Business Planning

Your business plan is your blueprint for success, and an essential tool for setting direction and keeping your business on course. 

If you are unsure how to go about drawing up your business plan, or just need some objective input, there are a number of places where you can get assistance. 

The New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) Enterprise Training Programme (ETP)
This is aimed at upskilling the owners and operators of small and medium enterprises to help them develop and grow their businesses. 

The Enterprise Training Programme is delivered by specialist training providers throughout New Zealand. It offers a range of training for managing a business, complemented by follow-up coaching designed to enable you to implement what you have learnt. The benefits of attending Enterprise Training include: gaining knowledge in a specific area of business management, increasing motivation, boosting confidence and reaffirming business strategies and processes. Participants start with a one-on-one needs assessment which helps to identify what training would be beneficial for them. 

To register for the programme, contact your local Enterprise Training Programme Provider. 

How Enterprise North Shore can help
Enterprise North Shore has a programme to assist businesses who are starting out (click here for more detail) and an online diagnostic tool to enable evaluation of your business and identification of risks and strengths. (Click here for more information)

We have worked with many North Shore businesses, guiding them through start-up, early development, or specific challenges. Some of these businesses are now multi-national companies. Others are highly successful small businesses which contribute significantly to the local economy.  

Contact us for additional information.

More information

New Zealand Trade and Enterprise offers a free Planning for Success kit which you can download from their web site. It is readable and practical, and encourages you to build your own business plan as you work through the text. Included with the kit is a set of do-it-yourself templates linked to the text.

business.govt.nz: Recently launched, the government’s new site for small business owners, which  replaces biz.org.nz, includes lots of general advice including a focus on compliance and exporting. 

HomebizBuzz: This site has loads of information, resources and tools relevant to all aspects of starting and running a business from home (much which is relevant to non-home-based business owners too).

yourbiz: This site has lots of information for small business owners, and special offers from its partners. 

The Companies Office has information on incorporating a company in New Zealand.

The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand has information on patents and trademarks.