On 7 and 8 April 2016 a team of Fresh Studio consultants existing of local and international agricultural and financial specialists traveled to the Vietnamese city of Tra Vinh in the Mekong Delta, to help local SME’s in the agriculture sector preparing business plans.
The assignment was part of the SNV-IFAD 4P program, whereby SME’s in the agricultural sector in Tra Vinh province can apply for a grant to help fund an investment that will help grow their businesses and contribute to sustainable livelihoods for the rural poor in a changing environment.
The selected companies were active in and had investment proposals focused on, amongst others chili pepper trading, rice trading, hydroponics, poultry/eggs, peanuts, and coconuts.
As most entrepreneurs had little experience in writing formal business plans and making financial models, the workshop started with an introduction to the Business Model Canvas. In this part of the workshop the participants learned about value chains and the concept of building a Business Model Canvas and applied it by making a Business Model Canvas for their own company.
The second day was mostly spent on the financial model. During this session the companies worked closely together with the Fresh Studio consultants on their own financial models. This gave them great insight in the financial viability of their projects and a good understanding of the sensitivity of prices, volumes and costs on their business.
At the end of the workshop the companies stated to have learned a lot and that the training will not only help them to successfully apply for a grant, but also to improve their businesses.
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