Freight Broker Business Plan Sample

Do you want to start Freight Broker business plan?

Do you want to learn how to start a freight broker company? If so, you’re in the right place. This business plan for freight broker will teach everything from how to start a freight brokerage to all the management operations needed. The best thing about freight broker business is that you don’t need a ton of experience to get started. All you need are some street smarts and a good business plan.

In this document, we will be explaining how to develop a good business plan that can guide your company. You can also follow the business plan of a related business like business plan for real estate or an import/export business plan for more examples. Here, we will provide the business plan of Carry On, a Freight Brokerage Startup operating in Newark, New Jersey.

Executive Summary

2.1 The Business

Carry On will be a freight broker startup started by Harry Doofenshmirtz. The startup will aim to provide freight brokerage services to various producers and distributors around Newark, New Jersey. The business will ensure that the shipment from shippers is adequately handled and delivered by the Cargo company.

2.2 Management of Freight Broker Company

To make sure that every aspect of the freight broker startup is managed properly, efficient planning needs to be done. And what better way to learn how to start your own freight brokerage business than through a business plan. A business plan will answer your question about “what do you need to start a freight brokerage”?

Since this is a business plan for a startup, it will also tell you how to become a freight broker from home. You can use this as a guide to make business plans for investment. That way, you can put a planned-out persona in front of your investors.

Apart from this plan, you can also refer to a related business plan like a non-emergency medical transportation business plan as it has similar services to the business at hand.

2.3 Customers of Freight Broker Company

The customers of Carry On will belong to all industry domains including clothing, sports goods, and furniture, etc. However, our most prominent customers will include:

• Carriers
• Producers
• Distributors
• Manufacturers
• Import/Export Business

2.4 Business Target

Our target is to become a reliable and trusted freight brokerage in town connecting suppliers to carriers when they most need it.

Our financial targets to meet for the five years of launch are demonstrated below:

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Company Summary

3.1 Company Owner

Harry Doofenshmirtz will be the owner of Carry On. He attained a business diploma from a local college and then worked up his way in a distribution warehouse. However, he wanted to start his own business. So, after much thought, he left his post and started Carry On.

3.2 Why the Freight Broker company is being started

Through his job, Harry noticed that most of the good companies around him suffered because of a lack of good carriers. It seemed that even though there were carrier companies available, it was much too time consuming for a company to compare their merits. So, Harry decided to bridge this communication and time gap between the two domains by starting a freight broker business of his own.

3.3 How the Freight Broker company will be started

Step1: Plan Everything

One of the first steps when learning how to start a freight broker business is to plan out everything. Every aspect of the business should be planned in some detail beforehand to avoid any big surprises. For planning your business, you can use this freight broker business plan sample for Carry On. You can also use a Muskoka airport business plan for guidance as it has the same structure. In this freight broker business plan pdf, the entire start up of Carry On will be planned out.

Step2: Define the Brand

The next step after planning the operations is to advertise the business so that it attracts customers. At this time, you should develop a brand image for your company and highlight its human aspirations and values to attract more people.

Step3: Establish Your Corporate Office

To start of the business, Harry rented out an office space in the marketing sector of town. He will now work to hire employees and make contacts with shippers and carriers.

Step4: Establish a Web Presence

For this purpose, Harry decided he will get a one-page website developed through which customers will be able to contact the business. He also decided to establish social media presence for his business.

Step5: Promote and Market

The last step is to develop a thorough marketing plan for your company and then stick to it for advertising your business.

Start-up Expenses
Legal	$122,800
Consultants	$0
Insurance	$23,000
Rent	$32,280
Research and Development	$10,000
Expensed Equipment	$57,800
Signs	$3,400
TOTAL START-UP EXPENSES	$249,280
Start-up Assets	$222,800
Cash Required	$209,000
Start-up Inventory	$39,000
Other Current Assets	$278,000
Long-term Assets	$282,800
TOTAL ASSETS	$1,031,600
Total Requirements	$1,280,880
START-UP FUNDING
Start-up Expenses to Fund	$249,280
Start-up Assets to Fund	$1,031,600
TOTAL FUNDING REQUIRED	$1,280,880
Assets
Non-cash Assets from Start-up	$1,293,400
Cash Requirements from Start-up	$122,800
Additional Cash Raised	$50,000
Cash Balance on Starting Date	$35,000
TOTAL ASSETS	$1,501,200
Liabilities and Capital
Liabilities	$18,000
Current Borrowing	$0
Long-term Liabilities	$0
Accounts Payable (Outstanding Bills)	$52,200
Other Current Liabilities (interest-free)	$0
TOTAL LIABILITIES	$70,200
Capital
Planned Investment	$1,280,880
Investor 1	$0
Investor 2	$0
Other	$0
Additional Investment Requirement	$0
TOTAL PLANNED INVESTMENT	$1,280,880
Loss at Start-up (Start-up Expenses)	$150,120
TOTAL CAPITAL	$1,431,000
TOTAL CAPITAL AND LIABILITIES	$1,501,200
Total Funding	$1,280,880

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Services

Before you start your freight broker business startup, you need to know some details. There are requirements to become a freight broker and one of these requirements happens to be deciding services. For getting a freight broker license, you will need to know several details of your business. That way you can plan everything effectively.

Here, we are providing the service details of freight brokerage business plan. You can also look at something similar like atravel agency business plan for guidance. In this free freight broker business plan, the services offered by Carry On will be:

• Networking

One of the main jobs of Carry On as a freight brokerage will be to connect carriers with the supplier customers they need and vice versa.

• Carrier Evaluations

Carry Out will evaluate all the carriers available for the job required by the shipper to make sure that each shipper is matched with the best carrier. The company will cater to the location and type of goods to be transported by the shipper to make sure that only the best partnership is achieved between the two parties.

• Shipment Monitoring

One of the services of Carry On that make it so convenient is that the company will be responsible to track the shipment from the Shippers. And shippers can just relax and focus on other work. The company will track the cargo regularly to ensure that everything is safe.

• Compliance

Carry On will also ensure compliance of the carriers to the requirements by shippers. Some shipments include things that might be vulnerable to damage or need certain conditions for transport. Carry On will make sure that the carriers fulfill all the requirements.

• Price Negotiations

In addition to carrier evaluations, our company will also cater to the price range of its clients. Multiple options will be considered, and prices will be negotiated with both shipper and carrier parties to achieve at a middle ground that is good for both.

Marketing Analysis of Freight Broker Company

Before you start a freight brokerage business, you need to know your customers and competitors in-depth. In short, getting well versed about the target market is one of the steps to become a freight broker. For this purpose, you can conduct a marketing analysis as a part of your freight broker business plan. Your marketing analysis should analyze market trends with your financial goals to figure out pricing of your services. This analysis will help you learn how to be a successful freight broker.

If you don’t know how to conduct a marketing analysis and you want to know “how can I become a freight broker?”, you can use this business plan. This document will tell you ways to start your own freight brokerage business pdf. It will outline all the components of a broker business model and help you do a target market analysis for your business.

Here, we are providing the marketing analysis for Carry On. You can use this template to learn how to become a freight broker agent.

5.1 Market Trends

According to Verifired Market Research, Freight Brokerage industry is valued at around $1.164 Billion in the US. The industry is expected to grow at a rate of 36% and reach around $14 Billion by 2028. There is an increase in the need for convenience in intermediate operations that is driving the growth of the industry. And it is expected to do so in the coming years as well making any investment in the industry an excellent choice.

5.2 Marketing Segmentation

The potential customers of Carry On are divided into the following groups:

Business Plan for Investors

5.2.1 Carriers

Carriers will be cargo companies that will be responsible for the delivery of goods. Our company will also be providing them business by acting as an intermediate party. So, these will be our most consistent and reliable customers. And they will primarily utilize our connection services.

5.2.2 Producers

Our secondary customers will be the producer companies that produce raw materials or products and need them to be taken to their clients. They are expected to utilize our services most often.

5.2.3 Distributors

Our third target customers will be Distributors who buy materials and products in bulk and then send them to various warehouses and shops for selling. There are quite a considerable number of distributor companies around Newark in need of freight brokers, so we expect to receive these customers regularly.

5.2.4 Manufacturers

This will be our fourth target group of customers. There are a few manufacturing industries set up around Newark. Therefore, we expect to receive business from them quite often.

5.2.5 Import/Export Business

Lastly, we will cater to the import/export businesses in and around town. The trend of selling imported goods has increased, especially in the fashion industry. So, we expect a fair amount of business from the local import/export businesses.

Market Analysis
Potential Customers	Growth	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4	Year 5	CAGR
Carriers	27%	27,800	33,360	40,032	48,038	57,646	10.00%
Producers/ Manufacturers	26%	22,700	27,240	32,688	39,226	47,071	10.00%
Distributors	24%	24,360	29,232	35,078	42,094	50,513	10.00%
Import/ Export Businesses	23%	21,100	25,320	30,384	36,461	43,753	11.00%
Total	100%	95,960	115,152	138,182	165,819	198,983	10%

5.3 Business Target

• To become the best freight brokerage business in New Jersey.
• To expand the business to include not just Newark but entire New Jersey.
• To earn a profit margin of $50k/month by the end of two years.
• To maintain cordial relationships between the shippers and carriers.

5.4 Product Pricing

Our prices will be a little higher than if the shippers were to hire carriers on their own. But for this price, we will offer our clients a stress-free management of their goods and delivery operations.

Marketing Strategy

To make sure that you are recognizable amongst your competition, you will need to come up with several competitive aspects for your freight brokerage startup. For this, you need to focus on developing a marketing strategy. This can include anything from advertisements to freight broker business cards.

For a good marketing of your business, you will need to analyze many things such as freight broker software cost and costs of different ways of advertisement.

In this freight brokerage business plan pdf, we are detailing the marketing strategies of Carry On. However, you can take help from marketing strategies of other businesses as well. For instance, from a subscription box business plan.

6.1 Competitive Analysis

• We have a lot of ways of communicating with clients including direct meetings, social media, and website so our clients have more ease.
• We will offer stress-free delivery operations for our clients.
• We will implement good discussion practices so that all the client’s requirements are met.

6.2 Sales Strategy

• We will advertise our business through local ads, social media, and Google Ads.
• We will offer discounts to our first 20 clients.
• We will also offer great packages for our long term and regular clients.

6.3 Sales Monthly

6.4 Sales Yearly

6.5 Sales Forecast

Sales Forecast
Unit Sales	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Networking	250	265	281
Carrier Evaluations	225	239	253
Shipment Monitoring	250	265	281
Compliance & Negotiations	200	212	225
TOTAL UNIT SALES	925	981	1,039
Unit Prices	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Networking	$850.00	$986.00	$1,143.76
Carrier Evaluations	$950.00	$1,102.00	$1,278.32
Shipment Monitoring	$1,200.00	$1,392.00	$1,614.72
Compliance & Negotiations	$800.00	$928.00	$1,076.48
Sales
Networking	$212,500.00	$261,290.00	$321,282.18
Carrier Evaluations	$213,750.00	$262,827.00	$323,172.08
Shipment Monitoring	$300,000.00	$368,880.00	$453,574.85
Compliance & Negotiations	$160,000.00	$196,736.00	$241,906.59
TOTAL SALES	$886,250.00	$1,089,733.00	$1,339,935.70
Direct Unit Costs	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Networking	$250.00	$275.00	$288.75
Carrier Evaluations	$200.00	$220.00	$231.00
Shipment Monitoring	$300.00	$330.00	$346.50
Compliance & Negotiations	$250.00	$275.00	$288.75
Direct Cost of Sales
Networking	$62,500.00	$72,875.00	$81,109.88
Carrier Evaluations	$45,000.00	$52,470.00	$58,399.11
Shipment Monitoring	$75,000.00	$87,450.00	$97,331.85
Compliance & Negotiations	$50,000.00	$58,300.00	$64,887.90
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales	$232,500.00	$271,095.00	$301,728.74

Personnel plan

The business of a freight broker franchise depends a lot on its customer service and relations. Therefore, Harry put together a list of all the employees that will be necessary for the success of business. Additionally, he also included specific criteria in the freight broker business plan to hire workers.

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7.1 Company Staff

• 1 Co-Manager to help in overall operations
• 3 Supply Chain Executives
• 2 Broker Assistants
• 1 Web Developer to develop and maintain webpage
• 1 Sales Executives to organize and promote sales
• 1 Accountant
• 2 Drivers
• 1 Receptionist

7.2 Average Salary of Employees

Personnel Plan
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Co Manager	$45,000	$49,500	$54,450
Supply Chain Executives	$75,000	$82,500	$90,750
Broker Assistants	$55,000	$60,500	$66,550
Web Developer	$28,000	$30,800	$33,880
Sales Executive	$35,500	$39,050	$42,955
Accountant	$25,000	$27,500	$30,250
Drivers	$40,000	$44,000	$48,400
Receptionist	$22,000	$24,200	$26,620
Total Salaries	$303,500	$333,850	$367,235

Financial Plan

To ensure the success of your business, you need to control freight broker startup costs. It is essential to manage everything efficiently so that your business doesn’t go into a loss. A good financial plan will keep your company from becoming a freight brokerage business for sale.

In your financial plan, you need to detail all the costs necessary to run your business as well as the ways you will earn revenue. In this business plan, we are detailing the financial plan of Carry On. But you can take help from other business plans as well such as hot shot trucking service business plan.

8.1 Important Assumptions

General Assumptions
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Plan Month	1	2	3
Current Interest Rate	8.12%	8.20%	8.26%
Long-term Interest Rate	8.40%	8.44%	8.47%
Tax Rate	24.03%	24.21%	24.60%
Other	0	0	0

8.2 Break-even Analysis

Break-Even Analysis
Monthly Units Break-even	5340
Monthly Revenue Break-even	$132,500
Assumptions:
Average Per-Unit Revenue	$231.00
Average Per-Unit Variable Cost	$0.62
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost	$163,800

8.3 Projected Profit and Loss

Pro Forma Profit And Loss
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Sales	$886,250	$1,089,733	$1,339,936
Direct Cost of Sales	$232,500	$271,095	$301,729
Other	$0	$0	$0
TOTAL COST OF SALES	$232,500	$271,095	$301,729
Gross Margin	$653,750	$818,638	$1,038,207
Gross Margin %	73.77%	75.12%	77.48%
Expenses
Payroll	$303,500	$333,850	$367,235
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses	$145,000	$148,000	$156,000
Depreciation	$2,300	$2,350	$2,500
Leased Equipment	$0	$0	$0
Utilities	$2,900	$3,000	$3,100
Insurance	$2,100	$2,100	$2,100
Rent	$2,900	$3,000	$3,200
Payroll Taxes	$24,000	$25,000	$27,000
Other	$0	$0	$0
Total Operating Expenses	$482,700	$517,300	$561,135
Profit Before Interest and Taxes	$171,050	$301,338	$477,072
EBITDA	$171,050	$301,338	$477,072
Interest Expense	$0	$0	$0
Taxes Incurred	$34,210	$60,268	$95,414
Net Profit	$136,840	$241,070	$381,658
Net Profit/Sales	15.44%	22.12%	28.48%

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8.3.1 Profit Monthly

8.3.2 Profit Yearly

8.3.3 Gross Margin Monthly

8.3.4 Gross Margin Yearly

8.4 Projected Cash Flow

Pro Forma Cash Flow
Cash Received	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Cash from Operations
Cash Sales	$51,000	$55,080	$59,486
Cash from Receivables	$22,000	$23,760	$25,661
SUBTOTAL CASH FROM OPERATIONS	$73,000	$79,570	$85,936
Additional Cash Received
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received	$0	$0	$0
New Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
New Other Liabilities (interest-free)	$0	$0	$0
New Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
New Investment Received	$0	$0	$0
SUBTOTAL CASH RECEIVED	$74,000	$79,000	$85,000
Expenditures	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Expenditures from Operations
Cash Spending	$42,000	$42,000	$45,000
Bill Payments	$27,000	$28,000	$31,000
SUBTOTAL SPENT ON OPERATIONS	$69,000	$70,000	$76,000
Additional Cash Spent
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out	$0	$0	$0
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$0
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
Dividends	$0	$0	$0
SUBTOTAL CASH SPENT	$69,000	$74,520	$80,482
Net Cash Flow	$21,000	$23,000	$25,000
Cash Balance	$27,000	$30,000	$33,000

8.5 Projected Balance Sheet

Pro Forma Balance Sheet
Assets	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Current Assets
Cash	$275,000	$308,000	$338,800
Accounts Receivable	$24,000	$26,880	$30,213
Inventory	$4,300	$4,816	$4,900
Other Current Assets	$1,000	$1,000	$1,000
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS	$282,000	$315,840	$355,004
Long-term Assets
Long-term Assets	$10,000	$10,000	$10,000
Accumulated Depreciation	$19,400	$21,728	$24,444
TOTAL LONG-TERM ASSETS	$24,400	$27,328	$30,744
TOTAL ASSETS	$294,000	$329,280	$370,440
Liabilities and Capital	Year 4	Year 5	Year 6
Current Liabilities
Accounts Payable	$18,700	$20,944	$23,541
Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
Other Current Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
SUBTOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES	$19,000	$21,280	$23,919
Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
TOTAL LIABILITIES	$15,000	$16,800	$18,883
Paid-in Capital	$30,000	$30,000	$31,000
Retained Earnings	$53,000	$57,770	$63,547
Earnings	$193,400	$210,806	$231,887
TOTAL CAPITAL	$285,000	$310,650	$341,715
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL	$300,000	$329,280	$370,440
Net Worth	$293,400	$319,806	$351,787

8.6 Business Ratios

Ratio Analysis
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	INDUSTRY PROFILE
Sales Growth	7.25%	8.03%	8.90%	3.00%
Percent of Total Assets
Accounts Receivable	9.21%	10.20%	11.31%	9.80%
Inventory	5.39%	5.97%	6.62%	9.90%
Other Current Assets	2.11%	2.34%	2.59%	2.40%
Total Current Assets	149.80%	151.00%	152.00%	158.00%
Long-term Assets	11.55%	11.60%	11.64%	12.00%
TOTAL ASSETS	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Current Liabilities	4.90%	4.94%	4.98%	4.34%
Long-term Liabilities	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Total Liabilities	7.59%	7.65%	7.72%	7.38%
NET WORTH	100.45%	101.25%	102.19%	110.00%
Percent of Sales
Sales	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Gross Margin	94.60%	97.15%	99.87%	99.00%
Selling, General & Administrative Expenses	93.56%	96.09%	98.78%	97.80%
Advertising Expenses	1.52%	1.56%	1.60%	1.40%
Profit Before Interest and Taxes	41.50%	42.62%	43.81%	33.90%
Main Ratios
Current	34	35	36	32
Quick	33	33.8	34.645	33
Total Debt to Total Assets	0.18%	0.18%	0.17%	0.40%
Pre-tax Return on Net Worth	74.08%	74.89%	75.00%	75.00%
Pre-tax Return on Assets	96.30%	101.12%	106.17%	111.30%
Additional Ratios	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Net Profit Margin	33.56%	34.60%	35.67%	N.A.
Return on Equity	55.80%	57.53%	59.31%	N.A.
Activity Ratios
Accounts Receivable Turnover	7.7	7.8	7.8	N.A.
Collection Days	100	100	100	N.A.
Inventory Turnover	32.4	34.02	35	N.A.
Accounts Payable Turnover	15.6	16	16.3	N.A.
Payment Days	27	27	27	N.A.
Total Asset Turnover	2.5	2.5	2.6	N.A.
Debt Ratios
Debt to Net Worth	-0.04	-0.03	-0.04	N.A.
Current Liab. to Liab.	1	1	1	N.A.
Liquidity Ratios
Net Working Capital	$244,000	$257,664	$272,093	N.A.
Interest Coverage	0	0	0	N.A.
Additional Ratios
Assets to Sales	0.85	0.87	0.89	N.A.
Current Debt/Total Assets	1%	0%	0%	N.A.
Acid Test	29	29.12	29.16	N.A.
Sales/Net Worth	2.1	2.2	2.2	N.A.
Dividend Payout	0	0	0	N.A.

FAQs

1. How do I write a freight brokerage business plan?

You can develop a business plan for your freight brokerage by following this freight broker business plan sample.

2. How much do freight brokerage owners make?

The income of a freight broker depends on a lot of things including freight broker startup costs, freight broker process, and prices of services.

3. Are freight brokerages profitable?

Starting a freight brokerage company can prove profitable if it is managed efficiently and smartly.

4. How much does a freight broker make a year?

If you are learning how to be a freight broker agent, you might be wondering how much they make in a year. Though the accurate number depends on the success of the business, on average, freight brokers make around $60,000 in a year.

Download Freight Broker Business Plan Sample in pdf