business plan for an artist

Crafting an Artist Business Plan: A Step-by-Step Guide for 2024

Jan 24, 2024

Every artist dreams of turning their passion into a successful career, but navigating the business side of the art world can be daunting. Creating a comprehensive artist business plan is the key to transforming your passion into a thriving and sustainable art business .

This step-by-step guide for 2024 will walk you through the process of crafting an effective business plan that will help you achieve your artistic dreams and financial goals. Plus, get instant access to our free guide for creating art that sells so you can grow your business.

This article shows you how to create a business plan for your artist business, including these highlights:

Essentials to include in your artist business plan, such as your artistic vision and goals, your target audience (or ideal collector), and your unique selling proposition (artistic voice)

How to research and analyze the art market to help you price your artwork effectively, and how to manage the financial aspects of your artist business

Marketing and promotion strategies for artists and the value of building an effective team to help you achieve the goals of your artist business plan

The Essentials of an Artist Business Plan

An artist writing a business plan in a creative workspace. Photo by Surface on Unsplash

An effective artist business plan is more than just a document outlining your goals and strategies—it’s the foundation of your art business and a roadmap to success. It helps you gain a better understanding of your artist business, identify your target audience (or ideal collector), and establish your unique selling proposition (or artistic voice). A well-crafted art business plan is essential for attracting clients, securing financing, and expanding your art career.

Your artist business plan should include:

Your artistic vision and goals

A description of your target audience or ideal collector

Your unique selling proposition (USP)

Information about trends in the art marketplace and your competitors

A detailed description of your products and services

A marketing plan

A comprehensive financial plan

Key roles to build your artist business team

A business plan is essential for the success of your venture because it's your guide to achieving your artistic and financial goals.

Define Your Artistic Vision and Goals

The first step in creating a business plan is to define your artistic vision and overall objectives. Understanding your artistic vision and goals equips you to steer your art business toward success. Your business plan will serve as the guiding principle for all the decisions you’ll make moving forward.

Your vision statement should outline what you want to be known for, the venues where you’d like to showcase your art, and potential collaborators essential for a successful creative art business. By asking yourself why you chose this path and what you hope to achieve, you can stay on course even during tough times.

Along with a clear vision, detail your goals. Break down larger goals into smaller, more manageable steps to make the process less overwhelming and more achievable. When formulating your artist business plan, consider the resources you have at your disposal, such as your skills, connections within the art industry, and the funding required to bring your vision to life.

Identify Your Target Audience

Understanding your target audience (or ideal collector) will enable you to customize your marketing strategies and establish a connection with potential customers. To help you identify your ideal collector, ask questions like, “What age group or income level could possibly access your art pieces?” or “Which kind of buyers understand your work?” In your business plan, include demographics, geographic location, and psychographic attributes of the collector in the description of your target market.

Assess Your Unique Selling Proposition

Your unique selling proposition (USP) is a statement that outlines the distinguishing features of your art, including your style, visual appeal, and the benefits of your products and services. The USP can help you stand out from other artists and showcase the distinct qualities of your offerings. Include a well-crafted USP in your art business plan to highlight the uniqueness that will help you leave your mark in the art world.

Market Research and Analysis

An artist looking at industry trends and analyzing the art market. Photo by UX Indonesia on Unsplash

Researching and analyzing the art marketplace are fundamental for understanding the art industry, formulating a competitive strategy, making informed decisions, and adjusting your business strategies as needed.

A SWOT analysis evaluates s trengths, w eaknesses, o pportunities, and t hreats so you can develop effective strategies to grow your artist business. This comprehensive evaluation helps you identify opportunities and threats in the market, assess your own strengths and weaknesses, and develop strategies to address those opportunities and threats by capitalizing on your strengths.

Consistently revisiting your SWOT analysis allows you to monitor progress, identify potential improvement areas, and make strategic adjustments as required.

Analyze Industry Trends

Examining industry trends is crucial for staying relevant and adjusting your business strategies accordingly. You can stay informed about industry trends by following or subscribing to art publications, participating in art events, and networking with other art professionals.

Maintaining an awareness of trends and openness to innovative approaches ensures your art business sustains its competitive edge in a swiftly evolving market.

Evaluate Competitors

The knowledge you gain from in-depth market research helps you identify direct and indirect competitors in the art world and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. Understanding your competitors is essential for identifying your own strengths and weaknesses and creating a competitive advantage.

In your business plan, provide an overview of your competitors and insight into their strengths and weaknesses. This enhances your market positioning and fosters a unique advantage to help your art business flourish.

Product and Service Offerings

An artist diversifying their portfolio with different art pieces. Photo by Antonio Francisco on Unsplash

Diversifying your artist portfolio, offering various products and services, and developing pricing strategies are essential for sustaining profitability and communicating the value of your art business to potential investors and collectors. Your business plan should include a detailed outline of these aspects of your business.

Offering a diverse range of art products and services enables you to accommodate a wider audience, increase your revenue streams, and secure the success and sustainability of your art business. Consider showcasing your artwork in physical galleries, online sales, artist associations, or a combination of these options.

Pricing Strategies

When it comes to pricing, consistency is key. Your strategy should be to increase your artwork's prices and value gradually over time. There are two primary pricing models to consider—one for the established market and another for creating your own market niche.

In the established art market, a common approach is to assign a set price per square inch, with canvas pieces typically starting at $2-$3 per square inch. Works on paper may be priced 20-50% lower to reflect market standards. These figures represent starting prices for emerging artists within gallery spaces. When dealing with dealers, designers, or wholesalers, you must present your retail prices upfront and negotiate from there, ensuring transparency and maintaining value.

Alternatively, crafting your own art market affords greater flexibility. Here, you can opt for lower pricing to sell more pieces rapidly, relying on volume. However, if you aim to position your work at a higher price point, you may sell less frequently but can offer prints as a more accessible option to your audience. You might set prices based on size, the effort involved, or the uniqueness of each piece. Starting at $1 per square inch could be viable, particularly as it allows you to retain most of the earnings, unlike gallery sales, where commissions are involved.

Regardless of the market you choose to engage with, it's crucial to justify your prices and understand their rationale. Consistency in pricing not only helps in building trust with your collectors but also aligns with supply and demand dynamics, considering the financial climate of your target market. Your artist business plan should include a detailed outline of your diverse offerings and a thorough pricing strategy that reflects these considerations, setting the stage for a thriving artistic enterprise.

Marketing and Promotion Strategies

An artist building an online presence with social media platforms. Photo by Josh Withers on Unsplash

Your business plan must detail your marketing and promotion strategies, which are critical for reaching your ideal collectors and enhancing sales. A well-planned marketing strategy helps you effectively communicate your unique selling proposition to potential customers and establish a connection with them. Use diverse marketing channels, including:

Social media

Email marketing

Content marketing

Building an online presence, networking with art professionals, and participating in art fairs and galleries are essential to a successful art marketing plan. Employing these strategies effectively displays your work, builds connections with potential buyers, and expands your artist brand.

Build an Online Presence

A strong online presence lets you showcase your work, connect with potential buyers, and grow your brand. Creating an artist website featuring a portfolio of your work and a compelling artist statement can help you attract collectors and establish credibility. Design your artist website with care and attention to detail to ensure success in the competitive art world.

Furthermore, leveraging social media platforms such as Instagram, as well as online marketplaces like Etsy, can help you monetize your work and reach a broader audience.

Network and Collaborate

Networking and collaboration are vital for building relationships, gaining exposure, and learning from others in the art industry. Here are some ways to connect with fellow artists and industry professionals:

Attend art events

Join professional organizations

Engage in online forums

Utilize social media

These activities can help you build valuable connections and expand your network. By fostering these relationships, you can gain valuable insights, identify potential collaborators, and stay informed about art industry trends and opportunities.

Participate in Art Fairs and Galleries

Art fairs and galleries offer excellent opportunities for artists to gain exposure, sell their work, and establish credibility in the art world. By participating in art fairs and showcasing your work in galleries, you can reach a wider audience and attract potential buyers.

Researching and connecting with local, national, and international art fairs and galleries can help you identify the best venues for showcasing your work and growing your art business.

Financial Planning and Management

An artist creating a budget and financial projections. Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Financial planning and management are critical for ensuring the success and sustainability of your art business. Formulating a budget, generating financial projections, and overseeing your financial performance empower you to make informed decisions and proficiently manage your finances. Including a well-structured financial plan in your business plan will also help you attract potential investors and secure financing to grow your art business.

Managing your finances involves tracking your income and expenses, establishing financial goals, and adjusting your expenditures accordingly. Regular reviews of your financial statements and necessary strategy adjustments guarantee your art business sustains its financial health and viability.

Create a Budget

Creating a budget is essential for managing your funds, allocating resources, and planning for growth. It helps you set financial objectives, monitor your income and expenses, and adjust your spending accordingly.

To effectively track and adjust your budget, review it regularly and identify potential areas for cost reduction. For example, can you find a more affordable source for your paints or canvases? Are you wasting art supplies, and can you adjust your techniques to maximize what you have for greater profitability?

A well-managed budget enables you to make better decisions and achieve your financial goals without spending money carelessly.

Establish Financial Projections

Financial projections are estimates of future income and expenses that help you make informed decisions about your business. By gathering data, constructing a budget, establishing a timeline, and predicting future income and expenses, you can create a roadmap for your art business’s financial future. For example, what art pieces do you plan to create over the next few months, what will the supplies cost, and at what price do you plan to sell each piece?

These projections will enable you to plan for growth, manage risks, and ensure the achievement of your short-term and long-term goals for the success of your business.

Monitor Financial Performance

Monitoring financial performance is essential for identifying areas for improvement and adjusting strategies accordingly. To gain a comprehensive understanding of your art business's financial health, review your:

Regularly updating your financials and comparing them to your projections will help you evaluate your progress and make informed decisions.

Building an Effective Team

An artist recruiting and retaining talent for their team. Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

All artists need support and encouragement, and a robust team can become the cornerstone of your business, facilitating the achievement of your artistic and financial goals. A team lets you focus on your core competencies (the things you’re best at) and ensure tasks are completed efficiently. Furthermore, a strong team can provide valuable guidance, assistance, and expertise to help you make informed decisions and drive your business forward.

Identify Key Roles

A person holding a pen and writing on a notepad, with the words artist business plan written on the top of the page. Original photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

Identifying key roles in your art business is crucial for delegating tasks and focusing on your core competencies. Roles to consider in an artist business plan include:

The manager

The accountant

The marketing team

As a hard-working artist, delegating tasks to a team of skilled professionals allows you to concentrate on your strengths—like creating art that changes the world—and ensures that your art business runs smoothly and efficiently.

These roles may not require full-time personnel, but knowing who you can trust to help with various aspects of your art business frees you to focus on the work you enjoy.

Frequently Asked Questions

An artist in an art studio creating a business plan for a successful art career. Photo by Surface on Unsplash

How do I write a business plan for an artist?

To write a business plan for artists, begin by defining a vision statement and setting realistic goals. Define your target customers or ideal collectors, research your competitors, and detail your unique sales proposition—the qualities that make your artist business stand out. Be sure to include marketing strategies, financial plans and projections, and descriptions of your products and services in your business plan.

How can I identify my target audience or ideal collectors?

To identify your target audience or ideal collectors, consider demographics, geographic location, and psychographic attributes of potential buyers, such as age group, income level, and preferences. Doing so will help pinpoint who will most likely be interested in your art and help you connect with potential buyers.

What should be included in my online portfolio?

Your online portfolio should feature a selection of your best work, a professional artist statement, and biographical information to paint a clear picture of your artistic vision. Include testimonials from past customers to add credibility to your work.

How can I effectively price my art?

A consistent pricing strategy is the key to building trust with your collectors and aligning with the financial climate of your target market. When pricing pieces for the established art market, the most common method is to set a price per square inch. To craft your own art market, opt for lower pricing to sell more volume. You might set prices based on size, the effort involved, or the uniqueness of each piece.

A Business Plan for Artists to Change the World

Creating a comprehensive artist business plan is the key to transforming your passion into a thriving and sustainable business. By defining your artistic vision, identifying your ideal collectors, researching the art market, and developing marketing and financial strategies, you can set your art business on the path to success. Building an effective team can provide valuable support and guidance along the way. With dedication, hard work, and a well-crafted business plan, the world of art is yours to conquer.

Download our free guide on How to Create Authentic Art that Sells to learn what’s trending and help you ensure more art sales while staying true to your own artistic voice.

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Artist Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Artist Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their artist businesses and art galleries . 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 an artist business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here >

What Is a Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your artist 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

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

Sources of Funding for Artist Businesses

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for an artist 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 artist companies.

Finish Your Business Plan Today!

How to write a business plan for an artist business.

If you want to start an artist business or expand your current one, you need a business plan in the proper business plan format . The guide below details the necessary information for how to write each essential component of your artist 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 artist business you are running and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have an artist business that you would like to grow, or are you operating a chain of artist businesses?

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

• Give a brief overview of the artist industry.
• Discuss the type of artist 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 artist business you are operating.

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

• Antiques: This type of artist business may include the restoration, curation, and auction of antique furniture and other items.
• Art Consultant: This type of artist business involves helping clients find and select art pieces for their own collections.
• Tattoo Artist: Tattoos are a popular way for artists to earn money by tattooing permanent ink art onto their customers.
• Photography: Photographers may specialize in certain categories like wedding photography or nature photography.
• Graphic design: This type of business encompasses all kinds of design from creating logos and marketing materials for businesses to creating websites and designing products.
• Art teacher: This type of artist business involves art instruction and can include anything from teaching an elementary school art class to a recreational painting class, or an online art course.

In addition to explaining the type of artist 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 clients served, the number of art pieces sold, reaching $X amount in revenue, 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 artist industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes. First, researching the artist 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 of your artist business plan:

• How big is the artist 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 artist business? 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 artist business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: individuals, schools, families, and corporations.

As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of artist business you operate. Clearly, individuals would respond to different marketing promotions than corporations, 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 art businesses. Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t directly competing with your product or service. This may include other sources of art pieces, auctions, or resellers. 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 customers do they serve?
• What type of artist business are they?
• 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 make it easier for your customers to engage with your product or service?
• 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 artist business plan, your marketing strategy should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of artist company that you documented in your company overview. Then, detail the specific products or services you will be offering. For example, will you sell paintings or sculptures, consult on various art pieces, instruct a painting class, etc?

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 artist company. Document where your company is situated and mention how the site will impact your success. For example, is your artist business located in a busy retail district, a business district, a standalone office, or purely online? Discuss how your site might be the ideal location for your customers.

Promotions : The final part of your artist 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
• 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 artist business, including answering calls, meeting with clients, billing and collecting payments, etc.

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

Management Team

To demonstrate your artist business’ 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 artist 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 an artist business or successfully running a small curation business.  

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. For example, will you meet with 5 clients per day, and will you charge by the hour for art consultation services? 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 artist business, 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 artist business:

• Cost of equipment and office 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 office location lease or a sample of your artist portfolio.  

Writing a business plan for your artist business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the sample template above, by the time you are done, you will have an expert artist business plan; download it to PDF to show banks and investors. You will understand the artist industry, your competition, and your customers. You will develop a marketing strategy and will understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful artist business.  

Artist Business Plan Template FAQs

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

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

How Do You Start an Artist Business?

Starting an artist business is easy with these 14 steps:

• Choose the Name for Your Artist Business
• Create Your Artist Business Plan
• Choose the Legal Structure for Your Artist Business
• Secure Startup Funding for Your Artist Business (If Needed)
• Secure a Location for Your Business
• Register Your Artist 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 Artist Business
• Buy or Lease the Right Artist Business Equipment
• Develop Your Artist Business Marketing Materials
• Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Artist Business
• Open for Business

Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your Artist business plan?

OR, Let Us Develop Your Plan For You

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 planning advisors can create your business plan for you.

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How to Wrtie an Artist business plan + Free Template

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• Fill in the blanks – Outline
• Financial Tables

Creative Art Industry Outlook 2024

• The United States has been firmly holding its position as the leading global art market for the past few years, generating roughly 45% of the global sales value.
• The revenue of performing arts companies in the U.S. will amount to roughly $19,6 billion by 2024, while for independent artists, it will amount to approximately $23,1 billion .
• There are 71,828 people employed in the US musical groups and artists industry till 2023.
• The number of people increased 0.4% on average over the five years between 2018 and 2023.
• Zippia estimates that artists are 70% more likely to work at private companies as compared to public sectors.

Now, without further ado; let’s delve into the key components you need to include in your creative business plan.

Key Components of an Art Business Plan (w/ examples)

• Executive Summary
• Business Overview
• Market Analysis
• Product and Services
• Sales and Marketing Strategies
• Operations Plan
• Management Team
• Financial Plan

1. Executive Summary

An executive summary is the initial chapter intended to provide a quick overview of your entire artist business plan. It highlights the primary facts of your business, from art business ideas to financial projections.

Keep your summary concise and clear, use simple language, and avoid jargon as it quickly engages readers.

You can start by introducing the idea behind starting an art business and explaining what it does. For example, is it a startup, do you like to grow your business, or are you operating a chain of artist businesses?

Next, share a brief overview of how your art studio will be different from the rest. Provide a summary of each of the subsequent sections of your plan, such as:

• Describe the artist industry and the target market in brief.
• Represent the products or services you wish to offer.
• Give a snapshot of your marketing strategy.
• Name all the key members of your management team.
• Provide a summary of your financial projections.

After that, end your summary with a clear call to action, inviting potential investors or readers to the next meeting if they are curious about your business.

Generally, this section is written after the entire business plan is ready as you go through and draft all the important sections of your business plan.

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2. Business Overview

The business overview section provides detailed information about your art business, including ownership, legal structure, office location, business history, and other business-related facts.

Initially, you can draft all the foundational facts like:

• The name of your art business and the concept behind it, for example: do you need a makeup artist business plan, music artist business plan, or painter business plan, and what is the actual idea behind your artist business?
• The legal structure of your art business whether it is a S-Corp, LLC, sole proprietorship, or some other.
• Location of your art gallery and the reason why you selected that place.

After that, describe the owners of your business and mention their roles in running it. Emphasize the percentage of shares owned, and how each owner helps in the business. For example,

You can add a memorable, clear mission statement that sums up the objectives and core principles of your art studio. Also, include an outline of the business’s history and how it came to be in its current position.

If you want to, include some personality and interesting details, especially if you have any achievements or recognitions till now for your creative art.

Convey your aspirations and your clear vision. Highlight future business goals and if you have any plans of opening an art studio or hosting an art gallery opening.

3. Market Analysis

Next, dive into the art world as this chapter provides a clear understanding of the art industry, along with the target audience, competitors, and growth opportunities.

So, take some time to go further and identify your target market and define your ideal target customer. It will guide your artistic choices and marketing strategies.

Know more about your customers and which type of services they prefer: customized painting, greetings, invitation cards, poetries, songs, or anything else.

After that, give an overview of the art industry. It unveils necessary information about the market size and growth potential of the art market in which your business will run. :

Also, conduct detailed market research to identify direct and indirect competitors. Evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.

You can perform a SWOT analysis to find internal strengths & weaknesses of your artist business and external opportunities & threats in the market.

Based on that, outline unique selling points and competitive edge. Accentuate how your art is different from the rest of the arts, and explain how you can offer qualitative services.

Try to analyze emerging market trends in the industry, such as changes in customer preferences and explain how your art business will cope with all those trends.

You can describe any regulations or licensing requirements that affect your art business, such as safety codes, contracts, taxes, or something else.

Here is an example you can refer to draft regulations for your art business:

Operating within the art industry entails adhering to several regulations. 

These encompass [specific regulations, e.g., “safety codes for installation arts, contracts ensuring the rights and responsibilities of both artists and clients and taxation structures specific to art sales”]. 

Our studio is committed to upholding all necessary licenses and continuously stays updated on regulatory changes to ensure full compliance.

4. Product and Services

The product and services section of an art studio business plan should describe the specific services and products you will provide. It should be detailed, informative, and customer-focused.

Start this section by introducing the artist first, along with the art form they will be using, for example, paintings, sculpture, photography, sketches, customized services, greeting cards, or something else.

Describe the artist’s distinct aesthetic and style and explain how it distinguishes them from other professionals in the field.

You can also include the specific items the artist produces, such as their original works, sell paintings or their limited edition prints, or any pieces they have been commissioned to create.

Try to describe each product’s advantages and characteristics as well as how they appeal to the target market. Also, emphasize the importance of quality by including all the details about the raw material you will use.

Here, don’t forget to explain how your business will ensure that all services and products are delivered with the highest standards of efficacy.

5. Sales and Marketing Strategies

A successful sales and marketing plan involves a list of strategies you will use to attract and retain your potential customers.

Here are some key elements to include while writing your sales & marketing strategy:

Unique selling proposition (USP)

Clearly state the artist’s unique selling point, which should cover their taste, aesthetic, and the advantages of their products and services. Something needs to be said in a way that appeals to your intended audience.

Pricing strategy

Develop a pricing strategy that is competitive and affordable, yet profitable. Consider offering promotions, discounts, or packages for your products & services to attract new customers.

Marketing strategy

Draw out a marketing plan that can spread the word about your work and put yourself out there. You can include a mix of online and offline marketing channels.

Consider social media platforms, email marketing, content marketing, brochures, print marketing, and events.

You can take reference from the below example written using Upmetrics AI Assistant :

Sales strategies

Mention your sales strategy as an approach to turn potential buyers into clients by providing limited edition prints, discounts, and referral scheme discounts.

Customer retention

Describe how your art business will retain customers and build loyalty, such as through loyalty programs, special events, or personalized service.

6. Operations Plan

Next, you can craft a behind-the-scenes look into your artistic process and procedures.

This operations plan section paints a vivid picture of your creative endeavors, from your art studio setup to the tools and techniques you utilize.

First, you can explain how you go about creating your art, what tools and materials you require, and how long it takes to finish each piece.

If you collaborate with assistants or any other professional artist, provide details about their tasks and operational processes.

You can also describe your inventory management strategy, including your shipping, tracking, and storage methods. Mention how you’ll maintain track of your artwork and ensure that it’s transported and stored correctly.

7. Management Team

The management team section provides a brief overview of the individuals responsible for driving the art business and highlights that your business has the most suitable team.

You can introduce your team members including the artist, the artist manager, the booking agent, the publicist, the accountant, and the lawyer.

Even if you’re an unaccompanied artist, showcase the key individuals who support your creative journey.

Try to provide a detailed description of the experience and qualifications of each manager, as well as their responsibilities and roles.

You can also represent the organizational structure of the management team, including reporting lines and how decisions will be made. Here is an illustration of an organization chart using Upmetrics:

If you have a board of advisors/mentors who have contributed to your business growth, mention them along with their roles and experience.

Don’t forget to explain your compensation plan for the leadership team and staff, including salaries, bonuses, and other benefits.

8. Financial Plan

A well-structured and in-depth financial forecast is the most important section for potential investors, as it offers a clear insight into any capital or investment requirements, startup costs, projected revenues, and profits.

So, develop a precise summary of your financial projections for the initial years of operation. Highlight all the crucial facts investors require for informed, strategic decision-making.

For a successful artist business plan, you should include the following financial statements:

• Sales forecast
• Expense budget
• Profit and loss statement
• Cash flow statement
• Projected balance sheet
• Break-even analysis
• Business ratios
• Exit strategy

From the above, you can estimate how much finances you will need to start and operate your art business. Consider funding resources including bank loans, SBA-guaranteed loans, angel investors, or personal savings.

Here’s an example of a projected balance sheet for the next 3-5 years using Upmetrics:

9. Appendix

When writing the appendix section, you should include any additional details that support the main content of your business plan.

This may include financial forecasts, market research data, legal documents, and other relevant information.

• Enclose a table of contents for the appendix section to make it easy for readers to find specific information.
• Add financial statements such as income statements, balance sheets , and cash flow statements. These should be up-to-date and show your financial projections for at least the first three years of your business.
• Provide market analysis reports, such as statistics on the size of the art industry, consumer demographics, and trends in the industry.
• Include any legal documents such as business licenses, permits, and contracts.
• Provide any additional documentation related to your business plans, such as marketing materials, product brochures, and operational procedures.
• Use clear headings and labels for each section of the appendix so that readers can easily locate the information they need.

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With Upmetrics, you get easy-to-follow steps, customized business templates, 400+ examples of business plans, and AI support to make your business planning a lot simpler.

If you’re not good enough with financial formulas, Upmetrics helps you calculate accurate money forecasts for 3 years or more.

Whether you’re a beginner or trying to expand an existing one, Upmetrics is all you need to make a successful pro-business plan that matches your business goals.

Download our artist business plan pdf now and start writing a comprehensive plan in no time!

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Frequently asked questions, how often should the business plan be reviewed and updated.

Review and update your artist business plan at least once a year or more often if there are significant changes in your business. It ensures your plan remains aligned with your artistic direction, market conditions, or goals.

What should be included in an Artist’s Business Plan?

A comprehensive artist business plan should include below key components:

• Sales and Marketing Plan

What kind of financial information does a business plan include?

In an artist’s business plan, the financial part includes startup costs,  income statement, cash flow statement, balance sheets, and break-even analysis. It offers a clear idea of your financial health, enabling investors to estimate the potential success of your artistic business.

Is it necessary to have business experience to create an artist business plan?

Business experience is beneficial but not mandatory to create an artist’s business plan. Many artists successfully draft business plans with a passion for their art and a willingness to learn.

Can the template help in planning for long-term career growth?

Yes, a well-written business plan template can undoubtedly help you in planning for long-term career growth. Include your artistic goals, market strategies, and financial predictions, as the template can be a strategic tool for envisioning and working towards sustained success throughout your journey.

About the Author

Vinay Kevadiya

Vinay Kevadiya is the founder and CEO of Upmetrics, the #1 business planning software. His ultimate goal with Upmetrics is to revolutionize how entrepreneurs create, manage, and execute their business plans. He enjoys sharing his insights on business planning and other relevant topics through his articles and blog posts. Read more

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Artist Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Artist Business Plan

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

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Artist businesses.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Artist business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Sean’s Scenic Creations is a startup artist company located in Baltimore, Maryland. The company is founded by Sean Hanford, who has experience in painting scenes throughout the globe. Now, with the expertise of knowledge and business acumen, Sean has determined he can confidently start and effectively grow a successful art studio company. Sean believes his experience of strategic growth, marketing skills, financial capabilities, and wide and deep knowledge of painting practices will provide everything needed for long-term growth and profitability.

Sean’s Scenic Creations will provide a select studio filled with scenic art for a wide variety of clients. Sean’s Scenic Creations will be the premier scenic artist studio, providing art works to each client while supporting the strategic goals of the company. Sean’s Scenic Creations will be the ultimate choice in scenic art for clients to ensure that every interest of the customer is fully and completely met.

Product Offering

The following are the products and services that Sean’s Scenic Creations will provide:

• Scenic oil paintings from global perspectives
• Scenic lithographs
• Custom reproductions of famous works
• Custom scenic oil paintings
• “Secrets of Creating Scenic Art,” small group painting classes
• Online sales and purchasing portal
• “Studio Wine & Cheese Night” for small audience settings

Customer Focus

Sean’s Scenic Creations will target former clients and patrons of the artist’s works. They will target first-time art buyers. They will target businesses seeking artwork for interior decor. They will target those individuals interested in learning how paintings are created. They will target those individuals who want to learn from the artist how to paint scenes.

Management Team

Sean’s Scenic Creations will be owned and operated by Sean Hanford. He recruited his former associate in art school, Jan Myers, to be his Studio Manager, to assist in teaching and demonstrating art and scenic art painting methods.

Sean Hanford is a graduate of the School of Visual Design in New York, where he studied multiple forms of art and artistic expression. Sean chose to devote the majority of his works in the area of oil paintings of iconic scenes and those environments that captured his interest. For the past ten years, Sean has worked as an associate in the Rockdale Art Studio, where he was well-known for his attentive interest in clients and his beautifully-created art.

Jan Myers has been an associate of Sean Hanford for almost eight years, working as the studio assistant in the art gallery. She is known for her dedication to customer care and service. She will become the Studio Manager, overseeing all customer interactions alongside Sean Hanford.

Success Factors

Sean’s Scenic Creations will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

• Friendly, knowledgeable, and highly-qualified team of Sean’s Scenic Creations
• Comprehensive selection of art and art-related classes
• Customized scenic paintings and paintings based on photography
• Corporate interior artwork
• Large scale art installations
• Sean’s Scenic Creations offers the best pricing in town. Their pricing structure is the most cost effective compared to the competition.

Financial Highlights

Sean’s Scenic Creations is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch Sean’s Scenic Creations. The funding will be dedicated toward securing the studio space and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated toward three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs for the print ads and marketing costs. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Studio space build-out: $20,000
• Office equipment, supplies, and materials: $10,000
• Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, rent, utilities): $150,000
• Marketing costs: $10,000
• Working capital: $10,000

The following graph outlines the financial projections for Sean’s Scenic Creations.

Company Overview

Who is sean’s scenic creations.

Sean’s Scenic Creations is a newly established, full-service artist studio company in Baltimore, Maryland. Sean’s Scenic Creations will be the premier artist studio for collectors and aficionados to find scenic oil paintings from around the world. Sean’s Scenic Creations will be the primary choice for individuals who want to learn how to create scenic paintings in Baltimore and the surrounding communities. Sean’s Scenic Creations will provide a comprehensive menu of artwork, art classes and community gatherings for any customer to utilize. Their full-service approach includes an online option for customers to view and buy oil paintings.

  Sean’s Scenic Creations will be able to offer a wide array of oil paintings and painting classes to interested individuals. The team of professionals are highly qualified and experienced in oil painting and artwork sales. Sean’s Scenic Creations will remove the headaches and issues of the art collector and art student who continually search for thoughtful assistance, and Sean Hanford and Jan Myers will ensure all clients are taken care of expeditiously while delivering the best customer service.

Sean’s Scenic Creations History

Sean’s Scenic Creations is owned and operated by Sean Hanford, a former graduate of the School of Visual Design in New York He has been in the retail art sales business sector for ten years and has amassed a significant amount of industry information and business acumen. His clients consider him to be their favorite artist and have already announced they will follow him when he opens his own studio in Baltimore.

Since incorporation, Sean’s Scenic Creations has achieved the following milestones:

• Registered Sean’s Scenic Creations, LLC to transact business in the state of Maryland.
• Has a contract in place for a 10,000 square foot studio at one of the midtown buildings
• Reached out to numerous contacts to include Sean’s Scenic Creations in their portfolios.
• Began recruiting a staff of one and two studio personnel to work at Sean’s Scenic Creations

Sean’s Scenic Creations Products & Services

The following will be the products and services Sean’s Scenic Creations will provide:

Industry Analysis

The artist studio industry is expected to grow over the next five years to over $15 billion. The growth will be driven by the increasing interest by consumers in the art world and in the creation of one’s own artwork. The growth will also be driven by consumer travels globally that will increase the interest in recreating those iconic scenes via their own or an artist’s recreation in a large format oil painting. The growth will increase by individuals who work remotely and have access to their studios during short breaks from their profession, as well as those who have continual access to dedicated rooms in their own residences set aside for art studios.

Costs will likely be reduced as the increase in consumers drives retail prices down. For example, art supplies such as canvases and canvas-stretching services will probably be driven down due to an influx of new requests for services and products by the consumers. New technology in the art world will also allow the more mundane day-to-day operations of an artist studio or gallery more easily done by software designed specifically for the sector.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

Sean’s Scenic Creations will target those individuals of all ages interested in scenic art in Baltimore, Maryland. Sean’s Scenic Creations will target former clients and patrons of the artist’s works. They will target first-time art buyers. They will target businesses seeking artwork for interior decor. They will target those individuals interested in learning how paintings are created. They will target those individuals who want to learn from the artist how to paint scenes.

Customer Segmentation

Sean’s Scenic Creations will primarily target the following customer profiles:

• Individuals interested in purchasing scenic oil paintings
• Individuals interested in learning to paint or learning how paintings are created
• First-time art buyers
• Businesses seeking interior artwork for decor
• Former clients and patrons

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Sean’s Scenic Creations will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Gallery Serenity

Gallery Serenity is a contemporary art gallery featuring the artworks of five artists within the Baltimore region. The art is composed of oils, watercolor, mixed media and ceramic pieces, all held within a minimalist gallery. The gallery is broken into five distinctive areas, with one small studio tucked into the gallery that represents each artist. The sleek interior matches the contemporary feel of the artwork throughout. Tara Simmons, a long-time art patron of New York City, opened the gallery to encourage patrons of her five favorite artists to purchase their own works of art from the artists. Regular “Shop Talk” sessions are offered, featuring one of the five artists on a weekly basis. The contemporary art is often moved on loan to enhance a corporate venue or exhibition that needs an artistic touch to the environment.

Esther Savage Art Gallery

The Esther Savage Art Gallery is home to the art works associated with the early colonial settlers in the Baltimore area. Works are in black pencil or oil, with rudimentary line drawings included in the gallery offerings. Esther Savage has been a dedicated collector of early colonial artwork and decided to open the art gallery to both showcase and sometimes sell her extensive collection of colonial artwork. Most of the art collection is for sale; other, more valuable works, are not. The early art of the colonies mimics the European styles of the decades, with oils playing a large part in portrait works, along with a colonial view of still life art and the occasional landscape of the Hudson River Valley and other iconic areas.

Jameson ClayCraft Salon

The Jameson ClayCraft Salon is a small salon housed in a brick-lined building located in mid-city Baltimore. Thomas Jameson has owned and operated the salon for over fifteen years, where clay art creations are both created and sold on site. Customers enjoy the intimate environment, along with the expertise of Thomas and his staff of three associates, who assist in both the slab and wheel ceramic forms and encourage loyal customers with their compliments. The Jameson ClayCraft Salon has been the hub of classes, wine and appetizer evenings for patrons, city art talks and other intimate gatherings that offer community to all who join in. Thomas Jameson is currently in the process of selling the Jameson ClayCraft Salon to a national retail chain of consumer “make-it-yourself” studios.

Competitive Advantage

Sean’s Scenic Creations will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

• Friendly, knowledgeable, and highly-qualified team at Sean’s Scenic Creations
• Sean’s Scenic Creations offers the best pricing in town. Their pricing structure is the most cost effective compared to the competition

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

Sean’s Scenic Creations will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

• Highly-qualified and skilled employees who offer a comprehensive selection of art and art-related classes
• Customer appreciation evenings

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Sean’s Scenic Creations is as follows:

Word of Mouth/Referrals

Sean’s Scenic Creations has built up an extensive list of contacts over the years by providing exceptional service and art expertise to Sean’s clients. The contacts and clients will follow Sean to his new company and help spread the word of Sean’s Scenic Creations.

Professional Associations and Networking

Sean’s Scenic Creations will take an active role in regional and community art-related associations and non-profit groups with the goal of increasing the number of youth who learn to paint and exhibit artworks. They will also network at national trade shows to garner on-trend styles and types of artwork that may be as yet unknown to the staff.

Print Advertising

Before launch, direct mail invitations will be sent to every former client and contact of Sean Hanford and his associate, Jan Tyler, inviting them to the launch of Sean’s Scenic Creations. They will receive “preferred client” pricing within the first 60 days of business.

Website/SEO Marketing

Sean’s Scenic Creations will fully utilize their website. The website will be well organized, informative, and list all the services that Sean’s Scenic Creations provides. The website will also list their contact information and contain an online gallery of available artwork for sale. An online payment portal will allow customers to view and buy pieces from the convenience of their own home, if desired. The website will engage in SEO marketing tactics so that anytime someone types in the Google or Bing search engine “art studio” or “oil painting class near me,” Sean’s Scenic Creations will be listed at the top of the search results.

The pricing of Sean’s Scenic Creations will be moderate and on par with competitors so customers feel they receive excellent value when purchasing their services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Sean’s Scenic Creations. Operation Functions:

• Sean Hanford will be the owner and President of the company. He will oversee all staff and manage client relations. Sean has spent the past year recruiting the following staff:
• Kerrie Thomas will manage the office administration, client files, and accounts payable.

Milestones:

Sean’s Scenic Creations will have the following milestones completed in the next six months.

• 5/1/202X – Finalize contract to lease studio space
• 5/15/202X – Finalize personnel and staff employment contracts for the Sean’s Scenic Creations
• 6/1/202X – Finalize contracts for Sean’s Scenic Creations vendors
• 6/15/202X – Begin networking at industry events
• 6/22/202X – Begin moving into Sean’s Scenic Creations studio
• 7/1/202X – Sean’s Scenic Creations opens its doors for business

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for Sean’s Scenic Creations are the fees they will charge to customers for their artwork and services..

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required in order to staff Sean’s Scenic Creations. The expenses will be the payroll cost, rent, utilities, office supplies, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Sean’s Scenic Creations is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch its art studio. The funding will be dedicated toward securing the studio space and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated toward three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs for the print ads and association memberships. The breakout of the funding is below:

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

• Number of Artworks and Classes Sold Per Month: 290
• Average Revenue per Month: $48,000
• Office Lease per Year: $100,000

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, artist business plan faqs, what is an artist business plan.

An artist business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your artist business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections. You can easily complete your Artist business plan using our Artist Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Artist Businesses?

There are a number of different kinds of artist businesses, some examples include: Antiques, Art Consultant, Tattoo Artist, Photography, Graphic design, and Art teacher.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Artist Business Plan?

Artist businesses are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding.

What are the Steps To Start an Artist Business?

Starting an artist business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster. 1. Develop An Artist Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed artist business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast. 2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your artist business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your artist business is in compliance with local laws. 3. Register Your Artist Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your artist business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws. 4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your artist business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms. 5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations. 6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events. 7. Acquire Necessary Artist Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your artist business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation. 8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your artist business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

The craft of creating an artist business plan

• Best Practices

Trust us: Deciding to make some money sharing your art with the world was a great idea. You’re talented, passionate, and have the potential to start a great business. Stepping into the world of entrepreneurship isn’t easy, but we have your back.

If you’re a first-time entrepreneur, you might worry your creativity doesn’t extend to making an artist business plan . In fact, a business plan may sound like a “left-brained” task you’d prefer to outsource. 

But creating a business plan is an essential first step in any business pursuit, including an artistic one. A plan allows you to present your ideas quickly and coherently to potential investors, and it helps you organize your own thoughts. Starting an art business (or any business, for that matter) comes with challenges, but the journey is a lot smoother with a roadmap. Even if you don’t love business management, learning these skills will empower you to monetize your art successfully. 

You already have ideas about how to start an art business – it’s just time to put them into words. Drafting a business plan may not seem as creative as painting a portrait, but you’ll have plenty of opportunities to infuse it with your unique touch. It’s time to spark your inner entrepreneur:

How to create a business plan for artists in 6 steps

Whether you intend to start a small art business that appeals to your local community or become the next big recording artist topping the charts, you should plan out your route to success. 

Small or large, all business operations have to consider similar key factors before they can get off the ground. The following steps will help you translate these factors into a solid business plan.

1. Define your mission statement, vision, and goals

Typically, this section of a business plan is called an executive summary, but feel free to rename it creatively. In the first part of your plan, define your operation and introduce your values and goals. What will you achieve, and why are you passionate about it? Consider this a high-level view of your work and company.

2. Identify your ideal clients 

“Target market” sounds a bit corporate, but narrowing in on who you’re selling to will help you make product and marketing decisions. Tell the reader about the ideal client or customer for your work. If you know anything else about your target demographic – like age, location, or interests – include that here.

3. Research competitors

You may not want to think of your artist friends as “the competition,” but as harsh as it may sound, from a business standpoint, that’s basically what they are. But this doesn’t mean you can’t all succeed. The exercise of researching competitors is about understanding similar work on the market so you can focus on what makes your products stand out. Emphasize what sets you apart from others in your industry.

4. Set an art marketing plan and sales strategy

Explain how you intend to reach the art collectors or craft lovers who want to buy your work. A marketing strategy should include descriptions of how you’ll leverage major social media platforms and any paid advertising campaigns you’re planning. Talk about how you plan to use your social presence to drive traffic to your website or wherever you sell your work. Also, be sure to list out your art sales outlets, from online platforms to physical galleries. 

5. Mention your online portfolio

Describe the content of your online portfolio and outline the parameters of your professional site. If you already have a web page, tell readers what’s there. If you’re about to make a site, use this section to organize your thoughts. Will you link to an e-commerce page? Promote freelance opportunities and commissions ? Decide what content your site will feature and how it will be organized. It’s important to make your webpage accessible to customers – you can use a Linktree URL in your social media bios to link out to multiple sites, including your portfolio.

5. Make a financial plan

A thorough business plan includes financial information like cash flow statements and a balance sheet. If you’re unsure how to prepare these, don’t worry – you’re not alone. For first-time entrepreneurs, we recommend getting help from an accountant. This section is your opportunity to set income projections, determine how much you’ll be paying in taxes, and figure out the cost of the supplies you need to create your art. 

What are the benefits of creating an art business plan?

Saying “an artist business plan will help you get organized” may seem a little vague. So, how exactly will making this document improve your understanding of your business? Here are a few insights you stand to gain:

• You’ll know your market better: Researching your competition allows you to become familiar with others working in your medium and area (whether that’s the physical location of your store or on the web). You’ll understand who you’re up against – and you might also discover networking opportunities. Tapping into the small business community is incredibly valuable. Other artists may be willing to answer your questions and offer up advice. 
• You’ll set business goals: As an artist, you have dreams and aspirations. Making a business plan will help you define your financial and career goals not only for potential investors but also for yourself. Through building your plan, you’ll come to understand what your milestones will look like from a financial perspective and set a realistic timeline for achieving them.
• You’ll get serious about starting your business: Complicated endeavors look more manageable when you have a plan. Once you take the time to draw out your artist business plan, you’ll be more confident about taking your art career to the next level. Starting a business can feel overwhelming and inspire self-doubt, but your gifts are worth sharing with the world – and worth their price tag. With a solid business plan in hand, your first step toward entrepreneurship is already complete.

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A step-by-step guide to developing a music business plan

June 17, 2021

Why you need a music business plan

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Making a living in the music business is the ultimate dream of every serious musician. But out of the countless individuals with a passion for music, only a select few will make a profitable business out of it. That doesn’t mean reaching your goals is impossible. If you want to earn reliable income from your music career, you need to treat it like any other business. That means making a detailed blueprint that will take you from passionate hobbyist to successful professional. This step-by-step guide to developing a music business plan will set you on the right path.

Whether your goal is to have a career as a professional musician, recording artist, producer, or music teacher, documenting the path you’ll take with a music business plan will be helpful to your cause. Your business plan outlines your goals, identifies the practical methods you’ll take to achieve them, and lists the resources you have and will need.

Not only will a concrete business plan keep you on course, it will also demonstrate your credibility in the eyes of others. Potential clients and business partners will see you as a professional and not another starving artist. If you ever need to take out a business loan or raise money for investors, a business plan is a must-have.

Crafting your music business plan isn’t something you can do in one sitting. You’ll need more than an afternoon to get this right. Take your time, bite off piece-by-piece, and chew your thoughts over thoroughly.

Our first piece of advice is as old as time:  know thyself.

You need some clarity of purpose before you can craft a useful music business plan. Ask yourself:

• Who is my audience?
• What is my ultimate goal?
• Why do I want to do this?

Having this understanding will make it easier for you to explain your vision to others and convey your enthusiasm. It will also establish the framework for your music business. This step is crucial if you’ll need people to buy in to help you reach your goals.

The content of your music business plan will vary depending upon whether you’re aiming to start a music school, be a producer, or work as an artist. But the fundamental components are the same either way. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Mission Statement
• Executive Summary
• Audience Analysis
• SWOT Analysis
• Marketing Plan
• Financial Considerations

Let’s look at each of these in turn.

Mission Statement:

This can be as short as a few sentences, as long as it adequately describes who you are as an artist or a musical entrepreneur and what you’re trying to accomplish. While this might sound simple, think things through a bit before you try to draft your statement. Everything that follows here will hinge upon it.

Executive Summary:

The executive summary is a one-page synopsis of your plan. It should include an introduction as well as a description of your endeavors. Details about the funding you already have and what you’ll need in addition to a brief accounting of your plans for putting all of it into play are important too.

Most experts recommend saving the drafting of this part for last. It’s essentially a digest of all the other parts of your plan. Doing it last allows you to draw upon the information you’ve drafted for all of the other steps.

Audience Analysis: 

Here’s where you’ll demonstrate your understanding of your target audience. If you’re already performing, teaching, or producing on the side, think about what traits the people who follow you have in common.

If you’re just getting started, find someone doing what you want to do whose style and circumstances are similar to yours, and analyze their target market. Create a demographic sketch of your target audience based on gender, age, location, musical tastes and favorite venues.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats:

Think about the qualities that make you unique. List everything that comes to mind, from technical mastery and creative spark to teaching older demographics and networking. Your skills might not seem extraordinary on an individual level, but combine all your best qualities and you’ll find there isn’t anyone quite like you on the market.

Don’t forget about your weaknesses. Identity these not as qualities to promote, but as areas to work on in the future. Being aware of your shortcomings will also help guide your decision on potential business partners in the future. Let your inner critic loose, but realize that this is an exercise in personal growth, not tearing yourself down.

Had enough reflecting? Let’s take a look at the marketplace. Think about potential gaps in the industry you can exploit. Perhaps your competitors are overlooking a key value and you see a way to provide it both efficiently and effectively. These are your opportunities.

Threats could include technological shifts, cultural changes, the emergence of new artists, competition, and new trends. The music world moves fast, and today’s hot act can end up as yesterday’s news before your can say “more cowbell!” Brainstorm any roadblocks you picture yourself facing over the next few years and strategies you can use to overcome them.

Marketing plan:

Your marketing plan will detail how you’ll spread the word about yourself. Consider how much money you can reasonably invest into marketing and work out how you’ll spend it to reach as many of the right people as possible. Think about how you’ll grow your online presence—including social media, a press kit, and publicity materials such as a logo and photography.

Get a full account of your current cash flow situation. List how much capital you currently have and estimate how much it’ll take to get your operation up and running. When in doubt, overestimate. Studio time, engineering talent, transportation, legal fee, copyrights and trademarks are all important considerations when projecting your budget.

Measuring your progress:

At what intervals will you go over the financials to see how you’re advancing? What are the milestones by which you’ll mark your achievements?

You’ll also need a method for measuring your impact on the market in terms of the reputation you build. Social media outlets provide analytical tools to help you track these metrics. They can also help you pinpoint the demographics of your audience.

Establishing your key performance indicators (KPIs) can help you set the standards by which you will gauge your success. Sharing this information with others makes you accountable because they can look at your projections and see how much progress you’ve made toward achieving them.

Summarizing your music business plan

As we mentioned above, once you have all of these areas covered, you can then condense the information each section contains to create your executive summary. After all, how will you know what to put in it until you’ve examined all of these other areas first?

Success in the music industry takes a lot of work and a little luck, but you can stack the deck in your favor by building multiple income streams. That way, if one area slows down, you’ll have another one in play to keep you rolling until the next opportunity presents itself. Revisit your strengths and opportunities and start brainstorming ideas. If you get stuck, here’s a quick list to get you started:

Give music lessons. Chances are if you’ve got the chops to play paid gigs, you’ve got enough skills to pass on to some novice students. Giving music lessons can be a great way to add some extra recurring income.

Start a YouTube channel. With over 2 billion active users, YouTube might just be your biggest source of untapped attention and potential. 1 The platform offers users a chance to learn or be entertained, and as a musician you’re well-positioned to offer both. You could upload instructional videos or footage of yourself performing. You’ll get to keep a portion of any ad revenue your videos make. And if the right person sees your content, it could open the doors to even greater opportunities.

Explore the marketing world. If composition is your thing, you might be overlooking a potentially huge money-maker—marketing and advertising. Brands are in constant need of good video content to market their products, and those videos need music to truly capture attention. If you’ve got a knack for putting together atmospheric instrumentals, creating music for ads could seriously help stabilize your income.

Open your own studio. If you have the capital to invest and live in an area underserved by recording studios, you might want to consider opening your own. While you’re not using it for your own projects, you can rent it out to other local musicians and producers. If there’s enough demand, you could cover the costs of equipment and rent and even have a little profit left over.

Explore session work. Sure, your band is your baby, but if you’ve got time on your hands and musical versatility to boot, why not offer your services as a session musician? Session work is an effective way to boost your income, make new connections and get your name out there as a legit professional. If an artist is truly enamoured with your work, they could invite you to join them on tour.

Another important consideration in your music business plan is protecting your livelihood from the consequences of unintentional accidents. General liability insurance is key to helping you stay focused on your business. Carrying a policy also demonstrates to potential clients that you are a serious professional — whether you’re a musician, DJ , or another kind of entrepreneur in the entertainment industry.

• Hootsuite. 25 YouTube Statistics that May Surprise You: 2021 Edition .

Written on April 19, 2021 | Last updated: June 17, 2021

Our editorial content is intended for informational purposes only and is not written by a licensed insurance agent. Terms and conditions for rate and coverage may vary by class of business and state.

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RENEE PHILLIPS - MENTOR FOR ARTISTS

Helping Artists Achieve Their Fullest Potential

How to Create Your Art Business Plan

By Renee Phillips 5 Comments

It’s Easier Than You May Think!

Helping an artist create an art business plan is one of the most rewarding things to do as an art career mentor. I feel as though I am giving them a magic wand to ensure their career success. The idea of how to create your art business plan may seem intimidating at first. That’s why I wrote this article to show you how the process can be approached step-by-step.

First, view yourself as the CEO of your own artistic enterprise. When you create your art business plan you’ll experience a sense of gratification, knowing you’re on your way to attaining your fullest potential. You’ll gain financial and personal power.

Creating your Art Business Plan is an exercise that takes only a few hours to assemble and it will supply years of stability and security, unlike Dali’s limp clocks.

Here a just a few of the many personal and professional rewards you will gain from having an Art Business Plan

1. You will truly understand your authenticity and unique artistic vision

2. You will become clear about your greatest strengths and capabilities

3. You will have a plan with priorities to achieve freedom and prosperity

4. You will have control over your future rather than leaving it to chance

5. You will build a road map to avoid getting lost and distracted

6. You will automatically develop more self-confidence

7. You will minimize the sting of rejection

8. You’ll be able to work smarter, not harder

Here Are the Four Components

Your Art Business Plan consists of your creative, business and financial activities. The business plan consists of four parts: business statement; production plan; financial plan; and marketing plan.

The Business Statement This describes your business goals. It includes what you plan to sell and any additional sources of income such as private teaching and merchandising.

The Production Plan This is about how you plan to produce the art, how long it will take, plus required facilities, equipment, art supplies and hired help. Add office equipment, supplies and business services, such as legal and accounting fees.

The Financial Plan This important component encompasses the amount of money you expect to earn and the amount needed to begin or expand your business. As a rule, your operating expenses should be less than twenty percent of your income. That should be your ideal goal.

The Marketing Plan This part describes your market, your customers and your competition. It explains the unique features of your art or art service and benefits to the buyer. It includes where you plan to advertise, what marketing materials you will generate to reach your prospective buyers, and investments you will make to expand your markets.

You Can Do It!

Now that you have an overview of why you need your art business plan and what it is comprised of, you can start the process.

Also read How I Helped An Artist Create A Prosperity Plan

About Renee Phillips

Renée Phillips is a mentor and advocate for artists helping them achieve their fullest potential. She provides career advice, writing services, and promotion for artists from beginners to advanced. She organizes online exhibitions open to all artists as Director/Curator of Manhattan Arts International www.ManhattanArts.com and Founder of The Healing Power of ART & ARTISTS www.healing-power-of-art.org. As an arts' advocate she has served on the advisory boards of several non-profit arts organizations. She lives in New York, NY.

05/18 at 1:15 pm

Hi! Do you have an ebook that outlines the steps in creating a business plan?

05/24 at 10:32 am

Megan, Thank you for your question. No, I haven’t written a book on that subject exclusively. However, my ebook “Achieve Your Art Career Dreams & Goals” covers a wealth of information. I also recommend articles I’ve written: Helpful Art Business Facts For Every Professional Artist and How to Create An Art Patron Plan

11/07 at 9:03 am

Great tips Renee! Plans are affected by our personal needs and artists need to ask themselves; Do I paint because I need a hobby, am I depending upon it to earn a living or is about self expression and the money becomes the icing on the cake? For me it is the later😉

11/07 at 4:50 pm

Lisa, that’s true. Most artists, not all, who visit this site are looking for ways to earn money to either augment their main source of income or attain their goal of becoming full-time artists. They’re looking for the full course dinner. 🙂

[…] With this in mind, it is essential to prepare an art business plan as early as possible in your career and revise it as often as necessary. It will provide a solid foundation and direction, as well as build self-confidence. For step-by-step guidelines, read How to Create Your Art Business Plan. […]

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My specialty is writing Art Reviews and Art Statements / "Praise Quotes" for artists to use for promotion... on their websites, social media profiles, exhibition catalogues, grant submissions, blog posts, press releases, artists’ books and more. My writing for artists has led to increasing their art sales, attracting publicity, gaining … More...

Copyright © 2014 -2024 Renee Phillips Manhattan Arts International 200 East 72 Street, New York, NY 10021 [email protected]

How to Sell Art Online | Online Marketing for Artists

Helping artists sell their art online since 2009. Blog, guides, courses, and coaching for artists.

Business Plans for Artists: Here, I Did It for You!

Also, check out Jennifer’s book!

You’ll want to see her Right Brain Business Plan home study course .*

Not Ready for A Full Right Brain Business Plan?

Here’s a simple 4 page example plan that will help you get started.

Example Business Plan for Artists (pdf)

Example Business Plan for Artists (Word doc)

The first thing I ask every artist when we start working together is if they have a business plan. Most of the time the answer is no. Why do you need a business plan, you ask? Great question.

You will become focused. As you start planning, that shotgun approach to marketing that most artists take will start to thin itself out and you will learn how to put a system in place. Also, establishing your unique selling proposition is really important. Sure, you’re a painter, but what makes you stand out from all of those other painters out there? There’s a lot more to being an independent artist than just creating your art.

You’ll know where you stand. Your strengths and weaknesses will become apparent to you as you start to create a business plan. What aspects of your art do you excel at? What do you tend to put off because you don’t know how to finish ? Once you know where you stand, you’ll know what your weaknesses are, and this is really important. Most artists have no idea that they’re not good at accounting, or they don’t want to admit it so they run around in circles. A business plan will help you eliminate this.

You’ll know how to get where you want to be. Once you write down a business plan, it’s easy to refer back to it often to get re-focused on your goals. Carefully analyzing what you really want out of your art business is a good way to stop doing what is getting in your way.

You’ll know what other artists are doing. Do you want a competitive advantage? Are you afraid of really pushing your business because you don’t know what will make you different and make people want to purchase your art?

Does 4 pages feel like too much?

Get started with our beginner’s one-page business plan and work your way up.

This post has been updated since its 2009 original publish date.

*affiliate link

November 20, 2009 at 11:46 AM

This is fantastic! Many thanks!

November 21, 2009 at 9:45 AM

You’re welcome!

November 22, 2009 at 5:32 AM

This is a really great resource that I’ll have to share with my readers. It’s always wonderful to find other people putting in the hard work and dedication that goes into doing what you do. .-= Damien Franco´s last blog ..Photographer’s Intro to Twitter =-.

May 19, 2010 at 3:26 PM

This is great. Thank you for doing this. It’s really something I’ve always known I needed to do. I will definitely do it now.

April 27, 2011 at 8:21 AM

Do you have a business plan for dummies and beginners? This is kind of advanced. I have nothing but 5 good paintings right now.

This is my first time coming to this website. I was very confused by the business plan. Who is “I”? As in, “I help artists dispel the starving artist myth”? It took me 15 mins to finally understand who “I” is, and who Cory and John Smith is.

January 7, 2016 at 12:24 PM

I agree, this business plan is completely confusing and way too advanced and overwhelming. I really want to like it, but after reading it a few times, I’m still lost.

October 27, 2011 at 11:10 PM

Creating a business plan was one of the smartest things I ever did. I wrote down all the ideas that had been spinning around in my head but had never been inserted into my business as a whole. Just the process of writing everything down becomes a way to clear your head and see the way forward. It’s great to see an honest, physical example of a business plan – thanks Cory!

March 11, 2012 at 4:25 PM

Wow!  I’m so glad I stumbled onto this!  Just what I needed!

June 4, 2012 at 6:16 AM

Thanks for posting the examples.  I didn’t realize that I already had lists covering most of the sections.  This really helped me put everything together in one place.  Now as I get new ideas, I have one document that I can go to.  I can quickly jot it down and properly categorize the idea right away knowing that I will have it on hand for when I have time to review the bigger picture over time.  Thanks again!

June 4, 2012 at 8:01 AM

 @figmentations Glad it helped!

January 13, 2013 at 2:57 PM

Thanks Cory. A Breath of Fresh Air!!! For the first time at last…with drudgery behind me, I can now pursue my business plan in JOY!!! In full celebration of all right brainers…here’s to your unlimited success:-)

February 23, 2013 at 11:43 AM

Hi Cory & Jennifer, I totally agree with having a business plan, writing down all the ideas & growth you have in mind for your business.

July 1, 2013 at 5:20 AM

thanks for everything. i like this site so much…

August 19, 2013 at 7:55 AM

Thank you this was very helpful 🙂

December 17, 2013 at 8:32 PM

Thank you for sharing this information, it can be difficult finding business resources for the artist/entrepreneur.

December 20, 2013 at 12:43 PM

Just need help starting a creative business. CB

September 25, 2015 at 3:07 PM

hello jennifar, i a cross this because am a starting artist. gama arts in Rwanda but i realy want a bussiness plan because i know success business needs a plan. thank you.

February 26, 2016 at 4:12 PM

I’m looking forward to doing the seminar on how to sell your artwork online. I am not computer literate, so this is going to require some intensive learning on my part. I am retired and can finally dedicate my time to doing the thing that I love the most, painting watercolor illustrations. I know nothing about blogging, or setting up my own web site. I hope this is the kind of information I can access from your seminar.

Thank you for showing me my first step toward creating a business out of my artwork…

May 16, 2016 at 4:35 PM

Thanks Cory and Jennifer, for sharing this information, it’s always good to know more about how I can do more on my art business.

November 25, 2017 at 3:06 PM

It helps me a lot to have specific, measurable goals. I’m just starting to turn art into a business for myself, so I’m trying out a few different things to see what works for me, but concrete numbers and plans and dates really help.

I’ve put together a list of business books for artists: http://jacquelineboss.com/2017/11/25/10-art-business-books-learn-how-to-sell-your-art/

January 22, 2018 at 12:01 PM

I had no idea how to get this started. This is super super helpful! Thank you!

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Business Plans for Artists

Would you like to know more about how to sell art? Read our article What Is the Best Way to Sell Art?

Creative business plans for artists: what is a business plan for an artist

Art of business: why create a business plan, reasons to create a business plan for artists.

• Who are my three biggest competitors?
• What products do my competitors offer?
• What makes my competitors' products unique?
• What are the strengths of my competitors?
• What strategies can I get from my competitors?
• What are the ways my competitors use to sell the product?
• What risks do my competitors pose to me?

Business ideas art: how to write a business plan for an artist

Complex finance issues: artist management business plan

• Resources : What do I need?
• Finance : How much do I need?
• What have I already had? 
• What do I need? 
• I have : a computer, internet connection, a desk and a chair, occasionally rented space, etc. 
• I need : Photoshop, better ideas for the competition, a copy of Protools software, and your own space either in your home or close to it; rehearsal/painting/carving space, etc. 
• What can I work without?
• Can I find a sponsor?
• Can I use crowdfunding?
• Can I get a scholarship or grant?
• Is it reasonable to use my own funds?

Artist business: makeup artist business plan

• What does my audience buy?
• Who are my potential clients?
• What do my clients need?
• What is in demand? 

Business plan for an art gallery: be part of a large community

What does it take to get interested in a gallery.

Art Business Plan Template & Guidebook

As aspiring visual artists, the task of creating a comprehensive art business plan can seem like an overwhelming process. Fortunately, there is now the #1 Art Business Plan Template & Guidebook that makes this process easier than ever before. This template and guidebook will provide visual artists with the essential tools and skills necessary to bring their artistic vision to life and create a successful business. With this customizable template and exclusive resources, artists will be able to confidently create a business plan that works for them and their creative goals.

Get worry-free services and support to launch your business starting at $0 plus state fees.

• How to Start a Profitable Art Business [11 Steps]
• 10+ Best & Profitable Art Business Ideas [2023]
• 25 Catchy Art Business Names:
• List of the Best Marketing Ideas For Your Art Business:

How to Write a Art Business Plan in 7 Steps:

1. describe the purpose of your art business..

The first step to writing your business plan is to describe the purpose of your art business. This includes describing why you are starting this type of business, and what problems it will solve for customers. This is a quick way to get your mind thinking about the customers’ problems. It also helps you identify what makes your business different from others in its industry.

It also helps to include a vision statement so that readers can understand what type of company you want to build.

Here is an example of a purpose mission statement for a art business:

Our mission at ABC Art is to foster creativity and brighten spaces through our high-quality, handcrafted artworks. We want to provide pieces that people can hold onto for years to come, as well as pieces that evoke emotion and spark conversation. We hope to bring joy into the lives of those who view our art and give back to our community through donations of our work.

2. Products & Services Offered by Your Art Business.

The next step is to outline your products and services for your art business. 

When you think about the products and services that you offer, it's helpful to ask yourself the following questions:

• What is my business?
• What are the products and/or services that I offer?
• Why am I offering these particular products and/or services?
• How do I differentiate myself from competitors with similar offerings?
• How will I market my products and services?

You may want to do a comparison of your business plan against those of other competitors in the area, or even with online reviews. This way, you can find out what people like about them and what they don’t like, so that you can either improve upon their offerings or avoid doing so altogether.

3. Build a Creative Marketing Stratgey.

If you don't have a marketing plan for your art business, it's time to write one. Your marketing plan should be part of your business plan and be a roadmap to your goals. 

A good marketing plan for your art business includes the following elements:

Target market

• Who is your target market?
• What do these customers have in common?
• How many of them are there?
• How can you best reach them with your message or product?

Customer base 

• Who are your current customers? 
• Where did they come from (i.e., referrals)?
• How can their experience with your art business help make them repeat customers, consumers, visitors, subscribers, or advocates for other people in their network or industry who might also benefit from using this service, product, or brand?

Product or service description

• How does it work, what features does it have, and what are its benefits?
• Can anyone use this product or service regardless of age or gender?
• Can anyone visually see themselves using this product or service?
• How will they feel when they do so? If so, how long will the feeling last after purchasing (or trying) the product/service for the first time?

Competitive analysis

• Which companies are competing with yours today (and why)? 
• Which ones may enter into competition with yours tomorrow if they find out about it now through word-of-mouth advertising; social media networks; friends' recommendations; etc.)
• What specific advantages does each competitor offer over yours currently?

Marketing channels

• Which marketing channel do you intend to leverage to attract new customers?
• What is your estimated marketing budget needed?
• What is the projected cost to acquire a new customer?
• How many of your customers do you instead will return?

Form an LLC in your state!

4. Write Your Operational Plan.

Next, you'll need to build your operational plan. This section describes the type of business you'll be running, and includes the steps involved in your operations. 

In it, you should list:

• The equipment and facilities needed
• Who will be involved in the business (employees, contractors)
• Financial requirements for each step
• Milestones & KPIs
• Location of your business
• Zoning & permits required for the business

What equipment, supplies, or permits are needed to run a art business?

Equipment, supplies, and permits needed to run an Art business may include:

• Art supplies (e.g. paints, canvas, brushes)
• Equipment for displaying artwork (e.g. frames, photo albums)
• Digital imaging equipment (e.g. scanners, printers)
• Computer hardware and software
• Business permits (e.g. zoning, tax)

5. Management & Organization of Your Art Business.

The second part of your art business plan is to develop a management and organization section.

This section will cover all of the following:

• How many employees you need in order to run your art business. This should include the roles they will play (for example, one person may be responsible for managing administrative duties while another might be in charge of customer service).
• The structure of your management team. The higher-ups like yourself should be able to delegate tasks through lower-level managers who are directly responsible for their given department (inventory and sales, etc.).
• How you’re going to make sure that everyone on board is doing their job well. You’ll want check-ins with employees regularly so they have time to ask questions or voice concerns if needed; this also gives you time to offer support where necessary while staying informed on how things are going within individual departments too!

6. Art Business Startup Expenses & Captial Needed.

This section should be broken down by month and year. If you are still in the planning stage of your business, it may be helpful to estimate how much money will be needed each month until you reach profitability.

Typically, expenses for your business can be broken into a few basic categories:

Startup Costs

Startup costs are typically the first expenses you will incur when beginning an enterprise. These include legal fees, accounting expenses, and other costs associated with getting your business off the ground. The amount of money needed to start a art business varies based on many different variables, but below are a few different types of startup costs for a art business.

Running & Operating Costs

Running costs refer to ongoing expenses related directly with operating your business over time like electricity bills or salaries paid out each month. These types of expenses will vary greatly depending on multiple variables such as location, team size, utility costs, etc.

Marketing & Sales Expenses

You should include any costs associated with marketing and sales, such as advertising and promotions, website design or maintenance. Also, consider any additional expenses that may be incurred if you decide to launch a new product or service line. For example, if your art business has an existing website that needs an upgrade in order to sell more products or services, then this should be listed here.

7. Financial Plan & Projections

A financial plan is an important part of any business plan, as it outlines how the business will generate revenue and profit, and how it will use that profit to grow and sustain itself. To devise a financial plan for your art business, you will need to consider a number of factors, including your start-up costs, operating costs, projected revenue, and expenses. 

Here are some steps you can follow to devise a financial plan for your art business plan:

• Determine your start-up costs: This will include the cost of purchasing or leasing the space where you will operate your business, as well as the cost of buying or leasing any equipment or supplies that you need to start the business.
• Estimate your operating costs: Operating costs will include utilities, such as electricity, gas, and water, as well as labor costs for employees, if any, and the cost of purchasing any materials or supplies that you will need to run your business.
• Project your revenue: To project your revenue, you will need to consider the number of customers you expect to have and the average amount they will spend on each visit. You can use this information to estimate how much money you will make from selling your products or services.
• Estimate your expenses: In addition to your operating costs, you will need to consider other expenses, such as insurance, marketing, and maintenance. You will also need to set aside money for taxes and other fees.
• Create a budget: Once you have estimated your start-up costs, operating costs, revenue, and expenses, you can use this information to create a budget for your business. This will help you to see how much money you will need to start the business, and how much profit you can expect to make.
• Develop a plan for using your profit: Finally, you will need to decide how you will use your profit to grow and sustain your business. This might include investing in new equipment, expanding the business, or saving for a rainy day.

Frequently Asked Questions About Art Business Plans:

Why do you need a business plan for a art business.

A business plan for an art business is important to have because it will help you track your progress, clarify your marketing and financial objectives, and make sure you remain on track to reaching your goals. A business plan can also be used to outline your business strategy, including the steps you'll need to take to make your business successful. Additionally, having a written plan will help you attract potential investors and other stakeholders who may be interested in helping with financing or providing other resources for your art business.

Who should you ask for help with your art business plan?

It is best to consult with a business advisor or mentor who has expertise in the art industry. They can help you identify potential risks and strategies for a successful business plan. Additionally, you may benefit from joining an art-focused business network for advice, resources, and support.

Can you write a art business plan yourself?

Yes, it is possible to write a art business plan yourself. However, it is recommended to seek assistance from a professional to generate the most effective and comprehensive business plan. A professional can help you identify who your target market is and how you will reach them, as well as helping to create a budget for your business and developing a marketing strategy. Additionally, they can assist with developing a detailed financial plan which could include investment, income and revenue goals.

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I'm Nick, co-founder of newfoundr.com, dedicated to helping aspiring entrepreneurs succeed. As a small business owner with over five years of experience, I have garnered valuable knowledge and insights across a diverse range of industries. My passion for entrepreneurship drives me to share my expertise with aspiring entrepreneurs, empowering them to turn their business dreams into reality.

Through meticulous research and firsthand experience, I uncover the essential steps, software, tools, and costs associated with launching and maintaining a successful business. By demystifying the complexities of entrepreneurship, I provide the guidance and support needed for others to embark on their journey with confidence.

From assessing market viability and formulating business plans to selecting the right technology and navigating the financial landscape, I am dedicated to helping fellow entrepreneurs overcome challenges and unlock their full potential. As a steadfast advocate for small business success, my mission is to pave the way for a new generation of innovative and driven entrepreneurs who are ready to make their mark on the world.

How To Write a Winning Artist Management Business Plan + Template

Creating a business plan is essential for any business, but it can be especially helpful for artist management businesses that want to improve their strategy and/or raise funding.

A well-crafted business plan not only outlines the vision for your company, but also documents a step-by-step roadmap of how you are going to accomplish it. In order to create an effective record label business plan , you must first understand the components that are essential to its success.

This article provides an overview of the key elements that every artist management business owner should include in their business plan.

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What is an Artist Management Business Plan?

An artist management business plan is a formal written document that describes your company’s business strategy and its feasibility. It documents the reasons you will be successful, your areas of competitive advantage, and it includes information about your team members. Your business plan is a key document that will convince investors and lenders (if needed) that you are positioned to become a successful venture.

Why Write an Artist Management Business Plan?

An artist management business plan is required for banks and investors. The document is a clear and concise guide of your business idea and the steps you will take to make it profitable.

Entrepreneurs can also use this as a roadmap when starting their new company or venture, especially if they are inexperienced in starting a business.

Writing an Effective Artist Management Business Plan

The following are the key components of a successful artist management business plan:

Executive Summary

The executive summary of an artist management business plan is a one to two page overview of your entire business plan. It should summarize the main points, which will be presented in full in the rest of your business plan.

• Start with a one-line description of your artist management company
• Provide a short summary of the key points in each section of your business plan, which includes information about your company’s management team, industry analysis, competitive analysis, and financial forecast among others.

Company Description

This section should include a brief history of your company. Include a short description of how your company started, and provide a timeline of milestones your company has achieved.

If you are just starting your artist management business, you may not have a long company history. Instead, you can include information about your professional experience in this industry and how and why you conceived your new venture. If you have worked for a similar company before or have been involved in an entrepreneurial venture before starting your artist management firm, mention this.

You will also include information about your chosen artist management business model and how, if applicable, it is different from other companies in your industry.

Industry Analysis

The industry or market analysis is an important component of an artist management business plan. Conduct thorough market research to determine industry trends and document the size of your market. 

Questions to answer include:

• What part of the artist management industry are you targeting?
• How big is the market?
• What trends are happening in the industry right now (and if applicable, how do these trends support the success of your company)?

You should also include sources for the information you provide, such as published research reports and expert opinions.

Customer Analysis

This section should include a list of your target audience(s) with demographic and psychographic profiles (e.g., age, gender, income level, profession, job titles, interests). You will need to provide a profile of each customer segment separately, including their needs and wants.

For example, the clients of an artist management business may include record labels, concert promoters, and other businesses in the music industry.

You can include information about how your customers make the decision to buy from you as well as what keeps them buying from you.

Develop a strategy for targeting those customers who are most likely to buy from you, as well as those that might be influenced to buy your products or artist management services with the right marketing.

Competitive Analysis

The competitive analysis helps you determine how your product or service will be different from competitors, and what your unique selling proposition (USP) might be that will set you apart in this industry.

For each competitor, list their strengths and weaknesses. Next, determine your areas of competitive differentiation and/or advantage; that is, in what ways are you different from and ideally better than your competitors.

Below are sample competitive advantages your artist management business may have:

• Comprehensive artist management services
• Proven track record of success
• Extensive industry experience
• Strong relationships with key industry players
• Innovative business model

Marketing Plan

This part of the business plan is where you determine and document your marketing plan. . Your plan should be clearly laid out, including the following 4 Ps.

• Product/Service : Detail your product/service offerings here. Document their features and benefits.
• Price : Document your pricing strategy here. In addition to stating the prices for your products/services, mention how your pricing compares to your competition.
• Place : Where will your customers find you? What channels of distribution (e.g., partnerships) will you use to reach them if applicable?
• Promotion : How will you reach your target customers? For example, you may use social media, write blog posts, create an email marketing campaign, use pay-per-click advertising, launch a direct mail campaign. Or, you may promote your artist management business via word-of-mouth or by exhibiting at trade shows.

Operations Plan

This part of your artist management business plan should include the following information:

• How will you deliver your product/service to customers? For example, will you do it in person or over the phone only?
• What infrastructure, equipment, and resources are needed to operate successfully? How can you meet those requirements within budget constraints?

The operations plan is where you also need to include your company’s business policies. You will want to establish policies related to everything from customer service to pricing, to the overall brand image you are trying to present.

Finally, and most importantly, in your Operations Plan, you will lay out the milestones your company hopes to achieve within the next five years. Create a chart that shows the key milestone(s) you hope to achieve each quarter for the next four quarters, and then each year for the following four years. Examples of milestones for an artist management business include reaching $X in sales. Other examples include signing on X number of clients, or booking Y number of shows.

Management Team

List your team members here including their names and titles, as well as their expertise and experience relevant to your specific artist management industry. Include brief biography sketches for each team member.

Particularly if you are seeking funding, the goal of this section is to convince investors and lenders that your team has the expertise and experience to execute on your plan. If you are missing key team members, document the roles and responsibilities you plan to hire for in the future.

Financial Plan

Here you will include a summary of your complete and detailed financial plan (your full financial projections go in the Appendix). 

This includes the following three financial statements:

Income Statement

Your income statement should include:

• Revenue : how much revenue you generate.
• Cost of Goods Sold : These are your direct costs associated with generating revenue. This includes labor costs, as well as the cost of any equipment and supplies used to deliver the product/service offering.
• Net Income (or loss) : Once expenses and revenue are totaled and deducted from each other, this is the net income or loss.

Sample Income Statement for a Startup Artist Management Firm

Balance sheet.

Include a balance sheet that shows your assets, liabilities, and equity. Your balance sheet should include:

• Assets : All of the things you own (including cash).
• Liabilities : This is what you owe against your company’s assets, such as accounts payable or loans.
• Equity : The worth of your business after all liabilities and assets are totaled and deducted from each other.

Sample Balance Sheet for a Startup Artist Management Firm

Cash flow statement.

Include a cash flow statement showing how much cash comes in, how much cash goes out and a net cash flow for each year. The cash flow statement should include:

• Cash Flow From Operations
• Cash Flow From Investments
• Cash Flow From Financing

Below is a sample of a projected cash flow statement for a startup artist management business.

Sample Cash Flow Statement for a Startup Artist Management Firm

You will also want to include an appendix section which will include:

• Your complete financial projections
• A complete list of your company’s business policies and procedures related to the rest of the business plan (marketing, operations, etc.)
• Any other documentation which supports what you included in the body of your business plan.

Writing a good business plan gives you the advantage of being fully prepared to launch and/or grow your artist management company. It not only outlines your business vision but also provides a step-by-step process of how you are going to accomplish it.

Remember to keep your business plan updated as your company grows and changes. Review it at least once a year to make sure it is still relevant and accurate.  

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How to write a business plan for a make-up artist?

Creating a business plan for a make-up artist is an essential process for any entrepreneur. It serves as a roadmap that outlines the necessary steps to be taken to start or grow the business, the resources required, and the anticipated financial outcomes. It should be crafted with method and confidence.

This guide is designed to provide you with the tools and knowledge necessary for creating a make-up artist business plan, covering why it is so important both when starting up and running an established business, what should be included in your plan, how it should be structured, what tools should be used to save time and avoid errors, and other helpful tips.

We have a lot to cover, so let's get to it!

In this guide:

Why write a business plan for a make-up artist?

What information is needed to create a business plan for a make-up artist.

• What goes in the financial forecast for a make-up artist?
• What goes in the written part of a make-up artist business plan?
• What tool can I use to write my make-up artist business plan?

Having a clear understanding of why you want to write a business plan for your make-up artist will make it simpler for you to grasp the rationale behind its structure and content. So before delving into the plan's actual details, let's take a moment to remind ourselves of the primary reasons why you'd want to create a make-up artist business plan.

To have a clear roadmap to grow the business

Small businesses rarely experience a constant and predictable environment. Economic cycles go up and down, while the business landscape is mutating constantly with new regulations, technologies, competitors, and consumer behaviours emerging when we least expect it.

In this dynamic context, it's essential to have a clear roadmap for your make-up artist. Otherwise, you are navigating in the dark which is dangerous given that - as a business owner - your capital is at risk.

That's why crafting a well-thought-out business plan is crucial to ensure the long-term success and sustainability of your venture.

To create an effective business plan, you'll need to take a step-by-step approach. First, you'll have to assess your current position (if you're already in business), and then identify where you'd like your make-up artist to be in the next three to five years.

Once you have a clear destination for your make-up artist, you'll focus on three key areas:

• Resources: you'll determine the human, equipment, and capital resources needed to reach your goals successfully.
• Speed: you'll establish the optimal pace at which your business needs to grow if it is to meet its objectives within the desired timeframe.
• Risks: you'll identify and address potential risks you might encounter along the way.

By going through this process regularly, you'll be able to make informed decisions about resource allocation, paving the way for the long-term success of your business.

To get visibility on future cash flows

If your small make-up artist runs out of cash: it's game over. That's why we often say "cash is king", and it's crucial to have a clear view of your make-up artist's future cash flows.

So, how can you achieve this? It's simple - you need to have an up-to-date financial forecast.

The good news is that your make-up artist business plan already includes a financial forecast (which we'll discuss further in this guide). Your task is to ensure it stays current.

To accomplish this, it's essential to regularly compare your actual financial performance with what was planned in your financial forecast. Based on your business's current trajectory, you can make adjustments to the forecast.

By diligently monitoring your make-up artist's financial health, you'll be able to spot potential financial issues, like unexpected cash shortfalls, early on and take corrective actions. Moreover, this practice will enable you to recognize and capitalize on growth opportunities, such as excess cash flow enabling you to expand to new locations.

To secure financing

Crafting a comprehensive business plan for your make-up artist, whether you're starting up or already established, is paramount when you're seeking financing from banks or investors.

Given how fragile small businesses are, financiers will want to ensure that you have a clear roadmap in place as well as command and control of your future cash flows before entertaining the idea of funding you.

For banks, the information in your business plan will be used to assess your borrowing capacity - which is defined as the maximum amount of debt your business can afford alongside your ability to repay the loan. This evaluation helps them decide whether to extend credit to your business and under what terms (interest rate, duration, repayment options, collateral, etc.).

Similarly, investors will thoroughly review your plan to determine if their investment can yield an attractive return. They'll be looking for evidence that your make-up artist has the potential for healthy growth, profitability, and consistent cash flow generation over time.

Now that you understand the importance of creating a business plan for your make-up artist, let's delve into the necessary information needed to craft an effective plan.

Writing a make-up artist business plan requires research so that you can project sales, investments and cost accurately in your financial forecast.

In this section, we cover three key pieces of information you should gather before drafting your business plan!

Carrying out market research for a make-up artist

Carrying out market research before writing a business plan for a make-up artist is essential to ensure that the financial projections are accurate and realistic.

Market research helps you gain insight into your target customer base, competitors, pricing strategies and other key factors which can have an impact on the commercial success of your business.

In particular, it is useful in forecasting revenue as it provides valuable data regarding potential customers’ spending habits and preferences.

You may discover that more people are interested in natural-looking makeup, as opposed to heavy, bold looks. Additionally, you could find that clients are increasingly interested in eco-friendly and cruelty-free beauty products.

This information can then be used to create more accurate financial projections which will help investors make informed decisions about investing in your make-up artist.

Developing the sales and marketing plan for a make-up artist

Budgeting sales and marketing expenses is essential before creating a make-up artist business plan.

A comprehensive sales and marketing plan should provide an accurate projection of what actions need to be implemented to acquire and retain customers, how many people are needed to carry out these initiatives, and how much needs to be spent on promotions, advertising, and other aspects.

This helps ensure that the right amount of resources is allocated to these activities in order to hit the sales and growth objectives forecasted in your business plan.

The staffing and capital expenditure requirements of a make-up artist

Whether you are starting or expanding a make-up artist, it is important to have a clear plan for recruitment and capital expenditures (investment in equipment and real estate) in order to ensure the success of the business.

Both the recruitment and investment plans need to be coherent with the timing and level of growth planned in your forecast, and require appropriate funding.

A make-up artist might incur staffing costs such as paying an assistant, a platform artist, and a hairstylist for a particular job. Equipment costs could include purchasing make-up, brushes, sponges, and other tools, renting lighting equipment, and renting a chair and table if necessary.

In order to create a realistic financial forecast, you will also need to consider the other operating expenses associated with running the business on a day-to-day basis (insurance, bookkeeping, etc.). 

Once you have all the necessary information to create a business plan for your make-up artist, it is time to start creating your financial forecast.

What goes into your make-up artist's financial forecast?

The financial forecast of your make-up artist's business plan will enable you to assess the growth, profitability, funding requirements, and cash generation potential of your business in the coming years.

The four key outputs of a financial forecast for a make-up artist are:

• The profit and loss (P&L) statement ,
• The projected balance sheet ,
• The cash flow forecast ,
• And the sources and uses table .

Let's look at each of these in a bit more detail.

The projected P&L statement

Your make-up artist forecasted P&L statement enables the reader of your business plan to get an idea of how much revenue and profits your business is expected to make in the near future.

Ideally, your reader will want to see:

• Growth above the inflation level
• Expanding profit margins
• Positive net profit throughout the plan

Expectations for an established make-up artist will of course be different than for a startup. Existing businesses which have reached their cruising altitude might have slower growth and higher margins than ventures just being started.

The projected balance sheet of your make-up artist

The balance sheet for a make-up artist is a financial document that provides a snapshot of your business’s financial health at a given point in time.

It shows three main components: assets, liabilities and equity:

• Assets: are resources owned by the business, such as cash, equipment, and accounts receivable (money owed by clients).
• Liabilities: are debts owed to creditors and other entities, such as accounts payable (money owed to suppliers) and loans.
• Equity: includes the sums invested by the shareholders or business owners and the cumulative profits and losses of the business to date (called retained earnings). It is a proxy for the value of the owner's stake in the business.

Examining the balance sheet is important for lenders, investors, or other stakeholders who are interested in assessing your make-up artist's liquidity and solvency:

• Liquidity: assesses whether or not your business has sufficient cash and short-term assets to honour its liabilities due over the next 12 months. It is a short-term focus.
• Solvency: assesses whether or not your business has the capacity to repay its debt over the medium-term.

Looking at the balance sheet can also provide insights into your make-up artist's investment and financing policies.

In particular, stakeholders can compare the value of equity to the value of the outstanding financial debt to assess how the business is funded and what level of financial risk has been taken by the owners (financial debt is riskier because it has to be repaid, while equity doesn't need to be repaid).

The projected cash flow statement

A cash flow forecast for a make-up artist shows how much cash the business is projected to generate or consume.

The cash flow statement is divided into 3 main areas:

• The operating cash flow shows how much cash is generated or consumed by the operations (running the business)
• The investing cash flow shows how much cash is being invested in capital expenditure (equipment, real estate, etc.)
• The financing cash flow shows how much cash is raised or distributed to investors and lenders

Looking at the cash flow forecast helps you to ensure that your business has enough cash to keep running, and can help you anticipate potential cash shortfalls.

It is also a best practice to include a monthly cash flow statement in the appendices of your make-up artist business plan so that the readers can view the impact of seasonality on your business cash position and generation.

The initial financing plan

The initial financing plan - also called a sources and uses table - is an important tool when starting a make-up artist.

It shows where the money needed to set up the business will come from (sources) and how it will be allocated (uses).

Having this table helps understand what costs are involved in setting up the make-up artist, how the risks are distributed between the shareholders and the lenders, and what will be the starting cash position (which needs to be sufficient to sustain operations until the business breaks even).

Now that the financial forecast of a make-up artist business plan is understood, let's focus on what goes into the written part of the plan.

The written part of a make-up artist business plan

The written part of a make-up artist business plan is composed of 7 main sections:

• The executive summary
• The presentation of the company
• The products and services
• The market analysis
• The strategy
• The operations
• The financial plan

Throughout these sections, you will seek to provide the reader with the details and context needed for them to form a view on whether or not your business plan is achievable and your forecast a realistic possibility.

Let's go through the content of each section in more detail!

1. The executive summary

In your make-up artist's business plan, the first section is the executive summary — a captivating overview of your plan that aims to pique the reader's interest and leave them eager to learn more about your business.

When crafting the executive summary, start with an introduction to your business, including its name, concept, location, how long it has been running, and what sets it apart. Briefly mention the products and services you plan to offer and your target customer profile.

Following that, provide an overview of the addressable market for your make-up artist, current trends, and potential growth opportunities.

Next, include a summary of key financial figures like projected revenues, profits, and cash flows.

Finally, in the "ask" section, detail any funding requirements you may have.

2. The presentation of the company

As you build your make-up artist business plan, the second section deserves attention as it delves into the structure and ownership, location, and management team of your company.

In the structure and ownership part, you'll provide valuable insights into the legal structure of the business, the identities of the owners, and their respective investments and ownership stakes. This level of transparency is vital, particularly if you're seeking financing, as it clarifies which legal entity will receive the funds and who holds the reins of the business.

Moving to the location part, you'll offer a comprehensive view of the company's premises and articulate why this specific location is strategic for the business, emphasizing factors like catchment area, accessibility, and nearby amenities.

When describing the location of your make-up artist, you could emphasize its potential to draw in customers from a wide area. The area might be home to a large population that could benefit from the services your make-up artist offers. Additionally, the location could be close to other businesses, which could make it a desirable stop for potential customers. Lastly, the location could be easily accessible, with plenty of parking and transportation options, which could further attract customers.

Lastly, you should introduce your esteemed management team. Provide a thorough explanation of each member's role, background, and extensive experience.

It's equally important to highlight any past successes the management team has achieved and underscore the duration they've been working together. This information will instil trust in potential lenders or investors, showcasing the strength and expertise of your leadership team and their ability to deliver the business plan.

3. The products and services section

The products and services section of your business plan should include a detailed description of what your company offers, who are the target customers, and what distribution channels are part of your go-to-market. 

For example, your make-up artist might offer make-up application services for special occasions such as weddings or parties, make-up lessons to teach customers how to apply make-up correctly, and custom make-up kits tailored to the individual needs of each client. These services provide customers with the opportunity to look their best in special occasions, learn proper techniques to apply make-up, and get advice about the best products to suit their needs.

4. The market analysis

When you present your market analysis in your make-up artist business plan, it's crucial to include detailed information about customers' demographics and segmentation, target market, competition, barriers to entry, and any relevant regulations.

The main objective of this section is to help the reader understand the size and attractiveness of the market while demonstrating your solid understanding of the industry.

Begin with the demographics and segmentation subsection, providing an overview of the addressable market for your make-up artist, the key trends in the marketplace, and introducing different customer segments along with their preferences in terms of purchasing habits and budgets.

Next, focus on your target market, zooming in on the specific customer segments your make-up artist aims to serve and explaining how your products and services fulfil their distinct needs.

For example, your target market might include young professionals. These customers typically have disposable income and may be looking for a regular make-up artist to help them look their best for special events or work. They may also be interested in learning new make-up techniques to enhance their appearance.

Then proceed to the competition subsection, where you introduce your main competitors and highlight what sets you apart from them.

Finally, conclude your market analysis with an overview of the key regulations applicable to your make-up artist.

5. The strategy section

When crafting the strategy section of your business plan for your make-up artist, it's important to cover several key aspects, including your competitive edge, pricing strategy, sales & marketing plan, milestones, and risks and mitigants.

In the competitive edge subsection, clearly explain what sets your company apart from competitors. This is particularly critical if you're a startup, as you'll be trying to establish your presence in the marketplace among entrenched players.

The pricing strategy subsection should demonstrate how you aim to maintain profitability while offering competitive prices to your customers.

For the sales & marketing plan, outline how you plan to reach and acquire new customers, as well as retain existing ones through loyalty programs or special offers.

In the milestones subsection, detail what your company has achieved thus far and outline your primary objectives for the coming years by including specific dates for expected progress. This ensures everyone involved has clear expectations.

Lastly, in the risks and mitigants subsection, list the main risks that could potentially impact the execution of your plan. Explain the measures you've taken to minimize these risks. This is vital for investors or lenders to feel confident in supporting your venture - try to proactively address any objection they might have.

Your make-up artist may face the risk of not receiving payment for services rendered. This could be due to clients not paying their invoices in a timely manner or not paying at all. Your make-up artist might also face the risk of running out of supplies. This could be due to not having the right inventory on hand or running out of supplies at an inopportune time.

6. The operations section

The operations of your make-up artist must be presented in detail in your business plan.

Begin by addressing your staff, specifying the main roles and your recruitment plan to support the anticipated growth. Outline the qualifications and experience needed for each role and discuss your recruitment strategies, which may involve using job boards, referrals, or headhunters.

Next, clearly state your make-up artist's operating hours, allowing the reader to gauge the adequacy of your staffing levels. Additionally, mention any considerations for varying opening times during peak seasons and your approach to handling customer queries outside regular operating hours.

The key assets and intellectual property (IP) required to run your business should also be highlighted. If you rely on licenses, trademarks, physical structures like equipment or property, or lease agreements, ensure they are well-documented in this section.

You may have a unique vision and style that sets your make-up artistry apart from others in the industry. This could be a key asset as you look to expand your business. Additionally, you might have access to certain intellectual property, such as a signature make-up line or exclusive product selection, that you could leverage to stand out from the competition.

Finally, provide a comprehensive list of suppliers you intend to collaborate with, along with a breakdown of their services and main commercial terms, such as price, payment terms, break clauses and contract duration. Investors often seek insight into the reasons behind your supplier choices, which may include a preference for higher-quality products or established relationships from past ventures.

7. The presentation of the financial plan

The financial plan section is where we will include the financial forecast we talked about earlier in this guide.

Now that you have a clear idea of the content of a make-up artist business plan, let's look at some of the tools you can use to create yours.

What tool should I use to write my make-up artist's business plan?

There are two main ways of creating your make-up artist business plan:

• Using specialized business planning software,
• Hiring a business plan writer.

Using an online business plan software for your make-up artist's business plan

Using online business planning software is the most efficient and modern way to create a make-up artist business plan.

There are several advantages to using specialized software:

• You can easily create your financial forecast by letting the software take care of the financial calculations for you without errors
• You are guided through the writing process by detailed instructions and examples for each part of the plan
• You can access a library of dozens of complete business plan samples and templates for inspiration
• You get a professional business plan, formatted and ready to be sent to your bank or investors
• You can easily track your actual financial performance against your financial forecast
• You can create scenarios to stress test your forecast's main assumptions
• You can easily update your forecast as time goes by to maintain visibility on future cash flows
• You have a friendly support team on standby to assist you when you are stuck

If you're interested in using this type of solution, you can try The Business Plan Shop for free by signing up here .

Hiring a business plan writer to write your make-up artist's business plan

Outsourcing your make-up artist business plan to a business plan writer can also be a viable option.

Business plan writers are experienced in writing business plans and adept at creating financial forecasts without errors. Furthermore, hiring a consultant can save you time and allow you to focus on the day-to-day operations of your business.

However, hiring business plan writers is expensive as you are paying for the software used by the consultant, plus their time, and their profit margin of course.

From experience, you need to budget at least £1.5k ($2.0k) excluding tax for a complete business plan, more if you need to make changes after the initial version (which happens frequently after the initial meetings with lenders or investors).

You also need to be careful when seeking investment. Investors want their money to be used to grow the business, not spent on consulting fees. Therefore, the amount you spend on business plan writing services (and other consulting services such as legal services) needs to be negligible relative to the amount raised.

The other drawback is that you usually don't own the business plan itself: you just get the output, while the actual document is saved in the consultant's business plan software - which makes it difficult to maintain the document up to date without hiring the consultant on a retainer.

For these reasons, outsourcing the make-up artist business plan to a business plan writer should be considered carefully, weighing both the advantages and disadvantages of hiring outside help.

Ultimately, it may be the right decision for some businesses, while others may find it beneficial to write their business plan using online software.

Why not create your make-up artist's business plan using Word or Excel?

Using Microsoft Excel and Word (or their Google, Apple, or open-source equivalents) to write a make-up artist business plan is a terrible idea.

For starters, creating an accurate and error-free financial forecast on Excel (or any spreadsheet) is very technical and requires both a strong grasp of accounting principles and solid skills in financial modelling.

As a result, it is unlikely anyone will trust your numbers unless - like us at The Business Plan Shop - you hold a degree in finance and accounting and have significant financial modelling experience in your past.

The second reason is that it is inefficient. Building forecasts on spreadsheets was the only option in the 1990s and early 2000s, nowadays technology has advanced and software can do it much faster and much more accurately.

And with the rise of AI, software is also becoming smarter at helping us detect mistakes in our forecasts and helping us analyse the numbers to make better decisions.

Also, using software makes it easy to compare actuals vs. forecasts and maintain our forecasts up to date to maintain visibility on future cash flows - as we discussed earlier in this guide - whereas this is a pain to do with a spreadsheet.

That's for the forecast, but what about the written part of my make-up artist business plan?

This part is less error-prone, but here also software brings tremendous gains in productivity:

• Word processors don't include instructions and examples for each part of your business plan
• Word processors don't update your numbers automatically when they change in your forecast
• Word processors don't handle the formatting for you

Overall, while Word or Excel may be viable options for creating a make-up artist business plan for some entrepreneurs, it is by far not the best or most efficient solution.

• Using business plan software is a modern and cost-effective way of writing and maintaining business plans.
• A business plan is not a one-shot exercise as maintaining it current is the only way to keep visibility on your future cash flows.
• A business plan has 2 main parts: a financial forecast outlining the funding requirements of your make-up artist and the expected growth, profits and cash flows for the next 3 to 5 years; and a written part which gives the reader the information needed to decide if they believe the forecast is achievable.

We hope that this in-depth guide met your expectations and that you now have a clear understanding of how to write your make-up artist business plan. Do not hesitate to contact our friendly team if you have questions additional questions we haven't addressed here.

Also on The Business Plan Shop

• How to write a business plan to secure a bank loan?
• Key steps to write a business plan?
• Top mistakes to avoid in your business plan

Do you know entrepreneurs interested in starting or growing a make-up artist? Share this article with them!

Founder & CEO at The Business Plan Shop Ltd

Guillaume Le Brouster is a seasoned entrepreneur and financier.

Guillaume has been an entrepreneur for more than a decade and has first-hand experience of starting, running, and growing a successful business.

Prior to being a business owner, Guillaume worked in investment banking and private equity, where he spent most of his time creating complex financial forecasts, writing business plans, and analysing financial statements to make financing and investment decisions.

Guillaume holds a Master's Degree in Finance from ESCP Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Business & Management from Paris Dauphine University.

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What Can Business Learn from Art?

• Scott Berinato

How to focus on accomplishment over achievement

A look at three new books and a TV series: The Work of Art, by Adam Moss; The Real Work, by Adam Gopnik; All That Happiness Is, by Adam Gopnik; and Grand Designs, from Naked Television.

Lookit, I don’t know what they titled this essay, but I’ll bet it says something about art over there, and your first instinct, as someone seeking serious business content, may be to flip the page or scroll by. But I beseech you: Read on. If you made it to this sentence, I know you harbor at least a scintilla of curiosity, so I will now reward you with a secret that all those hardos who mock soft topics aren’t privy to: Understanding how art gets made, and why, is a path to accomplishment and mastery—yes, even in the corporate world.

• Scott Berinato is a senior editor at Harvard Business Review and the author of Good Charts Workbook: Tips Tools, and Exercises for Making Better Data Visualizations and Good Charts: The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations .

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The U.S. might ban TikTok. Record labels are cutting ties. What's music's Plan B?

I n November 2022, Isimeme Udu uploaded the song that changed her life. The singer, who performs as Hemlocke Springs, was stressing about her medical studies at Dartmouth when she dropped her synth-pop track “Girlfriend” onto TikTok. Its lo-fi élan immediately found an audience.

Within hours, Grimes commented with high praise, and fans clamored for the new “awkward Black girl anthem,” as many described it. Millions of plays later, Udu finished her degree and became a touring sensation — she opened for Muna at the Greek Theatre and, this summer, will open Doja Cat’s European arena tour.

“When it came to music, I thought it was just unattainable,” Udu said. “People talk about getting a foot in the door, but I didn’t even know what the door was. Days later, people were stopping me on campus asking ‘Are you Hemlocke?’”

Udu is grateful for the opportunity the app offered. “I’ve been so lucky to meet so many cool people who I never thought would know me,” she said. "But that can’t be at the expense of doing the thing that made you popular. I had a viral moment, but I had to say, ‘Don’t lose yourself, because that’s only going to be temporary.’”

She was right. TikTok’s status as music’s hitmaking force suddenly looks less certain.

In February, Universal Music Group, the largest record label conglomerate in the world, pulled its catalog from TikTok. Videos using music from Taylor Swift or Bad Bunny suddenly fell silent. After a contentious U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing about ByteDance, the app’s Chinese parent firm, and its potential risks for data security and political influence, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill in March that could force a sale or ban TikTok (President Biden has said he’s open to signing that bill). The Senate has held closed-door meeting on the topic, and TikTok urged its users to contact Congress to protest.

Representatives for TikTok declined to make executives available for an interview. But given the existential threats to the app, musicians are wondering whether they need a Plan B.

“I didn’t start out with connections, and that moment opened up everything for me,” Udu said. “But music is why I’m here. I’m not a TikTok personality.”

TikTok began life as Musical.ly, an app to film oneself lip-syncing to songs. Interacting with pop music was a core function of TikTok. Fans and artists shared music they loved, grafting it onto videos showing their lives and ideas. It was a lifeline to friends and culture during the pandemic.

Though the app is now a source of infinite types of content made by a billion users, countless songs — from Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” to Kylie Minogue’s “Padam Padam” — found new life there. In a new report , TikTok said that 56% of users began listening to a new musician or podcast after watching a TikTok video.

But TikTok’s benefits to the music industry were primarily in exposure, not money. Despite earning around $18 billion annually in ad revenue (in large part through videos that use licensed music), one study estimated that TikTok only pays out $400 million annually to all music rights holders. Unlike Spotify, which pays fixed royalty rates per stream, TikTok pays a flat fee to labels as a kind of blanket license.

UMG's dispute with TikTok upended that agreement.

In a January open letter announcing the threat of a pullout, UMG said that “TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay …Ultimately TikTok is trying to build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music. TikTok’s tactics are obvious: use its platform power to hurt vulnerable artists and try to intimidate us into conceding to a bad deal that undervalues music and shortchanges artists and songwriters as well as their fans.”

In a statement to The Times, TikTok said that “It is sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters. Despite Universal's false narrative and rhetoric, the fact is they have chosen to walk away from the powerful support of a platform with well over a billion users that serves as a free promotional and discovery vehicle for their talent. TikTok has been able to reach 'artist-first' agreements with every other label and publisher.”

In February, UMG followed through and pulled its enormous catalog — which included songs by Universal Music Publishing Group songwriters in addition to UMG recording artists — from TikTok. The ferocity of UMG’s actions surprised even major-label veterans.

“It was such a ballsy move,” said Sarah Flanagan, a former senior director of digital marketing at Columbia Records (which is not part of UMG). “TikTok hasn’t figured out a way to compensate artists or labels fairly for the amount of music that gets used. As great it’s been for music discovery, I hope this works, because TikTok’s system for compensating artists is either not good enough or they don’t care enough.”

Eugene Lee, the founder of ChannelMeter, a firm that handles payments to musicians and content creators across social platforms, said that TikTok could change the way it compensates musicians, but has little incentive to now.

"YouTube distributes an enormous chunk of its revenue to music rights. TikTok hasn’t prioritized that, so you have to ask, what are they prioritizing?" Lee said. (In 2022, YouTube paid about $6 billion to music rights holders). "Maybe they don't want to be so dependent on music as an economic factor of their platform. Rights are a complex problem, but every year they say, 'Oh, we'll come to a fairer model next year,' and labels just got fed up."

Yet UMG's sudden about-face, after years of accepting these terms, surprised other tech industry-watchers.

“ByteDance built this multibillion dollar company off of content including music. If UMG had said years ago that ‘you can’t do this,’ I’d say sure, you’re pissed because a company is growing off your music,” said Ed Zitron, a tech marketing executive and host of the insightfully skeptical podcast “Better Offline.” “But this just feels like rich people smacking each other in the face. Music needs TikTok more than TikTok needs UMG. TikTok has the leverage, and the only people suffering are musicians and customers."

No one disputes TikTok’s importance for reaching younger audiences today. But insiders say the app's well of instant virality could be drying up.

“The difference in 2024 is that there's no clear cheat code to work TikTok’s algorithm anymore,” said Chris Berdine, an L.A.-based creative director who has worked on marketing campaigns for acts including Juice Wrld, Peso Pluma and the Chainsmokers. “We know that this platform is extremely important, but no matter what you try to do to hack it now, it’s never consistent. Influencers don't carry the same weight as they once did.”

Some artists genuinely enjoy the creative tools of TikTok, and Berdine’s sympathetic to young artists' conundrums around it. “This mandate to constantly churn out content for TikTok — are any of these timeless artists of the past that we admire participating in this? Absolutely not," Berdine said. "But then you have younger artists that are like, ‘Of course that's what you need to do’.”

Imogene Strauss is a creative director working on the rollout for Charli XCX’s album “Brat." She’d be remiss not to prioritize videos on the digital platform where Charli's fans gather.

“TikTok is is a huge and useful platform for most artists — it works really well for Charli,” Strauss said. “We’re in the middle of a big album campaign now, it would be devastating for our plan if a ban or licensing dispute happened.”

Charli XCX is on Atlantic, so the UMG pullout didn't affect her. But the demands of cultivating an audience on TikTok take a toll too. Charli XCX recently posted a list of cringey marketing ideas for going viral on TikTok that she claims were sent to her team, like “Charli gets her nipples pierced at Claire's” and “Charli gets caught shoplifting at a mall and leaks the CCTV footage.”

“TikTok stresses all artists out,” Strauss said. “It’s a constant and ruling platform that you have to feed now in addition to all the other other platforms. The amount of content that artists are expected to make would make your mind explode. She has lot of self-awareness about that, and with that post, she’s trying to not hide those pressures.”

For younger acts who have recently found viral fame there, their relationship to TikTok is as complicated as any romance they write songs about.

In 2022, the singer-songwriter Maddie Zahm released the single “Fat Funny Friend” on TikTok. The song is a painful lament for how she used feel about her body and relationships, and it was an instant smash there.

“When I posted it, my publisher called me and said, ‘Go check TikTok,’ and I saw so many people going through the same things,” Zahm said. The song’s earned nearly 30,000 fan video creations, and Zahm has 1.2 million followers there. In March, she played a packed El Rey Theatre show.

“TikTok directed my music to who it needed to go to,” Zahm said. “That song helped me heal and it resonated. That’s the most fulfilling part of being a musician.”

Yet she admits she’s limiting her time there. “Vulnerability isn’t something I can do all the time,” Zahm said. “I have to take breaks because I’m still growing a lot as a person, and those rushes of want for connection will come, but I never want to force it based on views or likes.”

Singer Zoë Hoetzel, who performs as Zolita, built a sizable following (500,000 followers) for her pithy quips on queer culture, alongside operatic videos for singles like “Bloodstream" and “Bedspell.” She’s grateful for TikTok’s ability to let her music videos reach “queer 14-year-olds in Kansas, that’s so exciting to me,” she said.

“But it is weird to be like ‘I wrote this powerful, vulnerable thing, and now I have to package it and perform emotion by sitting in my car and crying so that people will see me and listen,’” Zolita admitted. “It’s really interesting what you’ve got to do to get people to pay attention there. It’s hard to keep your sanity when it’s such a numbers game, and to be at the mercy of this platform when you’re promoting art.”

So what would happen if no one is at TikTok’s mercy anymore?

A government ban, or a dug-in conflict between the app, labels and publishing companies, would upend assumptions about how to grow an audience.

Such a day may be coming sooner than many expected. “My reaction to this briefing is that TikTok is a gun aimed at Americans’ heads,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told reporters after a classified Senate briefing on TikTok. “The Chinese communists are weaponizing information, but they are constantly, surreptitiously collecting from 170 million Americans and potentially aiming that information, using it through algorithms, at the core of American democracy.”

Shou Zi Chew, ByteDance's CEO, said in recent congressional testimony that "I understand that there are concerns stemming from the inaccurate belief that TikTok’s corporate structure makes it beholden to the Chinese government or that it shares information about U.S. users with the Chinese government. This is emphatically untrue...Let me state this unequivocally: ByteDance is not an agent of China or any other country."

For musicians and industry insiders, whose careers now depend on TikTok, they aren’t sure who to root for.

“Artists want their music on TikTok,” Strauss said. “It’s good promotion, and it sucks for those that aren’t there anymore. But artists should also be getting paid, and yet I’m not sure it would change that many things for artists themselves. I’m not saying TikTok is fundamentally good, but the only people suffering here are the artists.”

Zahm agrees. “It’s kind of heartbreaking, I’m friends with people that have worked really hard to write songs, and given that TikTok kind of runs the music industry, it sucks to tell them they’re not allowed to be on it,” she said. “I expected there to be a new thing someday, I just didn’t expect this limbo.”

Whatever TikTok's ultimate intentions are for music, it is an effective means for artists to reach new fans, and there aren’t many others left.

Labels are trying to catch up — Warner Music Group recently announced its interest in buying Believe Music, the French parent firm of services like TuneCore that distribute independent and emerging artists (though the company later passed). “TikTok is one of the few things that does seem to touch real people,” Zitron said. “But this is a problem for all creative media now. Where do you go to discover new music? The value of a song has been reduced to nothing, and the people controlling the mechanisms are disconnected from the actual creativity."

Columbia Records' Flanagan said that a course correction was overdue.

“Artists should have unlearned having one platform being their main vehicle,” Flanagan said. “I knew people with massive Instagram audiences, and suddenly they change their algorithm and you can’t reach your followers. You have to make sure you have email, texting, Discord, Substack, all of that. Trends change so quickly, you need to be able to transfer your superfans to other platforms.”

"Is TikTok still useful? Of course. But it does make you wonder if it's waned, or if they just have too much going on right now," Lee said. "You can't be completely dependent on one platform to break artists. We have to think of a world where the platform is the artist and fans will follow you."

For someone like Hemlocke Springs, who used TikTok to succeed beyond her wildest dreams, she said she “feels for emerging artists, especially ones under UMG right now,” she said. “The music biz’s focus is on TikTok, and pulling that away from people sucks. But to solely rely on viral moments to push things off, that feels counterintuitive too.”

For her, the new killer app is a very old one — playing great live shows.

“I feel like touring is going to be an even bigger thing,” she said. “I’m going into these Doja shows assuming no one knows me, and the more I lean on that, the more it lights a fire under me.”

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .

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K-Pop Fans React To The Artists Under Each Of SM Entertainment’s Five “Centers”

As part of the new plan for  SM Entertainment ‘s business strategy and development plan moving forward — known as SM 3.0 — the label has implemented the use of “centers” in the company, with each one in charge of different artists. Prior to this, all of their artists were managed by the same production team, but beginning last year, five different centers were created with each of them in charge of different SM Entertainment idols and groups.

Center 1, also known simply as “ONE”, is in charge of three different artists:  BoA ,  Girls’ Generation (the remaining members as SM Entertainment, at least), and  aespa .

Center 2, called “PRISM”, has a perhaps unexpected line-up consisting of  SHINee (the remaining members at SM),  WayV , and  Lucas .

Center 3, also named “RED”, is aptly in charge of both  TVXQ and  Red Velvet .

Center 4, also known as NEO, is also unsurprisingly in charge of the other NCT units besides WayV:  NCT 127 ,  NCT U ,  NCT DREAM , and  NCT WISH .

Finally, center 5, which is also called “WIZARD”, has control over  Kangta ,  Super Junior (the remaining members at SM),  EXO , and  RIIZE .

Here’s a visual of the five centers.

There has been plenty of criticism against the implementation of SM 3.0, especially as staff members working at the company have shared their discontent and frustration with the way the company has been going. Additionally, SM Entertainment has been losing many beloved and legendary idols in recent times, including SHINee’s  Taemin and  Onew , several EXO and Girls’ Generation members, and Super Junior’s Donghae ,  Eunhyuk , and  Kyuhyun .

K-Pop fans also believe that the centers aren’t all equal, and that some of them are better at promoting and taking care of their artists than others. For example, the ONE center generally has favorable opinions due to the amount of promotions that their artists get, while the RED center seems to get the most criticism due to their artists’ lack of activity and apparent support.

On a forum post discussing the five centers of SM Entertainment, netizens had a lot of varying and strong opinions to share.

What are your opinions on the five centers that SM Entertainment has divided into?

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How Tesla Planted the Seeds for Its Own Potential Downfall

Elon musk’s factory in china saved his company and made him ultrarich. now, it may backfire..

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Featuring Mara Hvistendahl

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When Elon Musk set up Tesla’s factory in China, he made a bet that brought him cheap parts and capable workers — a bet that made him ultrarich and saved his company.

Mara Hvistendahl, an investigative reporter for The Times, explains why, now, that lifeline may have given China the tools to beat Tesla at its own game.

On today’s episode

Mara Hvistendahl , an investigative reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading

A pivot to China saved Elon Musk. It also bound him to Beijing .

Mr. Musk helped create the Chinese electric vehicle industry. But he is now facing challenges there as well as scrutiny in the West over his reliance on China.

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Katrin Bennhold is the Berlin bureau chief. A former Nieman fellow at Harvard University, she previously reported from London and Paris, covering a range of topics from the rise of populism to gender. More about Katrin Bennhold

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