Tiffin service business plan: a free template with an example
You don't need a 30-page plan to start a tiffin service. You need clear answers to ten questions. Here they are, with an example kitchen filled in, so you can copy the template and write your own.
· 2 min read
The ten questions
| Section | Answer this | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Customers | Who exactly will buy, and why? | Students and young professionals in Brampton who want home-style veg lunches |
| 2. Offer | What's in a tiffin? Which plans? | Dal, sabzi, rice, 4 rotis; trial week, monthly weekday plan |
| 3. Kitchen and rules | Where will you cook, and is it allowed? | Shared commercial kitchen, 4 hrs/day; Peel Public Health notified |
| 4. Price | Price per meal and per plan | $13/meal; $260/month (20 meals) |
| 5. Costs per meal | Food, packaging, delivery | $3.90 + $0.60 + $1.25 |
| 6. Monthly costs | Rent, insurance, software, phone | $2,000 kitchen + $379 other |
| 7. Break-even | Meals a month to cover everything | ≈ 470 meals (about 24 customers) |
| 8. Delivery | Areas, days, who drives | Brampton L6P–L6Z, Mon–Fri, one part-time driver |
| 9. Marketing | How the first 30 customers find you | Temple and grocery flyers, Facebook groups, referrals |
| 10. Goal | Customers and profit in 12 months | 60 customers, $5,000/month before tax |
Working out break-even
Take your price per meal and subtract the costs that come with each meal (food, packaging, delivery). In the example: $13 − $3.90 − $0.60 − $1.25 = $7.25 per meal left to pay fixed costs. Fixed costs are $2,379 a month, so break-even is $2,379 ÷ $7.25 ≈ 330 meals.
But kitchen rent isn't really fixed if you rent by the hour. Add a realistic amount for your own time too. If you want $1,000 a month for yourself before profit, break-even becomes ($2,379 + $1,000) ÷ $7.25 ≈ 470 meals, about 24 customers on a 20-meal plan.
Fill it in with real numbers
- Section 3: read home food business rules in Canada and call your health unit before you write anything here.
- Sections 4–7: use the food cost calculator and the price calculator.
- Section 9: see how to get customers for a tiffin service.
- Track the first months in the free tiffin register.
What a lender adds
If you're applying for a loan, add a short summary of you and your cooking experience, three nearby competitors and their prices, a 12-month cash forecast, and how much you are putting in yourself. The ten answers above are still the core.
A simple 12-month forecast
Most tiffin services grow in steps, not a straight line. A realistic first year for the example kitchen might look like this:
| Months | Customers | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | 5–15 | Friends, family, first flyers; get the routine right |
| 3–4 | 15–30 | Facebook groups, Google profile, referrals |
| 5–8 | 30–50 | First driver; move to software if the spreadsheet hurts |
| 9–12 | 50–60 | Second delivery area or a dinner plan |
Know your competitors
List three tiffin services that deliver to your area. For each, write down their price per month, what's in a box, delivery days and areas, how people order, and what their reviews praise or complain about. You're not looking to copy their price. You're looking for the gap: a style of food nobody does well, an area nobody covers, or an ordering experience that's easier.
Risks to plan for
- The rules. Cooking somewhere you're not allowed to can close you down. Settle it first.
- You get sick. Who cooks? Write the recipes and the routine down.
- Grocery prices rise. Build a yearly price review into the plan.
- A food safety problem. Insurance, clean habits and labels with allergens.
- Customers leave in summer or at semester end. Plan for slower months, especially with students.
Questions
Do I need a business plan for a tiffin service?
For a bank loan, yes. For yourself, a one-page plan is enough: it forces you to check the rules, your price and your break-even before you spend money.
What is break-even for a tiffin service?
The number of meals a month where money in equals all your costs. Above it you make a profit. In the example below it's about 470 meals a month.