Looking for a school fundraising business plan? You're in the right place.
A company that raises money for schools has to answer questions that a bank, an investor or a school board will ask. What does the school keep, and what does the company keep? How much cash does it need before the first fall sale pays? What happens when most of the year's revenue arrives in six weeks and a campaign comes in short? A blank template won't show you what a believable answer looks like.
This article walks through a complete sample plan for a school fundraising services company in Columbus, Ohio, section by section, so you can see the pieces fit and write your own with confidence. We cover the executive summary, the SWOT analysis and, above all, the financials.
Here's what you'll take away:
- The executive summary: see how to put the company, the ask and the school's share on one page, so a reader knows what you want within a minute
- The campaign economics: work out what a school keeps and what you keep from a product sale, a walk-a-thon and an online giving drive, so your fee table survives scrutiny
- The Ohio compliance section: see how to describe professional solicitor registration and school contracts without overstating what the law requires
- The first year, month by month: spot the months with no revenue before you reach them, and size your cash reserve around them
- The stock, cash and credit-line tables: learn how a seasonal vendor shows inventory, supplier terms, receivables and a September borrowing peak
- The downside case: have an answer ready for "what if every campaign comes in 20% short?", with the steps the owner takes in response
If you're starting a fundraising company that serves schools, read this before you write your own. The company is fictional, so take what fits your market and change the rest.
In this plan
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Hilltop at a Glance
Hilltop Giving Co., LLC is a for-profit fundraising services company that opens in Columbus, Ohio on January 1, 2027. It runs three kinds of campaign for K-12 schools and parent-teacher organizations (PTOs): product sales, walk-a-thons and fun runs, and online giving drives. The school keeps a share of every dollar raised. Hilltop keeps the rest and pays for products, prizes, event materials and delivery out of its share. Teresa Hollis founded the company and owns 60%; a local investor owns 40%.
Hilltop needs $405,000 of start-up capital: $135,000 of Teresa's savings, $160,000 from the investor and a $110,000 bank term loan. Of that, $270,000 is held as a cash reserve, $75,000 buys a van, racking and event kit, $30,000 buys opening stock, and $30,000 pays for legal work, Ohio registration, the storefront build and the launch campaign. The company also seeks a seasonal line of credit of $250,000 in 2028, rising to $450,000 by 2030, because school money arrives in the fall and payroll runs all year.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (Hilltop's share only) | $706,650 | $1,336,219 | $2,088,169 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($82,722) | ($38,583) | $114,094 |
| Closing cash | $204,346 | $148,016 | $239,350 |
Revenue is what Hilltop keeps after the school's share. In 2027 the company runs 50 campaigns for 28 schools and raises or sells $1,551,500 on schools' behalf, of which the schools keep $844,850. By Year 3 it runs 146 campaigns for 58 schools. Seventy-four percent of Year 1 revenue lands between September and December, so cash is lowest in the early fall of every year, and the plan estimates that low point for each year (Year 2's is about $146,000 below zero before the line is drawn). Years 1 and 2 lose money. Year 3 is the first profitable year.
The plan also tests itself. If every campaign line runs 20% short and the owners slow hiring, cut marketing and Teresa's pay, stay in the first warehouse and pay no distributions, year-end cash stays positive in every year and the line stays inside its limit, though modestly so.
On product sales Hilltop gives the school 40% of retail. Vendors advertise shares around that level, but the plan could not verify a source for the range. The offer is service: a named coordinator for each school, orders delivered sorted by student, and a closing statement within 10 days of delivery.
How Hilltop Works with Schools
Legal name: Hilltop Giving Co., LLC, an Ohio limited liability company. Owners: Teresa Hollis, 60%; one local investor, 40%. Premises: 4,000 square feet of flex space (800 of offices, 3,200 of warehouse) near the Columbus ring road, on a three-year lease with an option on the adjoining 1,500 square feet. Start date: January 1, 2027, in time for the spring campaign season. Stage: pre-launch. The lease is in draft and seven schools have agreed to a spring campaign.
Why a for-profit company
Hilltop is a for-profit company and does not apply for tax exemption. The schools and PTOs it serves keep their own status, and the money they raise goes to them. The company earns its living from the share of each campaign it keeps. That means no donor-restricted funds, no grant reporting and an ordinary tax return. Every school contract has to show what Hilltop keeps, and the plan treats that disclosure as part of the product.
What Hilltop does for a school
Hilltop gives schools a fundraiser that a volunteer parent can run in a few hours a week, and pays the school's share within 10 days after delivery.
The three campaign types
| Campaign | How it works | School keeps | Hilltop keeps | Year 1 share of revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product sale | Students sell from an online storefront and catalog; Hilltop delivers sorted by student | 40% | 60% | 75% |
| Walk-a-thon or fun run | Students collect pledges; Hilltop runs the event day and the pledge pages | 70% | 30% | 18% |
| Online giving drive | Three-week appeal through student pages and text messages | 80% | 20% | 7% |
Goals for the first two years
- Serve 28 schools with 50 campaigns in 2027, 7 of them from spring agreements made before opening.
- Reach 42 schools and 96 campaigns in 2028, with about three in four 2027 schools booking again.
- Reach the first profitable year in 2029, with $114,094 of net income.
- Offer each returning school a fall and a spring slot by the preceding February.
Who Hilltop answers to in Ohio
The Ohio Attorney General's Charitable Law Section registers professional solicitors and fundraising counsel under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1716. The chapter also contains exemptions, and the plan does not decide which of them could cover a school, a parent-teacher group or a vendor working for one. As a precaution the plan budgets for annual registration, a surety bond and the filing of school contracts and campaign reports. The company's lawyer confirms before launch which campaign types need them, and again whenever a contract changes. Registration terms and fees change, and the Attorney General's page is the place to confirm them.
Central Ohio's School Fundraising Market
How many schools there are
The National Center for Education Statistics counted 3,632 operating public elementary and secondary schools in Ohio in 2022–23, out of 99,409 across the country. The count leaves out private and parochial schools, which also run campaigns. It also covers the whole state, and Hilltop works within a day's round trip of its warehouse. The plan does not have a sourced count of schools in that central Ohio territory. Hilltop's 84 schools in Year 5 would be 2.3% of the state total, and Teresa's first job before opening is to build a target list of elementary and middle schools with an active PTO from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce's school directory. The 28 schools in Year 1 and the 84 in Year 5 are working figures that list has to support.
What schools keep
Vendors advertise the school's share of a product sale in their own marketing, and the shares seen in that marketing cluster around 40% to 50%. The plan could not verify a primary source for the range, and the percentage in a school's own contract is the one that counts. Hilltop sets 40% on product sales as a plan figure. Its walk-a-thon and giving shares of 70% and 80% reflect the lower cost of fulfilling pledges and gifts.
What a school can use instead
| Alternative | What it offers | Why a school picks it | How Hilltop differs by design |
|---|---|---|---|
| National product and catalog vendors | Large catalogs, prize programs, online storefronts | Familiar names and no start-up work | Local delivery sorted by student and one named coordinator |
| Online pledge and giving platforms | Software for peer-to-peer pages and event pledges | Low fees and fast set-up | A team that runs the event day and the follow-up |
| PTO-run events | Spirit nights, restaurant nights, school carnivals | Little or no cost | Larger sums raised with less volunteer time |
| Other regional fundraising companies | Product and event services in the same area | Existing relationships with principals | Shares and fees stated on the first page of the agreement |
The table describes categories and gives no ranking. Prices change often and are not quoted here; each provider publishes its own.
SWOT
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Founder who has run campaigns as both a PTO officer and a vendor's account manager | Teresa is the only person who can sell until month 13 |
| Seven schools lined up before opening | No brand; every other school starts from zero |
| Local delivery and a flat disclosure of shares | The 40% product share is low against what vendors advertise |
| Opportunities | Threats |
|---|---|
| Schools adding a spring walk-a-thon or a giving drive to a fall sale | A national vendor offering a higher share to win a local account |
| Principals asking for one vendor for all three campaign types | A district restricting food or in-school sales |
| Referrals between PTO presidents | A product recall or late delivery in October |
Principals, PTOs and Families
Who says yes
Two people decide, and they want different things. The principal approves the activity and cares about instructional time, district policy and food rules. The PTO president or fundraising chair runs it and cares about the amount raised and the number of volunteer hours. Most Hilltop sales meetings include both.
What a school asks for
- A written statement of what the school keeps, before anything is signed.
- Delivery that takes no teacher out of the classroom.
- No in-school sales of anything the district bans.
- Money in the PTO's account within two weeks of delivery.
- One person to call when a delivery is short.
What starts a search for a new vendor
A late delivery, a share the PTO feels is too low, a vendor that has stopped answering, a new principal, or a PTO president who wants a bigger goal than last year's.
What families see
A family sees a short catalog or storefront link, a price on each item, a pledge page with a goal, or a donation link on a text message. Every storefront states the percentage the school keeps, and every pledge page states the share retained for event costs.
When schools book
Fall campaigns are decided between February and May, so the sales calendar runs ahead of the revenue calendar. Spring campaigns are decided in November and December.
Winning School Accounts
From first meeting to signed agreement
A 30-minute meeting with the principal and PTO chair, a one-page proposal that shows the school's share in dollars for a school of its size, a short agreement, and a kickoff date. Teresa takes every first meeting in Year 1.
The Year 1 pipeline
The plan needs 28 new schools. At a close rate of about 37%, that means about 75 first meetings. Teresa's network and referrals bring 13 of the 28.
| Source of new schools | Schools won |
|---|---|
| Teresa's PTO and principal network (agreed before opening) | 7 |
| Referrals from existing schools | 6 |
| Conferences and association events | 4 |
| Direct mail and email to PTO officers | 4 |
| Search ads and content | 4 |
| District and cluster presentations | 3 |
The seven schools lined up before opening
Five of the seven have signed written agreements for a spring campaign. Two have confirmed by email and will sign at kickoff. None of the agreements sets a minimum purchase, and a school may cancel up to 30 days before kickoff, so none is a fixed commitment. Together the seven cover the six spring product campaigns and three spring walk-a-thons, worth $165,150 or 23% of Year 1 revenue.
Customer concentration
A school running all three campaign types brings in about $37,850 a year, about 5% of Year 1 revenue, and a smaller share in every later year. The largest product vendor supplies no more than a third of the cost of goods.
Keeping schools
The plan expects about three in four schools to book again. A returning school is cheaper to serve, because its storefront, family list and delivery routes already exist, and it tends to add a second campaign type.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schools served | 28 | 42 | 58 | 72 | 84 |
| New schools | 28 | 21 | 26 | 28 | 29 |
| Campaigns per school | 1.8 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
Growth slows after Year 3 because the spring and fall calendars fill. Coordinators can start only so many campaigns in the same fourteen weeks, and the company turns down a late October start before it overloads a team.
How the fee is set
Percentages are fixed in the agreement and do not change during the year: 40% to the school on product sales, 70% on walk-a-thons and 80% on giving drives. Each campaign ends with a closing statement showing gross sales, the school's share in dollars, and the payment date.
Getting Heard by PTOs
Marketing spend and what it buys
The first-year budget is $50,000: $12,000 of launch spend paid from start-up capital and $38,000 of running costs. That is 7.1% of Year 1 revenue with the launch included, falling to 2.4% by Year 3 and 1.8% by Year 5 as referrals take over. The $38,000 of running costs, spread over 28 new schools, comes to about $1,360 for each school won. With the launch spend it is $1,790.
| Channel | Year 1 spend | New schools |
|---|---|---|
| Teresa's network (agreed before opening) | $0 | 7 |
| Referral thank-you credits (a $500 credit toward the referring school's next campaign) | $3,000 | 6 |
| Conferences and association events | $9,000 | 4 |
| Direct mail and email to PTO officers | $6,500 | 4 |
| Search ads and a guide to fall fundraising calendars | $11,500 | 4 |
| District and cluster presentations with sample kits | $5,000 | 3 |
| Case studies, photos and results reporting | $3,000 | supports the rest |
The launch spend pays for the website and brand ($5,000), a printed outreach kit for principals and PTO officers ($4,000), and open-house demonstrations ($3,000).
Marketing milestones
- January 2027: website live and 7 spring campaigns on file.
- April 2027: first spring deliveries complete; every school receives its closing statement.
- June 2027: first fall booking calendar sent to every school served.
- September 2027: 20 fall product campaigns booked.
- December 2027: 28 schools served and the 2028 spring calendar open for booking.
Fulfillment, Events and Compliance
Warehouse and vehicles
The 4,000 square feet (800 for offices, 3,200 for the warehouse) is rented at $9.00 a square foot a year, or $36,000 in Year 1, on a three-year lease with two three-year renewal options and a personal guarantee. The lease gives Hilltop first right to the adjoining 1,500 square feet, which it takes in January 2030 at about $9.85 a square foot, bringing rent to $54,200 in Year 4. A used cargo van with shelving does the delivery runs. A van makes about two school drops a day, or about 60 over the 30 working days of the October and November window. The first van covers Years 1 and 2 with a rented truck in peak weeks, and a second van is leased from Year 3.
A product campaign from kickoff to payment
Week 0: kickoff assembly and storefront live. Weeks 1 to 2: students sell, and card orders settle into Hilltop's account. Day 14: orders close and Hilltop places its vendor orders. Week 4: product arrives and is sorted by student and bagged. Week 5: delivery to the school. Within 10 days after delivery: the school's share is paid. Cash and checks that the school collected are remitted at close, and the 14 days of receivables in the model reflect those and pledge collections.
Walk-a-thon day
In Year 1 Teresa leads the nine walk-a-thons herself, with the campaign coordinator helping on the fall events, and a small paid event-day crew, charged to direct costs at $1,100 an event, handles check-in, music and water. The first event coordinator starts in month 14, a second in month 31 and a third in month 50.
Staff time and capacity
Packing and delivering one product campaign takes about 55 labor hours. Year 1's 20 fall product campaigns need about 1,100 hours against about 1,460 available from the agency crew, the operations manager and the first coordinator. The same arithmetic in Year 5 is about 4,125 hours of work against about 4,150 available.
Desk work is counted separately. A coordinator spends about 16 hours on a product campaign (storefront set-up, kickoff, mid-campaign checks, closing statement) and about 8 on a giving drive, 60% of which falls to coordinators and the rest to the family support representative. An event coordinator spends about 35 hours per walk-a-thon. A person has about 504 productive hours in a 14-week fall season.
| Fall season | Coordinator hours needed | Coordinators | Share of capacity | Event hours needed | Event coordinators | Share of capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 368 | 1 | 73% | Teresa leads | – | – |
| Year 2 | 658 | 2 | 65% | 385 | 1 | 76% |
| Year 3 | 979 | 3 | 65% | 630 | 2 | 63% |
| Year 4 | 1,238 | 3 | 82% | 840 | 2 | 83% |
| Year 5 | 1,454 | 4 | 72% | 980 | 3 | 65% |
Product vendors and recalls
Hilltop buys from three or four vendors across food, gift and spirit-wear lines, each on 25-day terms. No vendor supplies more than a third of the cost of goods. Food products come only from vendors with a written recall procedure. Districts apply their own food rules, so the coordinator confirms each school's policy before a catalog is built.
Holding and paying the school's money
School proceeds are held in a separate bank account. Card orders settle into it. Cash and checks collected by the school are deposited when a campaign closes. The finance and compliance administrator, hired in month 31, reconciles every campaign before payment. Until then the operations manager does it. Hilltop carries crime and fidelity cover of $500,000, sized to the school money held at the October and November peak in Year 5, and the bank receives a monthly list of school money held.
Licenses, filings and insurance
- Ohio professional solicitor registration, surety bond, and filing of contracts and campaign reports with the Attorney General's Charitable Law Section, as counsel confirms.
- General liability, product liability, commercial auto and cyber insurance, budgeted at $12,000 in Year 1. Workers' compensation sits in the payroll load.
- Crime and fidelity cover, and key-person life and disability cover on Teresa, together $4,000 in Year 1.
- Background checks for any staff who enter a school, where a district requires them.
- Written agreements with every school, setting out shares, dates and payment terms.
Who Runs Hilltop
Teresa Hollis, founder and managing director
Teresa spent five years as a PTO officer at two central Ohio elementary schools, where she ran product sales and fun runs, and then six years as a regional account manager for a national school-fundraising vendor. She holds a bachelor's degree in business. Her $135,000 is eleven years of savings. She has reviewed the restrictive covenants in her old contract with a lawyer and does not approach that employer's accounts.
Where the team is thin
Teresa has not built a vendor network of her own, has not managed warehouse staff and has no accounting background. The plan covers these with an operations manager from month 4, an outside accountant on a retainer, and a part-time finance and compliance administrator from month 31.
If Teresa is out
Teresa is the only person who can sell until the first accounts executive starts in month 13. The plan covers her absence in four ways. The operations manager is deputy managing director and second signer on every bank account from month 4. The investor holds a board seat with consent rights over hiring and borrowing. A retired fundraising executive is on a retainer to act as interim managing director for up to 90 days. Key-person life and disability cover of $500,000 is payable to the company and assigned to the bank. The company's lawyer holds the executed school contracts and the vendor list, and a written runbook covers each campaign type.
Outside help
A retired school treasurer reviews the contract template and the closing statement once a quarter. The company's lawyer reviews any change to the school agreement. A regional small business development center is available for hiring and pricing questions.
Ownership and the bank
Teresa owns 60% of Hilltop Giving Co., LLC and the investor 40%. Teresa gives the bank a personal guarantee on the term loan and the seasonal line. The loan carries covenants to deliver quarterly accounts, clean the line down each fall and hold minimum liquidity and net worth.
Financial Plan: Campaigns, Stock and Seasons
The forecast runs for five years: month by month through 2027, then by year. Hilltop earns most of its money in six weeks of the fall and pays its people all year, so the cash section carries a seasonal estimate for every year. The per-campaign economics that drive the totals come first.
Funding the first fall
| Use of funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Cargo van (used) with shelving and racking | $38,000 |
| Pack tables, pallet racking, label printers and scale | $14,000 |
| Laptops, phones and card readers | $7,000 |
| Walk-a-thon kit: sound system, timing mats, banners, tents | $16,000 |
| Opening stock of non-perishable best sellers bought at volume prices | $30,000 |
| Ohio professional solicitor registration, surety bond and business licenses | $1,500 |
| Legal: LLC set-up, school contract template, pledge and refund terms | $7,500 |
| Storefront and pledge-page build, product photography, sample kits | $9,000 |
| Launch: website, brand, principal and PTO outreach | $12,000 |
| Cash reserve for the first fall buy and a loss-making first year | $270,000 |
| Total uses | $405,000 |
| Source of funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Teresa Hollis's savings | $135,000 |
| Local investor (minority stake) | $160,000 |
| Bank term loan | $110,000 |
| Total sources | $405,000 |
Teresa puts in $135,000 of savings, a local investor puts in $160,000 for a 40% stake (leaving Teresa 60%), and a bank lends $110,000 over seven years at 10.5%, interest-only for the first six months. The bank takes a personal guarantee and a lien on the van and racking, and the rate is an illustration. Of the $405,000, $75,000 buys the van, racking, laptops and event kit, $30,000 buys opening stock, $30,000 covers legal work, the Ohio registration, the storefront build and the launch campaign, and $270,000 sits in the bank. That reserve covers a first year that loses money and a first fall buy that is paid for before the school money arrives.
On top of the term loan, Hilltop asks the same bank for a seasonal revolving line of credit with a $250,000 limit in 2028, $350,000 in 2029 and $450,000 from 2030, priced at an illustrative 9.5% with a 0.5% fee on the unused limit. The line is secured on all company assets and covered by Teresa's guarantee. A line sized on receivables and stock alone would be small in September, when both are at their lowest and the draw is at its highest, so the plan expects the bank to ask for more security or a lower limit. The fallback is a smaller line plus a second equity round, or later hires. Proposed terms: the line is cleaned down to zero for at least 15 consecutive days between November 15 and December 31 each year; the company keeps at least $75,000 of cash plus undrawn availability and at least $100,000 of tangible net worth; debt service cover is tested at 1.25x from Year 3 and waived for Years 1 and 2; and the bank receives quarterly accounts and a monthly list of school money held. Key-person life and disability cover on Teresa is assigned to the bank.
Per-campaign economics and operating figures
- A product campaign sells about $34,000 at retail: roughly 360 of a school's 600 students selling about $94 each. That per-seller average sits near the top of what such programs are likely to reach, and the plan's economics depend on it, so a lower figure means a smaller campaign. The school keeps 40% ($13,600) and Hilltop keeps 60% ($20,400). Direct cost is $11,526: product at 22% of retail ($7,480), shipping and packaging at 4.5% ($1,530), student prizes and incentives at 5% ($1,700) and payment fees at 2.4% ($816). That leaves $8,874 per campaign, or 43.5% of Hilltop's share, to pay for staff and overhead. The 22% product cost comes from negotiated vendor pricing and is the figure most worth testing against real quotes. Revenue in the model is Hilltop's share, as explained under revenue presentation in the cash section.
- A walk-a-thon collects about $47,500 in pledges: roughly 500 walkers at a school of 600, with $95 collected on average. The school keeps 70% ($33,250) and Hilltop keeps 30% ($14,250). Direct cost is $4,725: $2,200 of shirts and prizes, $1,100 of paid event-day staff and $1,425 of payment fees at 3%.
- An online giving drive raises about $16,000 over three weeks through student pages and text appeals. Hilltop charges 20% ($3,200) and the school keeps $12,800. Direct cost is 20% of the fee ($640): card processing at 3.5% of the amount raised ($560) and a text-message platform ($80).
- Year 1 holds 26 product campaigns, 9 walk-a-thons and 15 giving drives, 50 in all for 28 schools. Years 2 to 5 reach 96, 146, 188 and 222 campaigns for 42, 58, 72 and 84 schools. Campaign sizes rise 3% a year from Year 2, so Hilltop's share per campaign does too, and the school's share rises with it.
- Revenue is booked when the money arrives: the month a product order is delivered or a pledge is collected. Year 1 puts 74% of revenue in September to December and 66% in October and November alone. January, July and August earn nothing. Years 2 to 5 are annual totals, so the model does not show their swings, and the seasonal estimate in the cash section applies the Year 1 shape to each later year.
- About three in four schools book again the next year. Of the 42 schools in Year 2, 21 are returning and 21 are new; the new-school counts are 26, 28 and 29 in Years 3 to 5. Campaigns per school rise from 1.8 in Year 1 to 2.6 in Years 4 and 5 as schools add a spring event or a giving drive to their fall sale.
- Opening stock is $30,000 of non-perishable best sellers bought at volume prices. Everything else is ordered from vendors after a campaign closes, on 25-day terms. Year-end stock is $30,000 plus 5% of the year's direct costs, so it grows from $47,590 to $112,332. Direct costs divided by year-end stock give 7.4 turns in Year 1 and 14.7 in Year 5. December is the seasonal low, so the September peak is not shown.
- Receivables average 14 days of revenue: cash and checks collected by schools and remitted after a campaign closes, and pledges collected over two to three weeks. Card orders settle at checkout, and the cash from them sits with Hilltop for three to five weeks before delivery. The model books no customer deposits, so it understates cash in the weeks before each delivery. Hilltop pays each school its share within 10 days after delivery, from a separate account. An allowance for remittance shortfalls and bad debt rises from $3,000 to $10,500.
- Payroll adds 27% to wages for payroll taxes, health cover, workers' compensation and a retirement match (15% for the two part-time roles). Workers' compensation sits in that load and not in the insurance line. The delivery and packing crew comes from a staffing agency at a bill rate of about $28 an hour, shown as $58,000 for a full-time year with no on-costs. Person-months of crew are 8, 13, 16, 21 and 25 over the five years, weighted to October and November. The operations manager earns $68,000. Each accounts executive is shown at $64,000, a $52,000 base plus about $12,000 of commission at plan volume. Wages are launch rates, and annual pay raises of 3% are charged as a separate line from Year 2.
- Packing and delivering a product campaign takes about 55 labor hours: sorting by student, bagging, loading and driving to the school. Year 1's 20 fall product campaigns need about 1,100 hours against about 1,460 available from the crew, the operations manager and the coordinator. Year 5's 75 need about 4,125 against about 4,150. Coordinator desk work is counted separately in the operating plan.
- One van makes about two school drops a day, or about 60 over the 30 working days of the October and November delivery window. The first van covers Years 1 and 2 with a rented truck in peak weeks. A second van is leased from Year 3, when fall deliveries pass 50. The rented-truck and lease line grows from $4,000 to $18,000.
- Rent is 4,000 square feet of flex space (800 for offices, 3,200 for the warehouse) at $9.00 a square foot a year, $36,000 in Year 1, rising 3% a year to $9.55 in Year 3. From January 2030 the company takes an adjoining 1,500 square feet on the lease's expansion option, so it holds 5,500 square feet at about $9.85, or $54,200 in Year 4. The rate is a planning figure and a market rent may differ. Utilities are separate.
- Tax is charged at the 21% federal corporate rate. Losses carry forward and may offset no more than 80% of a later year's taxable income, and Year 3 shows $6,058 of tax. State income tax is set at zero because Ohio does not tax corporate income. Ohio's commercial activity tax on gross receipts and the sales tax on product sales are not modeled, and the company's accountant would confirm both before launch. Start-up costs are expensed at opening in the profit table but left out of taxable income, which is cautious: federal rules generally allow only a small immediate deduction and spread the rest over 15 years. The LLC could elect S corporation treatment, which moves tax to its owners.
- Owner distributions of $40,000 in Year 4 and $60,000 in Year 5 are paid from cash the model shows the company can spare. The term loan stays in place rather than being repaid early.
Revenue by campaign type
| Revenue stream | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product sale campaigns (company share of sales) | $530,400 | $966,552 | $1,471,680 | $1,917,080 | $2,296,038 |
| Walk-a-thons and fun runs (company share of pledges) | $128,250 | $264,195 | $453,535 | $622,854 | $737,771 |
| Online giving drives (company fee) | $48,000 | $105,472 | $162,954 | $216,797 | $273,724 |
| Total revenue | $706,650 | $1,336,219 | $2,088,169 | $2,756,731 | $3,307,533 |
| Growth on prior year | – | 89% | 56% | 32% | 20% |
Product campaigns are the base, at 75% of Year 1 revenue and 69% of Year 5. Walk-a-thons rise from 18% to 22% because their count grows faster (9 to 46 events, against 26 to 100 product campaigns), and giving drives move from 7% to 8% as schools add one to a fall sale. A drive for a school that already runs a product sale takes a coordinator a few hours and starts no new sales cycle.
Month by month in 2027
| Month | Product sale campaigns (company share of sales) | Walk-a-thons and fun runs (company share of pledges) | Online giving drives (company fee) | Total revenue | EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2027 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($31,868) |
| Feb 2027 | $0 | $0 | $3,200 | $3,200 | ($30,261) |
| Mar 2027 | $20,400 | $0 | $3,200 | $23,600 | ($20,017) |
| Apr 2027 | $61,200 | $14,250 | $6,400 | $81,850 | $9,233 |
| May 2027 | $40,800 | $14,250 | $3,200 | $58,250 | ($2,618) |
| Jun 2027 | $0 | $14,250 | $0 | $14,250 | ($24,712) |
| Jul 2027 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($31,868) |
| Aug 2027 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($31,868) |
| Sep 2027 | $20,400 | $0 | $3,200 | $23,600 | ($20,017) |
| Oct 2027 | $163,200 | $42,750 | $6,400 | $212,350 | $74,764 |
| Nov 2027 | $204,000 | $42,750 | $9,600 | $256,350 | $96,859 |
| Dec 2027 | $20,400 | $0 | $12,800 | $33,200 | ($15,197) |
No revenue arrives in January, July or August. Spring brings $177,950 between March and June, and September to December brings $525,500. EBITDA, which is profit before interest, depreciation and tax, is positive only in April, October and November, and negative in the other nine months. The lowest month-end cash balance falls in Oct, at about $48,000 after allowing for the 14 days schools take to remit. That is thin for a company that has just spent a year of reserve, which is why the seasonal line is available from the first day.
Staff and seasonal crew
| Role | Annual wage | Starts | Year 1 end | Year 2 end | Year 3 end | Year 4 end | Year 5 end |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founder and managing director | $80,000 | Month 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Operations and fulfillment manager | $68,000 | Month 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Delivery and packing crew (staffing agency; peak months only) | $58,000 | Month 4 | – | – | – | – | – |
| School campaign coordinator | $48,000 | Month 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| School accounts executive (base plus commission) | $64,000 | Month 13 | – | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Walk-a-thon and event coordinator | $46,000 | Month 14 | – | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Family support representative (part time, 25 hours a week) | $26,000 | Month 19 | – | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Second campaign coordinator | $48,000 | Month 20 | – | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Second event coordinator | $46,000 | Month 31 | – | – | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Finance and compliance administrator (part time, 20 hours a week) | $30,000 | Month 31 | – | – | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Third campaign coordinator | $50,000 | Month 32 | – | – | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Fulfillment associate | $38,000 | Month 33 | – | – | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Second school accounts executive (base plus commission) | $64,000 | Month 45 | – | – | – | 1 | 1 |
| Third event coordinator | $46,000 | Month 50 | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Fourth campaign coordinator | $50,000 | Month 56 | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Total payroll incl. on-costs | $235,517 | $486,935 | $645,818 | $812,753 | $966,283 |
Teresa sells, runs the nine walk-a-thons and manages school relationships alone until April, when the operations and fulfillment manager joins ahead of the spring deliveries. A campaign coordinator starts in month 7 to prepare the fall. In Year 2 the accounts executive (month 13), event coordinator (month 14), part-time family support representative (month 19) and a second campaign coordinator (month 20) arrive. Year 3 adds a second event coordinator and the part-time finance and compliance administrator (month 31), a third campaign coordinator (month 32) and a fulfillment associate (month 33). The second accounts executive follows in month 45, a third event coordinator in month 50 and a fourth campaign coordinator in month 56. Each hire is timed to the fall that needs it. The crew is shown at the cost of a full-time year and paid only for the peak months.
Profit and loss
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $706,650 | $1,336,219 | $2,088,169 | $2,756,731 | $3,307,533 |
| Direct costs (product, shipping and packaging, prizes, event materials, payment fees) | ($351,804) | ($665,233) | ($1,039,589) | ($1,372,431) | ($1,646,646) |
| Gross profit | $354,846 | $670,986 | $1,048,580 | $1,384,300 | $1,660,887 |
| Payroll incl. on-costs | ($235,517) | ($486,935) | ($645,818) | ($812,753) | ($966,283) |
| Rent | ($36,000) | ($37,100) | ($38,200) | ($54,200) | ($55,800) |
| Utilities | ($4,200) | ($4,400) | ($4,600) | ($6,000) | ($6,300) |
| Marketing | ($38,000) | ($44,000) | ($50,000) | ($54,000) | ($58,000) |
| Insurance | ($12,000) | ($14,500) | ($17,000) | ($19,500) | ($21,500) |
| Professional fees | ($7,000) | ($8,000) | ($9,000) | ($10,000) | ($11,000) |
| Software subscriptions | ($15,000) | ($19,000) | ($23,000) | ($26,000) | ($28,000) |
| Ohio solicitor registration, bond, campaign filings and legal review | ($4,500) | ($4,800) | ($5,200) | ($5,600) | ($6,000) |
| Damaged goods, reship credits and unsold-stock write-offs | ($5,000) | ($8,000) | ($11,000) | ($13,500) | ($16,000) |
| Van fuel, tolls and maintenance | ($7,500) | ($9,500) | ($11,500) | ($13,500) | ($15,000) |
| Background checks and school-visitor compliance | ($1,200) | ($1,800) | ($2,400) | ($3,000) | ($3,400) |
| Phones, supplies and travel to schools | ($4,500) | ($5,800) | ($7,000) | ($8,000) | ($8,800) |
| School remittance shortfalls and bad debt | ($3,000) | ($5,000) | ($7,000) | ($9,000) | ($10,500) |
| Second van lease from Year 3 and peak-week truck rental | ($4,000) | ($9,000) | ($14,000) | ($16,000) | ($18,000) |
| Crime and fidelity bond and key-person life and disability cover | ($4,000) | ($4,400) | ($4,800) | ($5,200) | ($5,600) |
| Seasonal line of credit: interest and fees | ($1,000) | ($4,700) | ($10,000) | ($8,900) | ($7,200) |
| Equipment replacement and new-hire kit | $0 | ($4,000) | ($6,000) | ($9,000) | ($7,000) |
| Annual pay raises (3% a year) | $0 | ($14,608) | ($39,330) | ($75,364) | ($121,277) |
| EBITDA | ($27,570) | ($14,557) | $142,732 | $234,783 | $295,227 |
| Depreciation | ($13,733) | ($13,733) | ($13,733) | ($13,733) | ($13,733) |
| Interest | ($11,419) | ($10,293) | ($8,846) | ($7,240) | ($5,457) |
| Income tax | $0 | $0 | ($6,058) | ($44,900) | ($57,968) |
| Net income before start-up costs | ($52,722) | ($38,583) | $114,094 | $168,909 | $218,069 |
| Start-up costs expensed at opening (legal, licensing, storefront build, launch marketing) | ($30,000) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($82,722) | ($38,583) | $114,094 | $168,909 | $218,069 |
Year 1 loses $52,722 before start-up costs and $82,722 after them, because the founder, the operations manager and a coordinator are paid for months in which no school money arrives. Year 2 loses $38,583 as revenue nearly doubles and four hires land. Year 3 is the first profitable year, at $114,094 and an EBITDA margin of 6.8%. Tax is $6,058 in Year 3 because the 80% limit leaves part of the profit taxable, and $44,900 in Year 4 once the losses are used. The EBITDA margin reaches 8.5% in Year 4 and 8.9% in Year 5, even with the rent step in Year 4 and a pay-rise line that grows from $14,608 in Year 2 to $121,277 in Year 5.
Cash movements and the seasonal line
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash from operations | ($119,587) | ($43,202) | $105,909 | $163,155 | $215,747 |
| Van, racking and event kit | ($75,000) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Funding received | $405,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Loan principal repaid | ($6,067) | ($13,128) | ($14,575) | ($16,181) | ($17,964) |
| Owner distributions | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($40,000) | ($60,000) |
| Net change in cash | $204,346 | ($56,329) | $91,334 | $106,974 | $137,782 |
| Closing cash | $204,346 | $148,016 | $239,350 | $346,324 | $484,106 |
Year-end cash stays above zero in all five years, and the lowest year-end figure is $148,016 at the end of Year 2. Owner distributions begin in Year 4. Year-end figures hide the real low point, which comes in September, after eight months of payroll and before the fall deliveries. The table below applies the Year 1 revenue shape to each later year, spreads each year's costs evenly and ties December to the model's closing cash. It is an estimate, and it books no customer deposits, which makes it cautious.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest month, before the line | Oct | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep |
| Cash at that point | $48,089 | ($145,845) | ($264,474) | ($285,062) | ($266,518) |
| Peak draw on the line to hold $25,000 | $0 | $170,845 | $289,474 | $310,062 | $291,518 |
| Line limit | $250,000 | $250,000 | $350,000 | $450,000 | $450,000 |
| Peak draw in the 20% downside case | $0 | $138,654 | $271,740 | $381,946 | $424,132 |
In every year the line is back to zero by November, when the fall deliveries are paid for, so the clean-down covenant is met in the base and downside cases. In the downside case the draw reaches 94% of the limit in Year 5 and 78% in Year 3, so a lender who cut the limit would force a second raise or fewer hires.
Revenue presentation. The tables show Hilltop's share of each campaign, because that is what the company earns and keeps. Hilltop buys, stores and ships the product and carries the risk of damaged or unsold stock, so an accountant may conclude that it is the principal and should report gross sales, with the school's share as a cost. On that basis Year 1 would show $1,551,500 of sales and pledges (26 product campaigns at $34,000, 9 walk-a-thons at $47,500 and 15 giving drives at $16,000) and $844,850 paid to schools, with profit unchanged. Sales tax on product sales, who collects it and whether the school's share forms part of the taxable price are questions for the Ohio Department of Taxation and the company's accountant, and gross receipts for the commercial activity tax could include the school's share. None of this is modeled.
Balance sheet with stock
| At year end | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash | $204,346 | $148,016 | $239,350 | $346,324 | $484,106 |
| Accounts receivable | $27,104 | $51,252 | $80,094 | $105,738 | $126,864 |
| Inventory (non-perishable stock) | $47,590 | $63,262 | $81,979 | $98,622 | $112,332 |
| Van, racking and event kit (net) | $61,267 | $47,533 | $33,800 | $20,067 | $6,333 |
| Total assets | $340,307 | $310,063 | $435,224 | $570,750 | $729,636 |
| Accounts payable (vendors on 25-day terms) | $24,096 | $45,564 | $71,205 | $94,002 | $112,784 |
| Bank loan | $103,933 | $90,805 | $76,230 | $60,050 | $42,085 |
| Paid-in capital | $295,000 | $295,000 | $295,000 | $295,000 | $295,000 |
| Retained earnings | ($82,722) | ($121,306) | ($7,211) | $121,698 | $279,767 |
| Total liabilities and equity | $340,307 | $310,063 | $435,224 | $570,750 | $729,636 |
Margins, break-even and stock turns
| Measure | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EBITDA margin | -3.9% | -1.1% | 6.8% | 8.5% | 8.9% |
| Net margin (before start-up costs) | -7.5% | -2.9% | 5.5% | 6.1% | 6.6% |
| Payroll incl. pay raises as share of revenue | 33% | 38% | 33% | 32% | 33% |
| Revenue per full-time equivalent at year end | $235,550 | $205,572 | $208,817 | $250,612 | $254,426 |
| Average monthly revenue | $58,888 | $111,352 | $174,014 | $229,728 | $275,628 |
| Monthly revenue needed to cover operating costs | $63,463 | $113,767 | $150,327 | $190,765 | $226,634 |
| Debt service cover (EBITDA / interest + principal) | -1.6x | -0.6x | 6.1x | 10.0x | 12.6x |
Operating costs are covered when average monthly revenue passes the figure in the row beneath it. Year 1 averages $58,888 against $63,463 needed, and Year 2 averages $111,352 against $113,767, so both lose money. Year 3 averages $174,014 against $150,327. Debt service cover is negative in the first two years because EBITDA is negative while interest is due, so the bank would waive the test for those years, and it passes comfortably from Year 3.
If every campaign type falls 20% short
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $565,320 | $1,068,975 | $1,670,535 | $2,205,385 | $2,646,026 |
| Net income before start-up costs | ($95,772) | ($29,545) | $40,052 | $27,767 | $92,556 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($125,772) | ($29,545) | $40,052 | $27,767 | $92,556 |
| Closing cash | $165,416 | $121,796 | $143,471 | $153,200 | $228,681 |
This case cuts every campaign line by 20% in every year. The response: every hire from month 13 starts six months later, the second accounts executive, the third event coordinator and the fourth campaign coordinator are dropped, marketing is cut by 20%, Teresa takes a 20% pay cut, the company stays in its first warehouse and no distributions are paid. Product and event costs fall with sales. On those terms the company ends every year with cash in the bank, at no less than $121,796, and is profitable from Year 3, though modestly: Year 3 earns $40,052. Equity ends Year 1 at $169,228, against $295,000 paid in, and the company would tell the bank early. The seasonal table in the cash section shows the downside draw on the line. Without the response, the same shortfall takes year-end cash below zero in Year 2, to about ($49,000), and it falls to about ($412,000) by Year 5, before any seasonal draw.
Sources
- National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, operating public schools by state, 2022–23: 3,632 in Ohio and 99,409 nationally.
- Ohio Attorney General, Charitable Law Section, Professional fundraisers: registration of professional solicitors and fundraising counsel under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1716. This page did not load when checked, so the plan quotes no fee or bond amount; confirm the current terms, exemptions and forms there.
- Ohio Department of Taxation, tax.ohio.gov: Ohio taxes business through a gross-receipts tax and a sales tax. The plan quotes no threshold or rate; confirm them with a tax adviser.
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