatever that may be. There are three main approaches (with various permutations) to consider:

• Centralize business development in one group. A central function maximizes scale, alignment of activities, and resource prioritization. This setup works well for companies looking to make relatively few late-stage or transformative acquisitions.
• Separate R&D and commercial transactions. Assessing an early-stage R&D acquisition requires a different mix of expertise than assessing a late-stage, commercial acquisition. When a company intends to pursue both types of transactions, it’s best to keep at least some of these due diligence activities separate. But such companies can still centralize certain functions—valuation modeling, for example—in order to maximize scale.
• Separate by business lines or therapeutic areas. It can be sensible to separate business development activities by business lines or therapeutic areas at different levels of maturity. This arrangement works well if a company has a mature business area looking for transformative deals and a smaller business unit looking for technology platform acquisitions. Here again, certain aspects of the business development process, such as valuation modeling, can be centralized for scale and efficiency.

Current market conditions present unique opportunities to tap into external innovation and drive revenue growth, but the inherently complex and cross-functional nature of business development makes it difficult for many pharmaceutical companies to execute effectively. As a result, these companies are not winning the transactions necessary for future success. We believe that the six success factors described above can significantly improve business development capabilities and are worth serious consideration by management teams.

Managing Director & Senior Partner

ABOUT BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP

Boston Consulting Group partners with leaders in business and society to tackle their most important challenges and capture their greatest opportunities. BCG was the pioneer in business strategy when it was founded in 1963. Today, we work closely with clients to embrace a transformational approach aimed at benefiting all stakeholders—empowering organizations to grow, build sustainable competitive advantage, and drive positive societal impact.

Our diverse, global teams bring deep industry and functional expertise and a range of perspectives that question the status quo and spark change. BCG delivers solutions through leading-edge management consulting, technology and design, and corporate and digital ventures. We work in a uniquely collaborative model across the firm and throughout all levels of the client organization, fueled by the goal of helping our clients thrive and enabling them to make the world a better place.

© Boston Consulting Group 2024. All rights reserved.

For information or permission to reprint, please contact BCG at [email protected] . To find the latest BCG content and register to receive e-alerts on this topic or others, please visit bcg.com . Follow Boston Consulting Group on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) .

What Is Next

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How To Write a Biotech Startup Business Plan: Checklist

By alex ryzhkov, resources on biotech startup consulting.

• Financial Model
• Business Plan
• Value Proposition
• One-Page Business Plan
• SWOT Analysis
• Business Model
• Marketing Plan

Welcome to our blog post on how to write a business plan for Biotech Startup Consulting! In the rapidly growing biotech industry, emerging companies face numerous challenges in navigating regulations, securing funding, and developing strategic plans for growth. In fact, the global biotechnology market is projected to reach a staggering $727.1 billion by 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 7.4% from 2019 to 2025. As the demand for breakthrough innovations and medical advancements increases, a well-crafted business plan becomes essential for success in this highly competitive landscape.

To ensure a solid foundation for your biotech startup consulting business, it is crucial to follow a systematic approach. This checklist will guide you through the essential steps to develop a comprehensive business plan that will enable you to provide specialized guidance and support to emerging biotechnology companies.

1. Identify your target market and client base. Understanding the specific needs and pain points of your potential clients will allow you to tailor your consulting services accordingly.

2. Conduct thorough market research and analysis. Gathering industry data, studying market trends, and assessing the competitive landscape will provide valuable insights and help you position your services effectively.

3. Define your unique value proposition and competitive advantage. Clearly articulate how your business stands out from competitors and what unique benefits you offer to your clients.

4. Identify potential funding sources. Determine the various funding options available to your clients, such as venture capital firms, government grants, or crowdfunding platforms, and develop strategies to help startups secure the necessary capital.

5. Assess regulatory requirements and industry compliance. Gain a comprehensive understanding of the complex regulatory landscape in the biotech industry to guide your clients through compliance and mitigate risks.

6. Develop a clear business model and revenue plan. Outline your sources of revenue, pricing strategies, and cost structures to ensure a sustainable financial model for your consulting business.

7. Define the organizational structure and team requirements. Determine the roles and expertise needed within your consulting firm to effectively serve your clients and establish a strong team.

8. Draft a marketing and sales strategy. Develop a comprehensive plan to promote your services, reach potential clients, and build long-term relationships to drive growth.

9. Conduct a feasibility study and assess potential risks and challenges. Evaluate the viability of your business concept, identify potential obstacles, and develop contingency plans to minimize risks.

By following these nine steps, you will be well-equipped to develop a business plan that positions your biotech startup consulting business for success. Stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts, where we will delve deeper into each of these steps, providing valuable insights and expert tips to help you navigate the challenging yet rewarding world of biotech consulting.

Identify Target Market And Client Base

Identifying the target market and client base is a crucial first step in creating a successful business plan for your biotech startup consulting firm. By understanding who your target audience is, you can tailor your services and messaging to meet their specific needs and challenges.

When identifying your target market, start by considering the types of biotech companies you want to work with. Are you focusing on startups in the pharmaceutical, medical device, or biologics sector? Are you targeting a specific geographic location or aiming for a global reach? It's essential to have a clear understanding of the industry niche you wish to serve.

Next, conduct thorough market research and analysis to gain insights into the current needs and pain points of your potential clients. This will help you determine the demand for your services and identify any gaps in the market that your consulting firm can fill.

• Engage with industry experts and attend relevant conferences and networking events to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by biotech startups in your target market.
• Utilize online resources such as industry reports, market studies, and databases to gather accurate and up-to-date information about the biotech industry trends and potential opportunities.

Once you have identified your target market, it's important to define your ideal client base. Consider the size, stage of development, and specific requirements of the startups you wish to work with. Are you targeting early-stage startups in need of guidance to secure funding or mature companies looking to optimize their operations? Understanding these parameters will help you tailor your consulting services to meet the exact needs of your clients.

By clearly identifying your target market and client base, you can develop a targeted marketing strategy, demonstrate your value proposition, and position your biotech startup consulting firm as the go-to resource for emerging companies in the industry.

Conduct Market Research and Analysis

Market research and analysis play a crucial role in developing a successful business plan for a biotech startup consulting firm. This step involves gathering and analyzing relevant data to gain insights into the target market and industry dynamics. By understanding the market landscape, trends, and competition, you can make informed decisions and develop strategies that set your business apart.

Here are essential steps to conduct effective market research and analysis:

• Identify your target market: Determine the specific segment of the biotech industry you will focus on, such as pharmaceuticals, genetic engineering, or medical devices. Understand the needs, challenges, and trends within your target market.
• Gather primary data: Conduct interviews, surveys, and focus groups with potential clients, industry experts, and stakeholders. Collecting firsthand data will provide valuable insights into market preferences, pain points, and opportunities.
• Collect secondary data: Utilize published reports, industry publications, trade associations, and government databases to gather relevant information about the biotech industry, competitor analysis, and market trends.
• Analyze data: Evaluate the collected data to identify patterns, trends, and market gaps. Look for opportunities where your business can offer unique solutions or services.
• Assess market size and growth potential: Determine the size of your target market, its growth rate, and future projections. This information will help you shape your business strategy and set realistic goals.

Market Research Tips:

• Stay updated: Regularly monitor industry news, journals, and conferences to stay informed about the latest advancements, regulatory changes, and emerging opportunities.
• Utilize online tools: Leverage market research tools and platforms that provide comprehensive data and analysis specific to the biotech industry. These tools can streamline your research process and provide accurate insights.
• Consider competitive analysis: Identify your direct and indirect competitors, understand their strengths, weaknesses, and market positioning. This information will help you differentiate your services and develop a compelling value proposition.
• Engage with industry experts: Establish relationships with industry experts, key opinion leaders, and potential clients to gain valuable insights and validate your business assumptions. Their input can help you refine your strategies and identify potential partnership opportunities.

Define Unique Value Proposition And Competitive Advantage

Defining a unique value proposition and competitive advantage is crucial for any biotech startup consulting business. This step helps you differentiate yourself from competitors and clearly communicate the value you provide to your clients. To define your unique value proposition and competitive advantage, consider the following:

• Identify your target audience: Understand the specific needs and pain points of your target market. This will enable you to tailor your services and solutions to meet their specific requirements.
• Highlight your expertise: Emphasize your team's deep industry knowledge, experience, and proven track record in the biotech sector. Communicate how your expertise and insights can provide valuable guidance and support to emerging biotech companies.
• Focus on specialized services: Identify niche areas within the biotech industry where you can offer specialized consulting services. This can range from regulatory expertise to intellectual property strategy or market access strategies. Highlight these specialized services to set yourself apart from general consulting firms.
• Showcase success stories: Share case studies or success stories that demonstrate the positive impact your consulting services have had on previous clients. Highlight tangible results, such as successful funding rounds or accelerated growth, to showcase your ability to deliver value.
• Conduct a competitive analysis to understand what other biotech consulting firms are offering and identify gaps or opportunities.
• Stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends and advancements to identify unique value propositions that align with emerging technologies or regulatory changes.
• Regularly seek feedback from clients to understand how your services have positively impacted their businesses and refine your unique value proposition accordingly.

Defining your unique value proposition and competitive advantage will not only attract potential clients but also differentiate your biotech startup consulting business in the highly competitive market. It will position you as an industry leader and go-to resource for emerging biotech companies seeking guidance and support in their growth journey.

Identify Potential Funding Sources

Identifying potential funding sources is a critical step in creating a successful business plan for a biotech startup consulting firm. Securing adequate funding is essential for supporting the growth and operations of the business, as well as the ability to provide valuable services to clients. Here are some steps to help you identify potential funding sources:

• Research and understand the funding landscape: Start by researching the various funding options available for biotech startups. This can include grants, venture capital firms, angel investors, crowdfunding platforms, and government programs. Understanding the requirements and expectations of each funding source will help you determine if they align with your business goals and objectives.
• Build a network: Networking is crucial in the biotech industry, as it allows you to connect with potential investors and funding organizations. Attend industry events, conferences, and seminars to meet key individuals who can provide valuable insights and introductions to potential funding sources. Additionally, leverage professional networks, online platforms, and industry associations to expand your reach and connect with relevant parties.
• Prepare a compelling pitch: A well-crafted pitch is essential to attracting potential funders. Clearly communicate your unique value proposition, the market opportunity, and how their investment will contribute to the growth and success of your biotech startup consulting firm. Tailor your pitch to the specific interests and criteria of each potential funding source, highlighting the aspects that align with their investment goals.
• Explore government grants and programs: Investigate government grants and programs that support biotech startups and consulting firms. Many governments offer funding opportunities specifically tailored to the biotech industry, aimed at fostering innovation and growth. Look into eligibility criteria, application processes, and timelines to ensure you can take full advantage of these resources.
• Research industry-specific investment funds and accelerators that focus on biotech startups. These organizations often have a deep understanding of the industry and can provide not only funding but also valuable mentorship and support.
• Consider alternative funding options such as strategic partnerships or collaborations with established biotech companies. These partnerships can provide not only financial support but also access to industry expertise, resources, and networks.
• Stay up to date with the latest funding trends and developments in the biotech industry. This knowledge will help you identify emerging funding sources and opportunities that may be a good fit for your biotech startup consulting firm.

Assess Regulatory Requirements And Industry Compliance

When starting a biotech startup consulting business, it is crucial to thoroughly assess the regulatory requirements and industry compliance that will apply to your clients. The biotech industry is heavily regulated, and non-compliance can lead to serious legal and financial consequences. Here are some key steps to consider:

• Identify Applicable Regulations: Begin by understanding the regulatory landscape of the biotech industry in your target market. Research and identify the specific regulations and guidelines that govern the operations and practices of biotechnology companies.
• Stay Updated: The regulatory environment is constantly evolving, so it is essential to stay updated on any changes or new regulations that may affect your clients. Regularly monitor industry news, attend conferences, and engage with regulatory authorities to ensure you have the most current information.
• Evaluate Compliance Requirements: Once you have identified the applicable regulations, thoroughly evaluate the compliance requirements. Assess how these requirements impact various aspects of your clients' operations, such as manufacturing, clinical trials, intellectual property, and data protection.
• Engage with Regulatory Authorities: Establish a good working relationship with regulatory authorities and agencies. This can involve seeking guidance, attending meetings, and participating in discussions to gain a deeper understanding of the regulators' expectations and requirements.
• Build a Compliance Framework: Develop a robust compliance framework for your clients. This framework should include policies, procedures, and internal controls to ensure adherence to regulatory requirements. Educate your clients on the importance of compliance and provide training to their teams.
• Risk Assessment: Conduct a comprehensive risk assessment to identify any potential compliance risks and gaps. This assessment should be ongoing and regularly updated to address emerging risks and ensure continuous compliance.
• Collaborate with legal experts or regulatory consultants who have expertise in the biotech industry to ensure comprehensive understanding and adherence to regulations.
• Network with industry peers and join professional associations to stay informed about regulatory updates and best practices.
• Establish strong relationships with third-party service providers, such as contract research organizations and manufacturing partners, who are experienced in regulatory compliance.
• Invest in technology solutions and software that can streamline compliance processes and assist with documentation and reporting.

Develop A Clear Business Model And Revenue Plan

Once you have identified your target market, conducted extensive market research, and defined your unique value proposition, it’s time to develop a clear business model and revenue plan for your biotech startup consulting business. This step is crucial for establishing a sustainable and profitable operation.

Here are some important considerations to keep in mind:

• Identify your revenue streams:
• Price your services appropriately:

Take into account factors such as your experience, expertise, and the value you offer to clients when determining your pricing strategy. Conducting market research and analyzing your competition can help you gauge the market rates for similar services. It’s important to strike a balance between charging a fair price and ensuring profitability.

• Consider alternative revenue models:

Think beyond traditional consulting services and explore additional revenue streams that align with your expertise. For example, you could develop specialized training programs or workshops, create proprietary software or tools specific to the biotech industry, or even explore partnerships and collaborations.

• Outline your cost structure:

Develop a comprehensive understanding of your cost structure, including both fixed and variable expenses. This will help you set pricing that covers operational costs while still allowing for a reasonable profit margin. Consider expenses such as office space, salaries, technology infrastructure, marketing, and ongoing professional development.

• Forecast and project growth:

Based on your market research and industry knowledge, create realistic financial projections for your business. This will help you track your progress and make strategic decisions. Consider factors such as anticipated client acquisition rates, revenue growth, and anticipated expenses. Be conservative yet realistic in your projections.

Having a clear business model and revenue plan will not only guide your day-to-day operations but also demonstrate your professionalism and reliability to potential clients and investors. It sets the foundation for a successful and sustainable biotech startup consulting business.

Define The Organizational Structure And Team Requirements

Once you have determined the target market and client base for your biotech startup consulting business, it is essential to define the organizational structure and team requirements. Having a well-defined structure and a skilled team in place is crucial for the success and smooth operation of your business.

First, identify the key roles and responsibilities that are required to effectively deliver your consulting services. Consider positions such as project managers, regulatory experts, financial analysts, business development professionals, and marketing specialists. Each role should have clearly defined tasks and responsibilities that align with your business goals and objectives.

Next, determine the reporting structure within your organization. Identify who will be responsible for overseeing different teams or departments and ensure clear lines of communication and accountability are established. This hierarchical structure will help streamline decision-making processes and foster efficient collaboration among team members.

In addition to the core team, you may also need to consider collaborating with external experts and advisors to supplement your in-house team's skills and knowledge. These external professionals can bring added value and expertise to specific projects or aspects of your business, helping you deliver the best possible services to your clients.

Assemble your team carefully by selecting individuals who not only possess the necessary technical skills but also share the same passion and dedication for the biotech industry. Look for candidates who have experience in the biotech sector or have a deep understanding of the unique challenges and opportunities it presents.

• Consider creating job descriptions for each role to clearly define the required skills, qualifications, and experience.
• Develop an effective recruitment and onboarding process to attract and retain top talent.
• Encourage cross-functional collaboration and knowledge-sharing within your team to foster innovation and a multidisciplinary approach.
• Regularly evaluate the performance of your team members and provide opportunities for professional development to ensure their continued growth and success.

Draft A Marketing And Sales Strategy

Creating a robust marketing and sales strategy is crucial for the success of a biotech startup consulting business. This step involves developing a comprehensive plan to attract and retain clients, effectively promote the services offered, and ultimately drive revenue growth. Here are some key considerations:

• Define target audience: Clearly identify the specific biotechnology companies that would benefit from your consulting services. Determine their needs, pain points, and preferences to tailor your marketing efforts accordingly.
• Create a compelling value proposition: Craft a concise and compelling statement that highlights the unique benefits and solutions your consulting services offer. Clearly communicate how your expertise can address the challenges faced by biotech startups.
• Utilize digital marketing: Leverage digital channels such as social media, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, and email campaigns to reach and engage with your target audience. Develop a strong online presence through a user-friendly website and regularly updated blog to establish credibility and thought leadership.
• Build strategic partnerships: Identify potential partners, such as biotechnology industry associations or established companies, to collaborate on marketing initiatives or cross-promotion. Partnering with organizations that share similar target audiences can help expand your reach.
• Offer informative content: Develop valuable content, such as industry reports, whitepapers, case studies, and webinars, to establish yourself as a trusted source of knowledge in the biotech startup consulting sector. Share this content through various channels to attract potential clients and demonstrate expertise.

Tips for drafting an effective marketing and sales strategy:

• Continuously monitor and adapt your marketing efforts based on data and analytics to optimize performance.
• Attend industry conferences and events to network with potential clients and stay updated on the latest trends and developments in the biotech industry.
• Offer complimentary consultations or workshops to showcase your expertise and build trust with potential clients.
• Establish a referral program to incentivize existing clients to refer your consulting services to other biotech startups.

A well-defined marketing and sales strategy will help your biotech startup consulting business gain visibility, attract clients, and differentiate itself in a highly competitive industry. By effectively promoting your services and demonstrating value to potential clients, you can position your business for long-term success and growth.

Conduct A Feasibility Study And Assess Potential Risks And Challenges

Once you have developed a clear business plan and identified the key elements of your biotech startup consulting business, it is crucial to conduct a feasibility study to assess the viability and potential risks of your venture. This study will help you determine if your business idea can withstand the challenges of the highly competitive biotech industry and ensure you are well-prepared to navigate any potential obstacles.

During the feasibility study, it is essential to analyze both internal and external factors that could impact the success of your business. This includes assessing the market demand for your services, evaluating the competitive landscape, and identifying any potential regulatory or legal challenges that may arise.

Here are some important considerations to include in your feasibility study:

• Market demand and potential: Research and analyze the target market to determine if there is a sufficient demand for your specialized consulting services. Identify potential clients and assess their willingness to pay for your expertise.
• Competitor analysis: Examine the competitive landscape to understand the strengths, weaknesses, and market positioning of other consulting firms operating in the biotech industry. Identify any gaps or opportunities you can leverage to gain a competitive advantage.
• Regulatory and legal requirements: Assess the complex regulatory landscape governing the biotech industry. Understand the legal requirements and compliance standards your business needs to adhere to, and evaluate potential challenges or barriers that may impact your operations.
• Financial considerations: Conduct a thorough financial analysis to determine if your business model is financially sustainable. Assess the initial investment required, including costs for infrastructure, technology, and hiring consultants, as well as ongoing operating costs.
• Risk assessment: Identify and evaluate potential risks and challenges associated with your business, both internal and external. This could include factors such as market volatility, changing regulatory policies, intellectual property protection, or unforeseen obstacles that may arise.

By conducting a comprehensive feasibility study and assessing potential risks and challenges, you will be well-equipped to make informed decisions and develop strategies to mitigate any threats to your biotech startup consulting business. Remember to regularly revisit and update your feasibility study as your business grows and evolves.

In conclusion, writing a business plan for biotech startup consulting requires careful consideration and thorough analysis of various factors. By following the nine steps outlined in this checklist, aspiring entrepreneurs can ensure they have a comprehensive and well-defined plan in place to guide their consulting business.

From identifying the target market and conducting market research to developing a clear business model and assessing potential risks, each step plays a crucial role in laying the foundation for a successful biotech startup consulting venture.

Furthermore, considering the unique challenges and regulatory requirements of the biotech industry is vital for establishing credibility and trust with potential clients. By offering specialized guidance and support, startup consultants can empower emerging biotechnology companies to navigate the complexities of the industry and accelerate their growth and commercialization.

Ultimately, biotech startup consulting plays a vital role in advancing breakthrough innovations and medical advancements by providing the necessary strategic guidance and support to emerging biotech companies. With a clear business plan and a dedicated team of experienced consultants, aspiring entrepreneurs can contribute to the future of the biotech industry and unlock the full potential of their consulting business.

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Sample Biotech Business Plan

Biotech company business plan sample.

Do you want to build a biotech company? I believe you are a scientist who wants to venture into starting his own business. Well, I guess starting a biotech company may just be best for you.

In this article you will learn the various steps you will need to take before starting a biotech company anywhere.

The biotech industry is one that is strictly regulated because of the high risks involved in the business. Basically, the biotech business is concerned with making use of living organisms and systems in developing new products.

The industry is one that is open to all creative scientists who are innovative and want to start their own business.

Starting a biotech company is no daunting task at all. Nevertheless, it will require you to be very creative, together with some dose of experience and training.

Are you ready to start a biotech company? Let us take the steps one at a time.

Carry out a thorough Research on the Industry

Before you can venture into starting a biotech company, you must understand the nature of the biotech business first. You must be able to know the recent developments in the biotech business before you even start your biotech company.

This business entails far more than being a scientist who produces products. This business is very dynamic, and as such, you must make sure you always keep abreast with the latest developments as regards to the development of your products.

When you carry out a diligent research about the biotech business, you stand to benefit a lot, far beyond your expectations. Researching will also help you make good decisions in your business.

Choose a Good Location

After you are fully sure you have enough information about the business, you can go ahead to start the legal processes, but first you must obtain a very good location for your biotech company.

You must be aware that there are various zoning regulations as regards to choosing the location for your biotech company. It is very critical that you contact a real estate agent to help you choose the best location for your biotech business.

Nonetheless, the location you choose has a very critical bearing on the success or failure thereof of your biotech company. The optimum location is one that is close to the source of raw materials, energy, target market, good road network, etc. However, because of zoning ordinances, you may not be afforded an optimum location for your biotech company.

Get the Legal Processes Done

Now is time to get the legal processes done properly. First, you must choose a name for your biotech business.

Choose a name and proceed to getting your biotech business registered with the relevant authorities in your area.

Also, you will have to obtain a business license and the necessary business permits before you can start up a biotech company in your area. It is wise to seek the services of an attorney to help you with this process.

Choose Where to Specialize On

This is where having done a proper and thorough research has a very grand role to play. If you have done your research well about the biotech business, you will realize that there are a number of niches you could specialize on.

Amongst the many niches are: medical industry / pharmacy (i.e. drugs production); agricultural industry; food industry; etc.

Having carried out a very thorough research on the biotech business, you will have come to a conclusion as to which biotech business niche you would love to focus on. Go ahead and make your decision, as long as you are sure it will guarantee you an advantage, and also make it easy for you to achieve your business goals.

Determine the Target Market

Having carried out a proper and thorough research, you should be able to determine who your prospective customers will be. Your good ideas are not enough, no matter how good they may be. You will need a market that will be in need of the products you are developing.

I know you must have realized that there are very good and exciting technologies that have no market demand; you must not let this happen in your biotech business.

Be very certain that there is a ready market demand for the products you are producing. Depending on the biotech niche you decide to choose, the following fields are some of the target markets of the biotech business: medicine and pharmacy; hybrid animal production; hybrid bird production, etc.

Also, you must make sure that your technologies must be protected by Intellectual Property (IP).

Organize a Strong Team

The strength of the team you build is very crucial to the success of your biotech company. You must make sure you organize a team where the individuals that make up the team possess complementary set of skills. Without a good and strong team, you may likely not be able to achieve your business goals.

Write a Business Plan

Go ahead and draft a business plan once you are done with the legal processes of your biotech company. In the course of writing a business plan for your biotech company, you will have to do an in-depth research on the industry.

You must truly know who your competitors in your chosen location are; you must also establish your business goal and set out business objectives to achieve your business goal. Also, you must write out the sales and marketing strategies you intend to utilize in promoting your biotech company.

Your biotech business plan must be made concise as much as possible, carrying the relevant information about your biotech company.

BIOTECH COMPANY BUSINESS PLAN EXAMPLE

Here is a sample business plan for starting a biotechnology company.

If you are certain that you want to start a biotech company, then you will need a business plan. You do not have to go far to get a business plan because that can be gotten on this page. Below is a biotech company business plan sample.

Read on and get the needed tips on how to write a business plan for a biotech company.

BUSINESS NAME: TT & P Biotech Company

Executive Summary

Our Products and Services

Vision Statement

Mission Statement

Business Structure

• Market Analysis

Sales and Marketing Strategy

• Financial Plan

Competitive Advantage

TT & P Biotechnology is a biotechnology company with its main facility located in Chicago. The facility we intend to make use of has been approved by the government. As a result of this, we are ready to run all types of productions that are associated with biotechnology companies. We at TT&P have come into the biotechnology business to make available the needed chemicals and services by humans through the use of cellular techniques and living organisms.

We are not just interested in profit making. We are also looking to ensure that our many esteemed customers get value for whatever money they spend.

TT & P Biotechnology Company is into the biotechnology business not just to make profits but to satisfy our customers. This, we will achieve by making use of standard facilities that have the approval of the government.

Some of the products that will be coming from our firm include

• Antibiotics
• Nutritional supplements
• Pesticide Resistant crops
• Pest resistant crops

Our vision is to set up a biotechnology firm that will produce products that will be used in and other parts of the United States.

At TT &P, our mission is to startup a top notch biotechnology firm that is capable of standing the test of time as well as competing with more established biotechnology firms.

We at TT& P are not content with just running a biotechnology firm. We want much more than that. We want to comfortably make it to the list of the top 50 biotechnological companies in the United States. Although all this might seem quite a task, we have plans in place to achieve this.

Some of these plans include hiring only individuals that are qualified to work at the highest level.

As far as hiring people is concerned, we are not just interested in hiring very skilled individuals. We are also on the lookout for other factors such as honesty, communication skills, the readiness to work , and the ability to meet very tight deadline.

Market Analysis Market Trends

In the last five years, there has been a rapid growth in the biotechnology industry. This has been powered by the demand for an improvement in agricultural and medical science. Although in the biotechnological field, lots of more established companies have made it a habit to swallow up smaller companies, their still abounds enough space for all to co-exist.

This is possible because of the need for biotechnological inputs by various fields. Examples of some of the fields that require biotechnological input are pharmacy, agriculture, medicines and food industries.

Target Market

We are not denying the fact that there is a high level of competition in the biotechnological business. However, what matters is the availability of ample customers. As a result of this, we are not targeting just a single industry.

Some of our target industries include:

• Medicine manufacturing firms
• Food production and processing firms
• Non-food processing industries

In order to make great sales in this business, we have decided o carry out the following

• Give discounts to our first set of clients
• Advertise our products frequently
• Take full advantage of networking

Financial Plan Source of Startup Capital

Biotech companies are very capital intensive. As a result of this, the bulk of the amount that will be needed to start this company will be sourced from the bank. We and all our partners have been able to come up with 20% of the amount for this business which amounts to $100,000. The remaining 80% which is about will be gotten from the bank.

The high level of competition in the biotechnology industry is quite obvious. At TT&P, we are prepared to survive in this very competitive environment.

This is a biotechnology business plan for TT&P Biotechnology Company. It is a firm owned by James Blacky and is based in Chicago.

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How to start a biotech company

The spirit of life science entrepreneurship is alive and well, with outstanding innovation hubs arising throughout the country and the world. Of note, many of these hubs flourish in close proximity to research universities. If universities are the engine for discovery, then startups are the vehicle for innovation. The creativity and drive of young researchers has the potential to explore novel or underserved applications and revolutionize industries.

INTRODUCTION

With the current exuberant energy surrounding biotech entrepreneurship, it is hard to believe that the industry is close to 50 years old. Much has changed since Herb Boyer, a professor at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and Bob Swanson, a young entrepreneur and aspiring venture capitalist, started Genentech in 1976, giving rise to the entire biotechnology industry. Back then, spinning out a company was limited to faculty members or experienced biotechnology professionals. Today, the democratization of life science entrepreneurship is allowing graduate students and postdocs to apply their scientific expertise toward the commercialization of newly developed technologies. Much like the path of a PhD project, the life of a science startup is not straightforward, but there are some common milestones from birth to growth and success ( Figure 1 ).

Life of a science startup.

THE BIRTH OF A STARTUP

In 2009, Dan Widmaier was a fifth-year graduate student at UCSF in the area of synthetic biology. His research was centered on engineering Salmonella to produce and secrete spider silk. Spider silk protein has incredible tensile strength, being stronger than steel and tougher than the body armor and tire material Kevlar. Despite these properties, the silk extraction process has remained incredibly labor-intensive for hundreds of years, limiting its use mostly to luxury textiles. Dan saw an opportunity to use synthetic biology to streamline the production and extraction of spider silk. He convinced his lab-mate and collaborator Ethan Mirsky and microfluidics expert David Breslauer, then a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, to join him in creating a new company, and Refactored Materials was born in 2009. The team successfully applied for small business grants from the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense with their proposal for producing spider silk from engineered microbes for ballistic armor and medical device applications. The company started their operations out of a single bench in an incubator space at UCSF called the QB3 Garage. Since then, Refactored Materials has successfully raised two venture rounds and is going after the textile market, a much larger market than originally anticipated that has seen little innovation since Lycra in the 1950s. In a few years, expect your athletic clothes to be more breathable, your socks to be softer, and your silk garments to be more durable, all thanks to three grad students with a vision to change the world, one spider dissection at a time.

TURNING RESEARCH INTO AN AGENT OF CHANGE

There is no question that having a meaningful impact on society is a powerful driver for scientists. It is not surprising that so many of the discoveries that have improved our society by increasing efficiency, adding capabilities, and bettering health have come from basic research done in universities. Universities, however, are not equipped to fully translate technologies out of the academic lab into the market, and a separate vehicle is needed to truly fulfill the promise of societal impact. Certain efficiencies in the industry environment are rare in academia. This has been the case since Genentech's inception and remains true today, a reminder for young scientists and future entrepreneurs that industry is the conduit for translational applications.

Startups are the vehicle needed for this translation for three key reasons. First, startups can address key technical risks and arrive at go/no-go decision points with relatively low amounts of capital and close to no overhead. Of importance, thinly capitalized startups are incentivized to listen to their investors and advisors and act swiftly, a feat that is easily said but more rarely achieved in the academy. If the startup wishes to survive, the achievement of milestones is not optional. Thus every experiment is tailored at answering go/no-go questions. Data must be not only publication worthy, but, more important, worth millions of investors' dollars and years of work. Second, founders must constantly assess risk, and a thorough study is essential to select the best market for a technology with several potential applications. The selective pressures for an early stage startup are extremely high when all the contributors to a viable business model are considered. These pressures enable a competitive marketplace for the best ideas. In such a marketplace, the startup structure allows for the ability to “pivot”—to remain nimble as the business model evolves. Startup founders can ensure that the technology has a viable market and create a validated plan to get there. Third, startups allow the correct alignment of incentives for their founders in terms of real-world impact and financial return. Students and postdocs are at a point in their careers at which they can dedicate the time to build this opportunity, something that faculty founders usually cannot do. Science startups often involve the original inventors behind the innovation—postdocs or graduate students who can easily address key proof-of-concept questions and develop the original technology. In most cases, it was at the hands of these young scientists that the invention materialized, so the sense of ownership is strong, and they remain very passionate and motivated to see their work address a real-world need (and reap the benefits of their effort).

ADVICE POINTS

At QB3, the California Institute of Quantitative Biosciences, we have helped more than 200 teams of scientists start companies through the Startup in a Box Program. Of these teams, 65 have successfully raised funds within the first 18 months of coming to QB3 for help. Two-thirds of the teams come directly from academia, with postdocs or graduate students at the helm. Following are some lessons for the life science entrepreneur-to-be.

Identify the unmet need that your technology addresses

The best way to articulate your solution and the value of your approach is to clearly state the problem you are solving. It is important to solve a problem you are passionate about, but there must be a large enough market for this technology; in other words, make sure that there are enough people who care about this problem enough to pay for your solution. Going after a small or niche market is acceptable, too, but your sources of capital will be fewer, and you will need to clearly articulate how your company can even recover its costs. When looking for your market, “don't be a hammer in search of a nail”; that is, be objective when identifying a need instead of trying to make your special interest into a market that might never exist.

Build a high-quality, well-rounded team

No startup was ever created by a single person. When starting a company, find one or more cofounder(s) with complementary skill sets. For example, if you are a cancer biologist and your idea is to develop new cancer therapeutics, find someone with pharmacology or drug development experience. If you have a clinical background and want to develop a medical device, find an engineer. In the case of Refactored Materials, Dan had the chemistry know-how, Ethan brought in the electrical engineering and operational expertise, and David was able to spin fibers thanks to his microfluidics background. Having a cofounder has multiple benefits, from expanding the company's skillset, to having a sounding board and accountability partner, to showing investors that you can work with others.

Having a well-rounded team with the best people you can recruit is a key asset for a startup. Faculty cofounders commonly remain involved as advisors or board members. If your team is made up of academics, it can be extremely helpful to find an experienced entrepreneur or executive with startup experience. A youthful team is great, but an experienced person will help anchor the team and give you credibility in front of investors. The same goes for qualified mentors and advisors: everyone in your team should be passionate about the company's vision and mission.

Understand incentives, and use them to drive your company to success

Once you have put your all-star team together, make sure the people involved are incentivized to do their best work for the company. At the very early stage, you will not have the funding needed to steal your colleagues away from a salary in industry, consulting, or any salary for that matter. Therefore you give equity or shares in your company tied to a vesting schedule, allowing your cofounders and early employees to participate in the ownership of your company. Initially these company shares will be worth very little, but the idea is to incentivize high-quality work that will drive up the value of the shares with a large potential up-side to the shareholders. Equity is also a vehicle to recruit an experienced entrepreneur, senior advisor, or consultant with unique expertise to help your company.

Get quality legal advice

A good lawyer will become a key advisor in the early stages of your company, so it is crucial to seek out quality legal advice in the field of your startup (a lawyer with experience in real estate can help little when it comes to a company inventing cardiovascular implants). Yes, it is pricey, but you really get what you pay for, so it is worth spending slightly more to set up the foundation of your company correctly. Many large law firms have special incentives for startups, often with fees deferred until a funding event happens. In terms of company formation, make sure you choose the company structure that fits your business model best. For example, if you will need to incentivize early advisors with equity and if you will need to seek private capital to bring your product to market, a C-corporation makes more sense. If you will be operating as a service and do not depend on raising investor dollars, you might consider a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC). A “quick and dirty” online site to register your company may seem appealing now, but try to avoid it—fixing all the problems later will cost more money, and it will create unnecessary paperwork and transactions.

Your intellectual property (IP) is also one of your most valuable assets, so make sure you secure it early and well. If you are filing your own patent, craft the claims so that your technology is protected as broadly as possible; if you are licensing IP (for example, from a university), do this early and seek your lawyer's counsel to make sure the license terms are acceptable.

Money, money, money—search under every rock

There are many sources of early-stage funding: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Science and Technology Translation Research (STTR) and other federal grants, angels, venture capital (VC), foundations, crowd funding, friends, and family. Explore them all, but be prepared to roll up your sleeves and write some grants. SBIRs and STTRs are grants by any federal government agency that has an annual budget larger than $100 million. Familiar sources such as the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, and Department of Energy participate and provide these types of grants. The process is involved and competitive, but many successful companies, including Refactored Materials, started on the backs of these grants. Most VCs and angels have moved farther down the pipeline to where the technology has been de-risked, so government grants are certainly worth your time and effort. As an example, one-third of Startup in a Box graduates started operations on the back of SBIRs.

Finally, leave no rock unturned. It is always helpful to start building relationships with your potential future investors to understand what is needed for a “yes” later on and ask for advice before asking for money (the old adage, “if you want money, ask for advice,” is certainly true in the early-stage investment world).

Respect your investors

Research your investors before meeting with them. Find out what their investment interests are and in which space they usually participate. This will help you spin your story appropriately in terms of specific application (if you have several possible ones), amount to ask for (some large investors cannot give you seed money), and your use of the funds.

Sooner or later, you will run into the rumor that you should not talk science with investors. Know that this is just a myth; sophisticated life science investors will want to understand the technology into which they are putting their cash. In the words of engineer and statistician William Edwards Deming, “In God we trust, all others must bring data.”

Your investors will know more about the market than you will. This means that you do not need to dwell on the point that cancer is an important problem. Listen to your investors' advice even before they become your investors. Their insight can help you identify opportunities and refine your strategic thinking.

Be unfocused at the beginning, but learn to identify opportunities

This advice applies to technologies with more than one application, such as platform technologies; in such situations, it might be difficult to pick which application or market to pursue first. It is useful to think of having a strategy that includes an earlier or easier path to revenue. Large markets may be alluring as a first battlefield, but they are often plagued with regulatory and market risks. Find out whether there is a better route to establish your proof of concept, even if it is in a smaller market. Having a direct path to market will allow you to move quicker on fewer funds; this will make it easier to tackle the larger and more challenging market later on. Refactored Materials realized that ballistic armor and medical devices would be challenging markets to crack, and they received much interest from the textile industry. The door is open to come back to the other applications in the future, but the silk textile market is primed for disruption.

Identify your white-hot risk, and use your time wisely

There are many risks in the way of taking a scientific technology to market: technical/scientific risk, regulatory risk, market risk. Higher risk in any of these areas correlates directly with the difficulty of getting money (since the uncertainty of return on investment for investors is higher). Convincing investors to accept these risks strongly affects early stage companies, as they have the largest number of unknowns. Your goal as an entrepreneur is to focus on answering the questions that will help you address and decrease those risks. Understand what the major risks are that stand between you and getting to market, and focus your time on them.

Test and build your business model—no, you do not need a business person—yes, you can use a scientific approach, too

As a startup, one of your most important tasks will be to discover your business model, that is, how your company fits into the market. What is your value proposition? Who are your customers and partners? Do you understand how your product fits into the entire process or patient care procedure? If you are developing a diagnostic for a disease that has no current therapy, why will people be inclined to use (and pay for) your product? You might have answers to all these questions, but at the moment they are really just hypotheses. The best way to validate these and develop your business model is to talk to relevant partners directly in a process developed by Steve Blank and called “customer discovery” ( Blank and Dorf, 2012 ). The founders are the best people to do this validation, since they have a deep understanding of the technology and can make changes to the model (or pivot) if necessary. So, in Blank's words, “Get out of the building!”

Money is the lifeline of a startup, and you will never have enough. You must use it wisely when you have it, and take it whenever you can. Make a budget and prioritize to ensure that your resources are going toward your key activities, and follow this plan with superb execution: in other words, be a lean startup . For example, you do not need to hire a full-time business person from the beginning; instead find someone who is willing to work with your company as an advisor or interim CEO in exchange for equity and reduced (or no) pay. If they believe in your company, they will be incentivized to help the company grow.

When being lean, you often need to find a middle ground that allows you to focus on your core skills. Trying to save some money by attempting to cram “Accounting 101” might not be a wise use of your time. Conversely, you do not need to hire a full-time accountant; outsource the company's accounting work, and pay by the hour or service.

Tell a story without giving away your secrets

An idea alone is not enough to make a company; you need execution and feedback from others. You will need to learn how to talk about your idea without revealing the “secret sauce” with investors and potential partners: in fancy terms, this is called having a nonconfidential discussion. While you are in the process of filing a patent to protect your IP, it is useful to learn how to describe the problem you are solving and your approach without revealing confidential details. Being able to describe your idea in nonconfidential terms will also allow you to avoid having to ask for a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) when you have an introductory discussion with a potential partner. Oh, and whatever you do, don't ask VCs for an NDA for an initial pitch: they will not sign them, and it makes you seem naive.

Inform yourself

Staying informed is the key to success: talk to entrepreneurs in the field, and find resources at your institution (career office, technology transfer office, entrepreneurship groups) that can help you learn about entrepreneurship and connect with alumni who have started their company or joined a startup. Reach out to faculty who have founded companies, and try to get connected with the entrepreneurs that drove their company.

Do not give up, and get ready for the best roller coaster ride!

Despite the plethora of (at times daunting) things to think about, I have not yet met a single entrepreneur who regrets starting a company. There will be ups and downs, much as in academic science, but as with any goal worth pursuing, it will all be worth it. In the case of Refactored Materials, it will be revolutionizing a centuries-old industry by enabling spider silk production for multiple applications at a large scale and in an environmentally conscious way.

Acknowledgments

I acknowledge Douglas Crawford, Regis Kelly, Richard Yu, and Filip Ilievski for constructive discussions and thoughtful feedback on this Perspective.

Abbreviations used:

DOI:10.1091/mbc.E14-06-1162

• Blank S, Dorf B. The Startup Owner's Manual: The Step by Step Guide for Building a Great Company. Pescadero, CA: K&S Ranch Press; 2012. [ Google Scholar ]

Everything You Need to Know About Biotech Business Models

What’s my business model? Who do I partner with? How do I scale up? These are typical strategic questions a young biotech will regularly face.

The business model of a biotech company can determine its long-term trajectory to success. In this article, we’ll focus on a typical ‘platform’ biotech company in the biopharma sector whose intellectual property can be applied to a wide range of R&D programs.

These principles apply to a range of technologies including protein therapeutics, targeted drug delivery, computational drug discovery, gene therapy, RNA therapeutics, and stem cells , as well as platforms that unlock new insights into disease pathophysiology or novel drug targets.

Pure Play Models

Broadly speaking, a founder could adopt any one of these three pure play business models:

• Technology partnering: licensing your platform and providing related services to a biopharma company, which in turn uses your help to create, develop, and commercialize pharmaceutical products.
• Asset creation and out-licensing: using your platform to create a pipeline of proprietary assets, be it candidate drugs in the case of therapeutics or prototype formulations in the case of drug delivery. Once there is scientific proof-of-concept for an asset, it can be licensed to a biopharma company, which in turn develops it into a product for regulatory approval and subsequent marketing.
• Product development and commercialization: creating your own pharmaceutical assets and taking care of the whole development process until commercialization.

When adopting either the second or third approach, there is always the option to conduct a joint effort with a large biopharma, small biotech, or academic partner on a project-by-project basis. While these are the three key business models in biotech, in practice many established companies end up operating with a hybrid of all the above approaches.

Technology partnering

Once your technology has evolved sufficiently to reliably contribute to pharmaceutical R&D projects, you can generate immediate and significant income by licensing your platform and providing related services to the projects of better-funded biopharma companies. If you have limited financial resources or a low-risk appetite, this is your best option for getting started.

This is also the fastest route to validating your platform with both the investor and biopharma communities; an initial technology partnering deal with a well-known biopharma early in your company’s life will immeasurably enhance your credibility and bargaining power. An example is Mogrify, a UK-based startup developing stem cell technology. Just about a year after its seed round in 2019, the company signed a collaboration and exclusive licensing deal with Sangamo Therapeutics.

If you follow the model of technology partnering, your partner absorbs all the financial risk — the upfront licensing fee, fee-for-service revenue, and near-term preclinical milestone payments are earned irrespective of whether the project eventually results in an approved pharmaceutical product. While your partner will own any pharmaceutical assets and marketing authorizations that emerge from the project, you can typically earn small single-digit royalties on future sales of these products.

Asset creation and out-licensing

If you invest your own funds upfront to create proprietary pharmaceutical assets, you can then issue exclusive licenses to larger biopharma companies. The latter then becomes fully responsible for completing late-stage clinical trials, manufacturing scaleup, obtaining regulatory approval, and commercialization. A good example is Numab, a Swiss company that earlier this year, signed its second licensing deal with Japanese firm Ono Pharmaceutical, giving the company exclusive access to a cancer antibody treatment currently in development.

A key advantage of out-licensing, compared to technology partnering, is that the return on investment is higher if successful. The upfront fee and milestone payments are higher, and these deals often involve significant double-digit royalties on future product sales.

With appropriately negotiated deal terms, the upfront fee alone can recover most of your initial cash outlay for the asset, and the milestone payments can ensure a small positive return even if the subsequent commercial performance is not to expectations. Furthermore, this business model lets you leverage your partner’s late-stage development and commercial expertise, while transferring the cost and risk for these much more expensive stages to the partner.

In situations where your company is facing other competing technologies, creating your own pharmaceutical assets may be essential to differentiate yourself in a crowded arena. For example, in the area of targeted drug delivery, you might apply your technology to an off-patent active pharmaceutical ingredient, such as ibuprofen, to demonstrate superior performance compared to existing medicines. While this scenario generates a lower standalone financial return compared to novel applications, you may need successful projects of this type to support fundraising and attract more lucrative partnering opportunities on novel applications.

On the downside, this path takes more time, costs more money, and exposes you to a greater risk of financial loss compared to technology partnering. This model also requires significant expertise in disease biology and pharmacological screening. These can be obtained through in-house investment, external contract research organizations, or company acquistions.

An alternative option is to collaborate with another biotech or pharma company that has complementary capabilities and shares the cost and risk. For example, the UK-based biotechs Kymab and Heptares are collaborating to co-discover new cancer therapeutics using their complementary technologies.

Product development and commercialization

If you choose to develop a pharmaceutical asset on your own, you retain full ownership and prevent handing it over to another party. This business model requires either substantial investor backing or a well-established revenue stream, often coming from a sizeable portfolio of historical technology partnering and asset out-licensing deals.

The total financial return of this route is hugely greater if successful. Of course, the financial burden and risk exposure is also bigger. And even some well-established companies may lack the necessary expertise for late-stage clinical development, manufacturing scale-up, regulatory approval, payer reimbursement negotiations, commercial brand management and sales promotion. Most biotechs taking this approach mitigate these gaps with strategic alliances — for example, the one between the Belgian biotech Galapagos and big pharma Gilead to co-develop and co-promote the antiinflammatory drug filgotinib.

Hybrid approaches

Most young biotechs start with either the technology partnering or the asset creation and out-licensing approach. The former generates revenue faster with lower financial risk. With higher investor funding and a greater risk appetite, the latter generates a much better return if successful. In addition, this second option might be essential in a very competitive situation where you initially have to demonstrate technological superiority with your own pharmaceutical assets.

An increasing number of research-stage companies operate a hybrid business model that combines both these two approaches. For example, the US-Israeli company Intec Pharma offers technological partnerships around its drug delivery platform while in parallel developing its own pharmaceutical assets by applying the technological platform to established medicines.

Once you become more established, successful, and well-funded, you might want to gradually transition over time to the product development and commercialization model, as giants such as Genmab in Denmark and MorphoSys in Germany have done.

How to Start a Biotech Business

By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero

Home » Business ideas » Technology Industry » Biotech Business

Do you want to start a biotech company? If YES, here is a complete guide to starting a biotech business with NO money and no experience plus a   sample biotech company business plan template.

Do you know that irrespective of the career you belong to, you could still become your own boss? The reality is that there are several business opportunities available in your field of study/training. If you are a scientist and you intend starting your own business, one of the many businesses you can successfully start is a biotech company; it is an industry that is still pretty much green and open to creative scientists cum investors.

Before we forge ahead, it is important to clearly state that starting a biotech company requires extensive training, experience, creativity, reasonable startup capital, license and detailed business plan.

The truth is that you can’t just wake up and launch your own biotech company in the united states; you must follow establish protocols. This industry is highly regulated because of the potential risks involved; it is all about making use of living organisms and system to develop new products.

There are several fields that need the input of biotech companies. Fields like medicine and pharmacy, agriculture (hybrid food production, hybrid bird production and hybrid animal production) and non-food industries (used in the production of biodegradable plastics and bio – fuels et al).

Although some people still have their reservations when it comes to the use biotechnology in agriculture, but the fact remains that it has contributed in no small measure to the increase and ease of cultivating crops and rearing of birds and animals.

Much more than being a scientist, the first step you are expected to take if you intend starting your own biotech company is to spend time researching the industry; a detailed research must be conducted if you want to successfully launch your own biotech company.

The truth is that you stand to gain a lot when you spend time researching; you will be exposed to information that will help you make life changing business decisions.

One thing about science oriented businesses is that you must keep tabs with the trend or you will end up producing obsolete products. Below is an article that will give you the needed guide to launching your biotech company in the United States and perhaps in any part of the world.

Steps to Starting a Biotech Business

1. understand the industry.

Companies that operate in the Biotechnology industry primarily make use of living organisms or molecular and cellular techniques to provide chemicals, food and services that meet human needs. It is important to state that the Biotechnology industry does not include companies that are involved in developing small-molecule pharmaceuticals, performing contract research or manufacturing biological equipment.

A close study of the Biotechnology industry shows that the industry is growing rapidly, with revenue increasing over the last five years driven by rising use of ethanol, demand for improved crop yields and the increasing medical needs of an aging population.

Even though the industry has grown, a consolidation trend has emerged as large pharmaceutical companies have increasingly targeted industry firms for acquisition, to expand their product portfolios ahead of impending patent expirations.

Sustained spending on research and development, including by the federal government, will benefit the industry going forward, driving growth in revenue generation and of course profit.

The Biotechnology Industry is indeed a thriving sector of the economy of countries like Israel, Japan, India, China, united kingdom, Germany and the United States of America. Statistics has it that in the United States alone, the industry generates well over $109 billion annually from more than 2,230 registered and licensed biotechnology companies scattered all around the United States of America.

The industry is responsible for the employment of over 218,610 people. Experts project the industry to grow at a 1.8 percent annual rate from 2011 to 2016. AbbVie, Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Monsanto and Gilead have the lion shares of the available market in the Biotechnology industry in the United States of America.

A recent report published by IBISWORLD shows that in the Biotechnology industry’s short history, its diversity of product offerings, markets, company sizes and funding sources have largely buffered it against major volatility from market fluctuations.

The report further stated that high labor costs and the need for significant upfront investment in research and development (R&D) render the industry somewhat vulnerable to declines in venture capital and government funding. In the years following the recession, cutbacks across these funding sources caused industry revenue to fall.

However, growth boomed in 2015 as companies began to experience returns on their research, which can take years to develop into fully approved products. Capital markets have recovered from the recession, moderately improving the availability of industry investment capital.

Some of the factors and incentives that encourage aspiring entrepreneurs to venture into starting a biotech company is the fact that the market for the various products produced by biotech companies is pretty huge and not seasonal.

This makes it easier for qualified entrepreneurs who are interested in the business to come into the industry at any time they desire; the entry barriers are quite high, but that does not on in anyway stop any serious – minded entrepreneur from starting the business.

The bottom line is that the Biotechnology industry is still very much open for new entrants; the competition within the industry is not as stiff as similar industries. If your product is good, it can gain a fair share of the available market in any country or region you intend launching the business.

2. Conduct Market Research and Feasibility Studies

• Demographics and Psychographics

People who make use of products produced by biotech companies cut across several industries hence the demographic composition of a biotech company is all encompassing especially when they are also into the production of loads of products.

So, if you are thinking of starting a biotech company, then you should make target demographics all encompassing. It should include medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, hybrid food processing and production companies, hybrid crop cultivators, hybrid animal breeders, hybrid bird/poultry farmers and non – food industries amongst others.

3. Decide Which Niche to Concentrate On

There are several niche ideas (areas) you can specialize in as a biotech company owner or you can choose to be involved in all the aspects of biotechnology. You can choose to concentrate on the medical industry/pharmacy (drug production), you can choose the Agric industry and you can decide to go into the food industry.

The truth is that if you do your research and market survey, you will be well guided on the industry and products to produce. Whatever decision you make, ensure that it is a decision that will give your business advantage in the marketplace.

However, here are some of the niche ideas you can major in if you choose to run a specialized biotech company;

• DNA coding, mapping and sequencing
• Processing biotechnologies
• Subcellular organisms engineering
• Cell and tissue culture engineering
• Protein sequencing, synthesis and engineering
• Human health technologies
• Animal health, marine and terrestrial microbial technologies
• Environmental remediation and natural resource recovery
• Agriculture and aquaculture technologies
• Industrial technologies

The Level of Competition in the Industry

That biotech business is considered in many quarters to be evolving and hence a Green business, does not rule out the fact that there are competitions in the biotech industry. The truth is that there is hardly any industry or line of business anywhere in the world where there is no competition; as a matter of fact, it is competition that brings innovation in the business world.

If you are looking towards starting a biotech company, then you should brace up for competition in the industry as you are expected to compete with both small and large corporations in the Biotechnology industry. This is why most biotech companies engage in continuous researching in order to produce safe products that will be accepted by the general public.

No doubt, the fact that there are growing competitions in the Biotechnology industry does not in any way hamper the performance of new entrants as most of them know how to recreate and re – strategize to reach out or attract more customers even if it is just cottage companies and farmers in their immediate community.

4. Know Your Major Competitors in the Industry

It is the norm that in every industry, there are always brands that perform better or are better regarded by customers and the general public than others.

Some of these brands are those that have been in the industry for a long time, while others are best known for how they conduct their businesses and the results they have achieved over the years. These are some of the leading biotech companies in the United States of America and in the globe;

• AbbVie Biotech Company
• Genentech Inc.
• Monsanto Biotech Co.
• Gilead Biotech Company
• Novozymes North America Inc.
• Neurotech Inc.
• Syros Pharmaceuticals
• Amyris Inc.
• Lonza Biologics Inc
• Abbott Diagnostics Division
• Canon U.S. Life Sciences, Inc.
• Nitto Denko Avecia Inc.
• QLT USA Inc
• Santa Cruz Biotechnology Inc
• Codexis Inc.
• Cosmo Bio USA, Inc.
• Epeius Biotechnologies Corporation

Economic Analysis

The fact that the entry barrier for the Biotechnology industry is high means that it is a business that must not be started without following due diligence, it is a business that requires thorough economic and cost analysis – feasibility studies and market survey, if you are looking towards making profits in the industry.

Part of what you need to focus on in this line of business is how to build a standard biotechnology/lab and production plant, gain robust distribution networks, secure the required business license and permits, branding and of course how to maintain your machinery and equipment and to take care of your overhead before your business breaks even. Other cost that should be considered during planning and budgeting are supply of chemicals, packaging materials, maintenance costs et al.

In other to play safe with your investment, it is important that you hire the services of business consultants cum competent hands-on-the job economists to help you carry out thorough economic and cost analysis before committing your resources into the business even if you intend launching a small scale and standard biotech company.

5. Decide Whether to Buy a Franchise or Start from Scratch

If you are looking towards starting a biotech company, then you should make plans to start from the very scratch. This is because from available research, you can hardly get the franchise of a biotech company to buy; it appears not to be available.

Besides, the fact that you can start the business in any capacity means that it is a business that is open to qualified and experienced entrepreneurs with different financial capacities. Please note that most of the big and successful biotech companies in the United States and other parts of the world started from the scratch and they were able to build a solid business brand.

It takes dedication, hard work and determination to achieve business success and of course you can build your own biotech company to become a successful brand with your distribution network spread throughout the length and breadth of the United States of America.

6. Know the Possible Threats and Challenges You Will Face

If you decide to go into biotech business today, one of the major challenges you are likely going to face is the presence of well – established brands in the biotechnology industry both in the United States of America and from other parts of the world.

The only way to avoid this challenge is to create your own market (distribution network). Some other challenges and threats that you are likely going to face is the partial acceptance of biotechnology products and unfavorable government policies .

It is a fact that partial acceptance of products and unfavorable government policies can hamper the growth of your biotechnology company. There is nothing you can do as regards these threats and challenges other than to stay positive that things will work well for you.

7. Choose the Most Suitable Legal Entity (LLC, C Corp, S Corp)

It is important to clearly establish that if you have plans to launch any form of business, most especially a biotechnology business, the legal entity you choose will go a long way to determine how big the business can grow.

You can either choose a general partnership or a limited liability company for a biotech business. Ordinarily, general partnership should have been the ideal business structure for a small scale biotech business especially if you are just starting out with a moderate startup capital in a small neighborhood and just into production specific biotech products.

But if your intention is to grow the business, produce loads of biotechnology products and have distribution networks spread across the United States of America and other countries of the world, then choosing general partnership might not be appropriate for you. Limited Liability Company, LLC will cut it for you.

There are loads of advantages when you choose Limited Liability Company for your biotech company. Setting up an LLC protects you from personal liability.

If anything goes wrong in the business, it is only the money that you invested into the limited liability company that will be at risk. Limited liability companies are simpler and more flexible to operate and you don’t need a board of directors, shareholder meetings and other managerial formalities.

Here are some of the factors you should consider before choosing a legal entity for your biotech business; limitation of personal liability, ease of transferability, admission of new owners and investors’ expectation and of course taxes.

If you take your time to critically study the various legal entities to use for your biotech business with the ability to export your products and open chains of distribution networks all across the United States of America and other countries of the world, you will agree that limited liability company; an LLC is most suitable.

You can start this type of business as limited liability company (LLC) and in future convert it to a ‘C’ corporation or an ‘S’ corporation especially when you have the plans of going public.

The truth is that upgrading to a ‘C’ corporation or ‘S’ corporation will give you the opportunity to grow your biotech business so as to compete with major players in the industry; you will be able to generate capital from venture capital firms, you will enjoy separate tax structure, and you can easily transfer ownership of the company; you will enjoy flexibility in ownership and in your management structures.

8. Choose a Catchy Business Name

In the business world, when it comes to choosing a name for your business, you should be creative because whatever name you choose for your business will go a long way to create a perception of what the business represents.

Usually it is the norm for people to follow the trend in the industry they intend operating from when naming their business. So, if you are considering starting your own biotech company, here are some catchy names that you can choose from;

• Fritz Lackey® Biotech Company, LLC
• Travis Brown and Co® Biotech Company, LLC
• T Y Gusto Group® Biotech Company, Inc.
• Young Brains® Biotech Company, Inc.
• Charles Bronwyn and Sons® Biotech Company, Inc.
• Arizona Connect™ Biotech Company, Inc.
• Scientist Minds© Biotech Company, Inc.
• Bennie Polestar® Biotechnology, LLC
• Kingston DeMint Group© Biotech Company, Inc.
• Outer Space© Biotech Company, Inc.

9. Discuss with an Agent to Know the Best Insurance Policies for You

It is a known fact that in the United States and in most countries of the world, you can’t operate a business without having some of the basic insurance policy covers that are required by the industry you want to operate from. So, it is important to create a budget for insurance and perhaps consult an insurance broker to guide you in choosing the best and most appropriate insurance policies for your biotech company.

Here are some of the basic insurance covers that you should consider purchasing if you want to start your own biotech company in the United States of America;

• General insurance
• Health/Medical insurance
• Risk Insurance
• Liability insurance
• Building Insurance
• Workers Compensation
• Overhead expense disability insurance
• Business owner’s policy group insurance

10. Protect your Intellectual Property With Trademark, Copyrights, Patents

If you are considering starting your own biotech company, you are mandated to file for intellectual property protection/trademark. This is so because the nature of the business makes it impossible for you to successful run it without having any cause to challenge anybody in court for illegally making use of your company’s intellectual properties.

Besides biotechnology products is the brainchild of the inventor/group and no inventor would want his or her products to be used by people who intend making profits off their labor without duly compensating them.

So, if you want to protect your inventions (biotech products) your company’s logo and other documents or software that are unique to you or even jingles and media production concepts, then you should go ahead to file for intellectual property protection.

11. Get the Necessary Professional Certification

Apart from the results you get as it relates to producing effective, safe and well – accepted biotech products, professional certification is one of the main reasons why some biotech companies stand out. If you want to make an impact in the biotechnology industry, the you and your team mates should work towards acquiring all the needed certifications in your area of specialization.

You are strongly encouraged to pursue professional certifications; it will go a long way to show your commitment towards the business.

Certification validates your competency and shows that you are highly skilled, committed to your career and up-to-date in the market. These are some of the certifications you can work towards achieving if you want to run your own biotech company;

• Chemical Handler’s Certificate
• Biotechnology Management Certificate
• Biotech Project Management Specialized Certificate
• Degree or Diploma in Chemistry, or Microbiology or Biochemistry and related courses

Please note that you cannot successfully run a biotech company in the United States and in any country of the world without acquiring professional certifications.

12. Get the Necessary Legal Documents You Need to Operate

You are not expected to operate a biotech company without registering the business with the government of your country and obtaining the required legal documents. Once you are caught operating this type of business illegally, you are likely going to end up in jail.

So, it is important to approach the corporate affairs department of your country to incorporate your biotech company and make inquiries of the legal documents you would need to operate freely. You can engage the services of an attorney to help you with the process.

Once you are done with incorporating your company, you can then apply for both federal and state license and permit. The truth is that the industry is highly regulated and as such due process must be followed if you want to run your own biotech company.

Here are some of the basic legal documents that you are expected to have in place if you want to legally run your own biotech business in the United States of America;

• Business and liability insurance
• Tax Payer’s ID
• Fire certificate
• Chemical Handler Certificate
• Certificate of Incorporation
• Business License
• Business Plan
• Non-disclosure Agreement
• Employment Agreement (offer letters)
• Employee’s Handbook
• Operating Agreement for LLCs
• Insurance Policy
• Online Terms of Use
• Online Privacy Policy Document (basically for online payment portal)
• Company Bylaws
• Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
• Building License
• Franchise or Trademark License (optional)

13. Raise the Needed Startup Capital

Starting a biotech company is capital intensive and as such you must make plans to raise your startup capital. If you have a good business plan, it will make it easier for you to raise your seed capital from the bank and angel investors. One good thing about biotech companies is that it attracts grants from the federal governments of most countries, crowd funding and international foundations.

So, ensure that you explore all the available means to raise your seed capital to start your biotech company. It can be challenging though, but keep at it until you get the amount required to successfully setup your biotech company. Here are some of the options you can explore when sourcing for startup capital for your biotech company;

• Raising money from personal savings and sale of personal stocks and properties
• Raising money from investors and business partners
• Sell of shares to interested investors
• Applying for Loan from your Bank
• Pitching your business idea and applying for business grants and seed funding from donor organizations and angel investors
• Source for soft loans from your family members and your friends

14. Choose a Suitable Location for your Business

In the United States and in all countries of the world, there are zoning laws guiding the location of biotech companies and that is why it is important to talk to a qualified real estate agent before choosing a location for your biotech company. In most countries, you are not expected to build a biotech company in a residential area.

Despite the fact that biotech products are used by households, farmers and a host of companies in various industries, it is important to choose a location that will give you economy of scales; a location that will give you leverage to favorably compete in the industry as a new entrant and also make reasonable profits.

Before choosing a location for your biotech company, ensure that you first conduct a thorough feasibility studies and market survey.

The possibility of you coming across similar business that just closed shop in the location you want to open yours can’t be ruled out. This is why it is very important to gather as much facts and figures before choosing a location for your company.

15. Hire Employees for your Technical and Manpower Needs

If you are considering starting a biotech company, then you should make plans to build a standard biotechnology lab and production plant.

So, you are expected to have basic biology lab equipment and tools that are used on daily basis such as microscopes, test tubes, beakers, Bunsen burner, Densitometers, DNA Sequencers, DNA Synthesizers, Hot Plate, Micropipette, Autoclave, Incubator, Compound Light Microscope, Graduated Cylinder, and Electronic Balance/Digital Scale et al.

Even though you can get fairly used of the above listed equipment and machines, but it is advisable to go for new and latest machines and equipment that can serve you for a long time especially if you have the required finance to make the purchase.

Even if you don’t have the required amount, you can enter into an agreement with the suppliers of such machines and equipment and spread the payment over a period of time.

As regards acquiring a facility, if you have the finance, it is to your advantage to acquire a property or lease a facility to be used for your biotech lab; it usually gives you the freedom to design the facility the way you want to it to be and install safety gadgets as you so desire. But if you are low on cash, then you don’t have any option other than to rent a facility.

When it comes to creating a workforce structure for a standard biotech company, then you should look towards getting qualified and competent people to fill the following roles; Chief Executive Officer (Owner), Senior Research Fellow/Biotech Scientist, Plant Manager, Quality Control Officer, Human Resources and Admin Manage, Merchandize Manager, Sales and Marketing Manager, Accountants/Cashiers, Laboratory Assistant/Plant Breeder/Glasswasher, Production Workers/Machine Operators, Distribution Truck drivers and Cleaners.

Over and above, you will need a minimum of 5 – 20 staff members to successfully run a small scale but standard biotech company. Please note that there will be times when you are expected to hire experts to help you handle some key research work, so always make a budget for that.

16. Write a Marketing Plan Packed with ideas & Strategies

Once you have a product, it is your responsibility to market and promote the product. The truth is that there are competitions in the biotech industry; everybody is trying to be ahead of their competitors, that is why you must develop a good marketing strategy to gain your own fair share of the existing market.

You must go all out to employ strategies that will help you attract customers or else you will likely struggle with the business because there are well – known brands that determine the market direction for the biotechnology industry. People and organizations will purchase and make use of your biotech products if they know that they are going to get value for their money.

As a matter of fact, your marketing strategy will center on safety, quality, efficiency, pricing and above all excellent customer service. The truth is that if you are able to put the above stated in place, you won’t struggle to retain your old customers and at the same time win over new customers.

Businesses these days are aware of the power of the internet which is why they will do all they can to maximize the internet to market their services or products.

In other words, a larger percentage of your marketing efforts will be directed to internet users and your website will become your number one marketing tool. These are some of the marketing ideas and strategies that you can adopt for your biotech company;

• Introduce your biotech company by sending introductory letters alongside your brochure to medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, hybrid food processing and production companies, hybrids crops cultivators, hybrid animal breeders, hybrid bird/poultry farmers and non – food industries and other key stakeholders within and outside the city where your biotech company is located
• Advertise on the internet on blogs and forums, and also on social media like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn to get your message across, so that those on the social media or those who read blogs will know about your biotech product
• Create a basic website for your business so as to give your business an online presence
• Directly market your products
• Engage in roadshows in targeted communities from time to time to create awareness of biotechnology, and promote your business
• Join local biotech company associations for industry trends and tips
• Provide discount days for your customers
• Advertise our business in community based newspapers, local TV and radio stations
• List your business on yellow pages ads (local directories)
• Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing (referrals)

17. Develop Strategies to Boost Brand Awareness and Create a Corporate Identity

If you are in business and you are not deliberate about boosting you brand awareness and communicating your corporate identity, then you should be ready to take on whatever the society portrays your business to be. One of the secrets of larger corporations is that they are willing to spend fortunes year in and year out to boost their brand awareness and to continue to communicate their corporate identity the way they want people to perceive them.

If your intention of starting a biotech company is to grow the business beyond the city where you are going to be operating from to become a national and international brand by opening chains of distribution networks and exporting your products, then you must be ready to spend money on promotion and advertisement of your brand.

No matter the industry you belong to, the truth is that the market is dynamic and it requires consistent brand awareness and brand boosting cum promotion to continue to appeal to your target market. Here are the platforms you can leverage on to boost your brand awareness and create corporate identity for your biotech company;

• Place adverts on both print (newspapers and magazines) and electronic media platforms
• Sponsor relevant community based events
• Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like;Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google + et al to promote your biotech company
• Install your billboards on strategic locations all around your city or state
• Engage in roadshows from time to time in targeted farming communities to create awareness of your biotech company
• Distribute your fliers and handbills in target areas
• Contact medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, hybrid food processing and production companies, hybrid crop cultivators, hybrid animal breeders, hybrid bird/poultry farmers and non – food industries and other key stakeholders throughout the city where your biotech company is located informing them about your biotech company and the products you sell
• List your biotech company in local directories/yellow pages
• Advertise your biotech company in your official website and employ strategies that will help you pull traffic to the site
• Position your Flexi Banners at strategic positions in the location where biotech company is located
• Ensure that all your staff members wear your branded shirts and all your vehicles and trucks/vans are well branded with your company logo

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How to Develop a PowerPoint Pitch Deck for Biotech Investor Presentations

Or… “how to persuade individuals who have money—to share some with you”, continuous flow of capital is vital.

A critical tool for all biotech entrepreneurs is an Investor Slide Deck or “Pitch” Deck. This is typically a collection of PowerPoint slides used for communicating your deal to different groups of investors. Since capital is the lifeblood of your company, having a well-thought-out Pitch Deck is a vital asset for all biotech entrepreneurs. To address this I have put together some basic information about what a biotech investor pitch deck should contain when presenting for the first time to a group of potential investors.

Creating a biotechnology product is vastly different from other industry products, therefore, the topics that biotech investors want to hear about also differ. Unlike IT products and other technology products, biotech products have longer development timeframes, more exorbitant development costs, much more stringent regulatory requirements, and a unique need for diversely-skilled individuals. Therefore, one cannot use a generalized entrepreneurial pitch deck when pitching to biotechnology investors, however, there are some key topics that remain universal. Gratefully, biotech products are also unique in their significance to society and in the type of returns possible for investors.

The Pitch Deck

The outline below and the accompanying PowerPoint Investor Pitch Deck example are provided to help those who need guidance on what topics and information are important for a biotech investor presentation. Realize that this is not a template per se in which to simply fill in the blanks, but an ordered list of topics that are significant to most all biotechnology investors.

In reality, you should always tailor your slide deck to the particular audience and their interests; whereas the number of slides and the depth of information surrounding any particular topic are dictated by the time allocated for that meeting. However, in an attempt to provide a basic and universal outline for preparing a biotech investor pitch deck, this will give you a starting point.

16 Topics to Cover: Basics of an Investor Pitch Deck for Biotech Entrepreneurs

This is my preferred slide order when “telling the story”. I find that this order makes sense to the listener and is easy to follow as it builds upon preceding information. There are different opinions on which topics to cover and their sequence order. For example, some suggest that the Leadership Team be presented at the beginning rather than toward the end of a presentation. My opinion is that unless you have a stellar and complete Dream Team, then first sell the audience on the opportunity and the novelty of the idea. Whatever your topic order, make sure you tell a story that unfolds logically and be sure that the information is relevant to the investor audience you are pitching.

It is always important to remember that the majority of biotech investors are driven by “data”. Therefore present reproducible data on the technology, share data supporting your market need, describe data supporting insurance reimbursement for your product, include data when available on all other topics discussed, and don’t forget to cite credible sources.

Slide Deck Topic Order

1.  company, purpose, mission and history (relevant information only).

*  Describe the focus and purpose of the company *  Tell where the technology originated, if significant *  Describe the current stage of development (Start-up company or Phase 1 clinical trials) *  Tell why you are there, and share the “Ask”— how much money are you raising? (Example: Seeking $1.5MM in Convertible Notes)

2.  Problem or “Pain” – Explained in a way that lets the investors feel or know the pain of the problem

*  Describe the issues with the current status quo (problem with diagnosis, treatment, manufacture, etc) *  Help the investors understand the problems those suffering with this condition face, or the issues someone has to deal with in this situation (describe in terms of limitations, costs, inconveniences, ineffectiveness, etc) *  Discuss why is there a problem

3.  Technology and Product Solution

*  Describe how your product or technology solves this big problem *  Show data, results, prototype testing and evidence that the technology or product works or will work, or has a very high likelihood of success *  Demonstrate to the audience that your data supports the likelihood of product success, or show its significance in leading to product success *  Describe the mechanism-of-action (non-confidential version), how it works (if you know). You don’t need to reveal trade secrets or confidential information here

4.  Competition and Substitutes Currently Used

*  Summarize the competitors and list any products or substitutes *  Describe products that may be coming out in the future and from whom *  Discuss the willingness of users to change from the current status quo *  Elaborate on your product’s points-of-differentiation and discuss the significance of your advantages *  Address why no one fixed this problem yet

5.  Market Opportunity and Strategy

*  Estimate the market size and be prepared to describe how it is calculated or provide sources (use credible sources only) *  Tell who is your Target Market and who is your secondary market – describe how you will reach your customers *  The amount of detail here depends on the biotech sector and the condition/disease/industry you are targeting (some market sizes are well-understood) *  Explain why the timing is right for your product

6. Business or Revenue Model

*  Show how you are going to make money *  Describe the partnerships that are needed in order to be successful *  Discuss any distribution channels needed and the status of these relationships

7.  Reimbursement Strategy

*  Show proof of reimbursement that is related to your product or provide supportive comparisons *  Describe your pricing model if applicable *  Show any pharmacoeconomic models or data to support the type and amount of reimbursement for your product

8.  Product Development and Regulatory Pathway

*  Describe your current product development status and the progress made to date *  List your next product development milestones and the estimated timeframe to reach these *  Describe your regulatory route, timing, and issues you face and how they will be mitigated *  Briefly discuss any potential follow-on products supported by this technology

9.  Intellectual Property and Secret Sauce

*  Share what patents are filed or issued and indicate whether or not you have trade secrets *  If available, discuss findings from your Freedom to Operate opinion *  Share your technology license terms, royalties and milestone fees (if any)

10.  The Leadership Team

*  Discuss your senior management team and their relevant experience and their past successes *  Describe the background of your Advisors/Consultants/Board Members if formed *  Candidly discuss whether or not your team is complete and who else is needed and with what backgrounds *  Describe any key partnerships formed or those in progress

11.  Estimated Exit, Potential Acquirers and Timeframe

*  Share your presumed exit – VCs will know this but it is helpful if they know you know, and most Angel investors want to hear this *  Briefly share data on exit valuation or exit revenue multiples for your sector *  It is not wise at this stage to share your opinion on a “pre-money valuation” for your company as this will be based in part upon investor interest, and is negotiable. Preconceived opinions at this point may limit investor interest.

12.  Financials

*  Ideally, provide a five-year Pro Forma projection of future revenue (if relevant – generally not needed for therapeutics), share your assumptions and be sure to build with “bottom-up” rather than “top-down” calculations *  Describe the total funds raised to date, and what these funds were used to accomplish, describe grant funding if awarded *  Share your estimates for future funding needs to reach commercialization, and estimate the number of additional financing rounds *  Show your generalized Use-of-Proceeds for this fund raise

13.  Risks and How They Will be Mitigated

*  This slide is not always necessary, but risk mitigation issues must be addressed during the presentation or during the Q&A *  Alternatively, risk mitigation information can be incorporated within each topic as it is addressed or they can be placed in the summary slide depending on the investor audience and time allotted *  Investors know that you cannot manage a risk that you have not identified

14.  Summary

*  Recap any key highlights relevant to this audience and include any points you want them to remember

15.  Thank You/Question & Answer Time

*  Thank the audience (this does not necessarily have to be a slide, but be sure to acknowledge your appreciation for this opportunity and for any particular efforts made for you to speak to this audience *  Q&A typically starts here. However, be aware that some investor groups do not wait for the last slide to ask all their questions *  A good sign of potential interest is when investors ask many questions and become very engaged after your presentation *  Investors who have made up their mind not to invest , typically do not have many questions

16.  Support Slides

*  These slides are kept in reserve and are selected and shown based upon questions asked by investors *  The number and content of these slides are your choosing. Be prepared with additional and more detailed information on any topics you anticipate this investor audience may ask

How Many Slides do I Need?

Although the topics I have described are numbered, they do not represent the total number of slides needed, sometimes it can be more or less. The exact number of slides you use will depend on the following:

*  The time allotted for the investor presentation (leaving time for Q&A) *  The backgrounds of the investor audience *  Their key issues with the product, technology, market or the business model *  Which issues are relevant to your technology and product success

Just be sure to cover or touch on each listed topic to a lessor or greater degree, as all are significant to an investor. Some of these topics can be combined, depending on your sector and product technology. However, the depth of you discussion on any topic will depend on the issues surrounding that topic. For instance, if every predecessor product in your sector has previously failed somewhere in the regulatory process, you will need to spend more time explaining why yours is different and has a higher likelihood of success.

A good rule of thumb for determining the number of slides in your pitch deck, is to presume that you need 1-2 minutes per slide, minus the time set aside for Q&A. For instance, if you are allocated 30 minutes for an investor presentation, plan on about 15-20 minutes for your slide presentation which would be no more than 15 slides, then allocate 10-15 minutes for Q&A afterwards. You can always elaborate in more detail if fewer questions are asked. However, you do not want to be cut off before finishing your presentation because you ran out of time.

In this blog I principally address the “content” and the subject matter of a good biotech investor presentation. I have not dealt with the issues related to slide formatting and presentation etiquette, since there is abundant publicly available information about these subjects. Just be sure to incorporate visual aids when discussing complex technology and make use of graphs and figures when explaining concepts rather than simply using only text.

For those wanting more information about presentations and creating a business plan, read Chapter 22 titled “Your Business Plan and Presentation: Articulating Your Journey to Commercialization” in my latest book “Biotechnology Entrepreneurship: Starting, Managing and Leading Biotech Companies.”

What Investors are Looking For That is Not in Your Slides

Important Entrepreneurial Characteristics That Are Not Contained in Your Slides

*  Passion for your work *  Enthusiasm *  Intricate and working knowledge of your business, product and market *  Good strategic thinking *  Ability to inspire others and ability to execute *  Willingness to receive advice, listen and learn *  Leadership characteristics *  Culture fit

The Takeaway Tidbit

Biotech entrepreneurs should start by developing a well-thought-out pitch deck addressing these basic topics. You can later modify the depth and detail of information according to any investor interest or the issues relevant to their concern about your organization and product technology or market. By possessing a solid pitch deck covering each of these relevant topics, a biotech entrepreneur will have a tool to communicate to investors the relevant information necessary for making investment decisions. By first creating a thorough and well-developed Investor pitch deck, you can later selectively modify or consolidate this information into any presentation length and adapt it for other investor audiences, and thereby have at your hand, a ready tool to raise capital for your company.

Copyright 2015 © BioSource Consulting. All Rights Reserved

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Biotechnology Company Small Business Idea and Business Plan

Starting your own small business in the UK isn’t easy but having a properly developed business plan will help you achieve success.

To start a Biotechnology Company business in the UK, take the time and explain the idea via a business plan.

Understanding all of the aspects of the business idea will be the key to getting the Biotechnology Company business running like a well-oiled machine. The business plan you develop will help you organize the elements needed into a strategy that you can actually use to startup, by paving a clear road map as to what you need to follow for the lifespan of your business.

Starting a Biotechnology Company business isn’t easy, but when done right, it can lead to a lot of success.

To help you get started, you can use the free business plan builder tool to develop your own Biotechnology Company business plan.

The business plan template is very easy to use, is interactive and will quickly and easily help you create your business plan just by answering the needed questions about your small business idea.

Create your own Biotechnology Company business plan for free using the Business Plan Builder

The free business plan template builder is divided into a few easy to follow steps.

The free business plan builder template is provided by UKStartups.org to help you develop your own business plan. For step by step guidance, see the 5 steps below.

Once completed, the result will be a clean, professional plan that will help you start your own Biotechnology Company small business in the UK.

When you have completed your Biotechnology Company business plan, the next step will be to find available funding that will help, or to speak with a funding adviser who will assist you each step of the way to securing the needed funds to make your Biotechnology Company business startup.

If you are looking to limit your startup costs when starting up a Biotechnology Company small business in the UK, this free business plan builder tool will be it.

Starting a Biotechnology Company business is only one of the ways others have used this free business plan tool. There are hundreds of different ideas you can start, and if you need guidance, do reach out to a UKStartups expert to get the needed assistance and guidance.

Step 1. Your business information

To develop a proper Biotechnology Company business plan with the free business plan builder template, it is important to answer each of the questions about your business to the best of your abilities.

What is your business? What are the products/services you provide? Who are your customers? What are your goals…etc?

Having a clear explanation will help you create a in-depth business plan that you can actually use to start the Biotechnology Company business and to apply for needed funding to cover your startup costs.

Step 2. Projecting your revenues/income

The Biotechnology Company industry can have great results. Planning and projecting the financial figures to approximate what you will make each year is crucial to building a strong business plan.

What do you think your business will make from each of its products/services? Simply list your products/services, enter the appropriate financial figures (costs and expenses).

If you don’t have the figures, in many cases it is recommended to do a a bit more research on other Biotechnology Company businesses locally and within your own region to get an idea of potential revenue. You can do your best to estimate the figures and growth potential.

If you need assistance in projecting, you can always contact UK Startups funding experts for the help.

Step 3. Your business market

As a Biotechnology Company business, having a clear explanation of the market and industry that you are in will help you plan for the figure and will ensure you can take the business to the next level.

Explain your location of business, share specifics about your customers, showcase your competition and explain the advantages you have over your competition.

Step 4. The future plan

Starting your own Biotechnology Company business and getting it off the ground is important to you.

No matter if you’re planning on applying for government funding for your Biotechnology Company business or not, it is important to plan out the future and provide an explanation of how you will grow the business. This means explaining your marketing plan, your sales strategy and clearly outlining a growth plan for the next few years.

Be sure to break this down step by step to show how you intend on making sure your Biotechnology Company business can grow each year.

Keep in mind that often business plans are focused on key people. Be sure to discuss yourself, your role and any other key figures in the business as well.

Step 5. The financials

In the end, it all comes down to the financials. If you are seeking funding, or not – the business plan you develop needs to have clearly defined financials or projections. The business plan builder tool makes it easy to develop your financial charts by simply entering your expected revenues per month and year. If you don’t have the figures as it’s a new business be sure to project the figures based on your expectations. If you need help with this, ask the UK Startups experts .

A clear breakdown of your funding needs is also recommended in case you are seeking funding and this free business plan template will help you with exactly that. When developing your Biotechnology Company business plan using this free template, the above 5 steps are recommended in order to succeed. While there are other key points that will assist you in starting your business, finding funding...etc, the free template will help put you on the right path

Be sure to request a professional to review your business plan , to answer any questions you may have and to help you with the funding search once you’ve done the initial free template. You can request this directly via UKStartups.org and through the Small Business Startup Platform as a member.

If starting a Biotechnology Company business is just one of your ideas, perhaps considering other options, here are some popular small business’s others have chosen to startup

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This biotech startup got the biggest venture capital deal in San Diego so far this year

San Diego had fewer startup deals in the first quarter of this year. Health care startups led deal making.

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Funding deals for San Diego startups got off to a slow start this year, but a few local biotechs still notched some impressive investment dollars.

San Diego County recorded 55 venture capital deals totaling $1.57 billion in the first quarter ending March 31, according to PitchBook, an industry research firm, and the National Venture Capital Association. Deals were down 26 percent compared to the same time last year. But the total value raised was almost double last year’s $788 million.

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This was San Diego’s lowest number of first-quarter deals going back 10 years. At the same time, the $1.57 billion was the most deal value generated during the first quarter in the past decade — excluding the outlier of 2021, which recorded $3.26 billion. (The first quarter of 2021 was also San Diego’s single best performing quarter with 139 deals).

Local life science companies led the pack by scoring big deals, including one of San Diego’s newest firms, Mirador Therapeutics.

A team of veteran life science leaders launched the local biotech in March with $400 million. It was San Diego’s top deal and the third largest in California during the first quarter.

The Torrey Pines-based biotech is helmed by Mark C. McKenna, who joined forces with former leaders of Prometheus Biosciences. They decided to launch Mirador less than a year after Prometheus, a local firm focused on treatments for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, was acquired by Merck for $10.8 billion.

Now, they’re looking for targeted medicines to treat the source of inflammatory diseases. This could include chronic conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, and other gastrointestinal, lung and skin issues.

One of their big differentiators is leveraging artificial intelligence to discover and develop drugs using large data sets. The goal is to bring drug development costs down and make medicines work for more patients.

For example, McKenna said Humira, a multibillion-dollar drug for rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease, is only effective for about 10 to 15 percent of patients. Mirador wants to home in on those subsets of patients who aren’t being treated by available drugs coming from big pharmaceutical companies.

“How drug development is going to be done in the future is a more precise approach where we’re actually developing drugs for specific patient needs,” he said. “It’s a little bit different than a trial and error, one-size-fits-all (approach).”

Fundraising wasn’t a huge challenge for Mirador — the team quadrupled their initial fundraising goal. McKenna said investors aren’t spreading their bets like they were in 2021. Instead, life science investors are concentrating on companies backed by solid science and executives.

“While we’ve seen some breaking in the clouds with regards to the capital markets in both private and public settings, we’re far from out of the woods,” McKenna said.

Nationally, there was $36.6 billion invested in companies via 3,925 deals during the first quarter. The number of deals is down from the same period last year and total deal value is at its lowest level since 2018.

While the past year has been characterized by high interest rates and stifled deal activity nationwide, there is still more than $300 billion in “dry powder” on the sidelines waiting to be invested.

“This year began on the same note that 2023 ended,” said Bobby Franklin, president and CEO at National Venture Capital Association. “Dealmaking and exits are softer and slower than we’d typically like, but there is an abundance of dry powder and optimism in various sectors, including AI, that signal room for growth in the year ahead.”

While it’s not ideal that San Diego is recording fewer deals, Mike Krenn, head of Connect/San Diego Venture Group, said the larger deal values are a sign of the region’s growth. He looks at San Diego’s performance in the long term and said the region is better off than it was five years ago.

“That said, we want to see the number of deals go up, too,” Krenn said. “That’s the pipeline. We’re working hard on that front.”

The organization he leads has worked to change that by creating opportunities for more money to flow into the region’s innovation economy. For instance, next week, Connect is hosting a private event that will bring 118 venture capitalists to meet with 30 San Diego startups.

San Diego’s rise in the venture capital scene is also evident in PitchBook’s latest ranking of the world’s top startup cities. PitchBook ranked San Diego 15 out of 50 global cities, based on the size and maturity of its startup network.

Notably, San Diego County has 41 resident venture capital firms based here. That’s far fewer resident firms — by hundreds — than other U.S. metropolitan areas on this list.

“Finding early stage capital remains a challenge in San Diego,” Krenn said. “The number of funds here relative to other markets bear that data point out. Sometimes it feels like our startups need to work a little harder to get those early rounds — but we’re still getting it done comparative to those other markets.”

Those deals are being led by the region’s world-renowned life science sector. San Diego’s top five deals during the first quarter were all by health care startups.

The next biggest deals after Mirador included Avenzo Therapeutics bringing in $223.4 million; Capstan Therapeutics with $175 million; Engrail Therapeutics with $157 million; and Mainstay Medical with $125 million.

The top three fund-getters of the quarter were led by companies with established life science leaders who have a track record of growing successful biotechs.

It’s no surprise to Court Turner, partner at LYZZ Capital, a local life science venture capital firm, that San Diego’s top deals were all among veteran leaders. Investors have spent the difficult fundraising period of the past year re-evaluating their portfolio companies and how to prioritize the cash they have on hand.

This tracks with national trends where investors are shoring up their most promising companies before jumping into new ventures.

Of course, biotechs require more capital and time to get through research and development or clinical trials compared to what is required for a traditional tech or consumer product startup. So, Turner said asking a “superstar” biotech founder what’s next is the obvious question.

“Those are easier conversations I think to have in a tough time versus let’s hear 50 pitches and then try to weed through these 50 unknowns and develop a thesis to make an investment,” Turner said.

San Diego also saw two companies debut on the public market — a meager number for the first quarter but a bright spot in an otherwise quiet IPO market.

Boundless Bio, a local clinical-stage oncology company, r aised $100 million during its initial public offering . Local biopharmaceutical firm Contineum Therapeutics also went public , raising roughly $110 million on April 5.

Turner said “deals are taking a little bit longer than before,” but he’s optimistic that dealmaking will pick up this year based on institutional investors and wealthy private investors who are paying attention to San Diego’s innovative ecosystem.

“I do think the IPO window will crack open,” Turner said. “And I think the companies that are at clinical stage and are able to show positive phase two data will get rewarded by the market.”

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