The Art of Entrepreneurship blog provides a support network and learning environment for small business owners and those working to start a business.  Here we can learn from each other by sharing stories about our real world experiences.    Thank you to this month's guest blogger, Tonya Johnson.

by Tonya Johnson, Owner, Vision's Sown

I have been an entrepreneur for over seven years. On and off I worked on my business plan but always came away dazed and confused about why my company still floundered.  I conducted more research hoping to learn why my company hit so many snags over the years.  My findings suggested that my setbacks are the direct result of using an inappropriate business model and revealed problems my company would face if I continued using the standard baking business model.

 I thought I could use an off-the-shelf bakery business model.  After reading a case study about new innovations and their need for customized business models, it became clear to me why writing my business plan has been troublesome. The traditional bakery business model is from kitchen, to renting kitchen space, to company owners as producers, to early sales, to contract manufacturing and distribution to the larger consumer market. 

 The ancient baking business model starts out similarly, in the kitchen with experimental baking, progressing to kitchen rental, company owners as producers, and early sales, and then hits a wall at contract manufacturing and distribution to its larger markets.  Why? I learned from the National Association of Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) industry experts, answer is accounting issues.

 According to the experts, no contract manufacturer will touch my trade secret protected, complex baking processes to produce healthy bakery products using a new food technology.  Nor will they hold in their inventory nontraditional baking ingredients no other customers can use. It took me two failed tries at contract manufacturing, an accounting class, and baking industry insight from veterans to realize that this is an unattractive financial risk for contract manufacturers. 

 Now I am faced with taking this challenge into my own hands - to work through drafting a more appropriate business model for my baking innovations.   My operations plans must change in ways only a professional commercialization plan will reveal. It has taken me eight years and several attempts at business plan writing to figure this out.  My business model, accounting practices, nontraditional baking operations, and production need deeper investigation and a solid strategy if I am to scale successfully my business as I envision. 

 The Center for Women in Enterprise (CWE) helped me make these discoveries while developing my first working business plan draft.  Now I can move in the right direction with development of the new business model and a strategy more fitting for my enterprise.  To that end I enrolled in an MBA program. 

 Does your business model fit your venture like custom fitted formal wear, or does your business model hang awkwardly on your business like a dress for less, off- the-shelf, 1000 copies like it model?  I encourage entrepreneurs to study your business models closely.  Your company success depends on it!

 (Tonya has 10+ years experience in the specialty food industry - health food research, its regulatory environment and experimental bakery product development.  Visit her blog to learn more about Vision's Sown.)