3. Starting a Business in Ontario Canada: Why You Don’t Need a Traditional Business Plan (But You Do Need a Thought-Through Plan) with Elle Crevits
- Apr 3, 2023
- 12 min read
Updated: Feb 10
If you’re exploring starting a business in Ontario Canada, this blog is for you. Spoiler: you don’t need a 40-page business plan to get started (unless you're seeking funding) — but you do need a realistic, numbers-first “thought-through” plan that answers the hard questions: how will you pay yourself, how many customers do you need, and how will you actually reach them? This guide walks you through startup reality, practical steps for early testing and pre-selling, financing options, marketing that works, and how to stay sane while building something you love.
If we haven't met yet, I’m Brittany, an online marketing strategist for female entrepreneurs. I teach women how to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality through smart, actionable marketing strategies that get them seen, loved, and paid. Whether you’re eager to DIY your way to success or hire professionals to help you along the way–my goal is to make sure you walk away with the clarity you need to see the results you desire and build a life you love.
Meet Elle
Joining me on the Go Get Great podcast today is friend and fellow St. Thomas based small business owner Elle Crevits. As a former business mentor with SBEC (the Small Business Enterprise Centre), and current owner of The Atrium, a beautiful co-working space in the heart of St. Thomas, Elle is an expert on helping people create their dream businesses, and the perfect person to talk to about what you actually needs to do if you're thinking about starting a small businesses, so let's dive in.
Table of Contents
Why “No Business Plan” Isn’t the Same as “No Planning”
When people say “you don’t need a business plan,” they usually mean you don’t need a formal, glossy, intimidating document that sits in a drawer. What you do need is clarity — especially financial clarity. Successful entrepreneurship starts with a simple truth: businesses are money-eating monsters. They will find a way to spend every dollar you have if you let them. That’s why a cash-flow-first approach beats a polished PDF every time when it comes to creating a business outline.
Businesses are money-eating monsters.
Instead of getting stuck trying to write the “perfect” business plan, think in terms of a thought-through plan: a short, actionable document that maps your costs, revenue assumptions, customer path, and early marketing actions. This is what actually helps you make better decisions and stay out of the panic zone.
What a Thought-Through Plan Actually Looks Like
For anyone starting a business how to approach their launch, here’s a compact framework you can use today.
Keep it short — one to three pages — and focused on the numbers and the customer.
Core idea & offer: What are you selling? One sentence.
Startup costs: List fixed and one-time costs (equipment, licensing, security cameras — yes, those surprise costs add up).
Monthly operating costs: Rent, utilities, software, marketing, wages, professional fees.
Revenue model: Price points, expected number of sales/customers, recurring vs one-time revenue.
Customer math: How many customers do you need to hit your target income? (See examples below.)
Minimum viable test: How will you test demand with the smallest cost and effort?
Marketing & outreach plan: Where will you connect with people — online, in person, community, events?
Risk plan & runway: What is your personal risk tolerance, and what safeguards (savings, lines of credit, family loans) will you use?
That’s it. No corporate lingo. No filler. A few pages that tells the story of your business in numbers and real actions.
Cash Flow Comes First: The Financial Questions You Must Answer
When you’re starting a business in Ontario Canada (or anywhere), the most common mistake is overestimating customers and underestimating costs. Here’s a simple way to make your financial assumptions realistic:
List every cost you can think of — then add 20% for the unknowns. Those “tiny” expenses (licenses, packaging, extra furniture) add up.
Decide how many customers you realistically reach in month 1, 3, 6, and 12. Be conservative.
Calculate your break-even point for revenue and then set a real profit goal — don’t plan to merely break even. The goal is to pay yourself well enough to stay motivated, not to run a perpetual hobby.
Example customer math:
If your service costs $1,000, you need 100 customers to make $100,000.
If your product is $100, you need 1,000 customers to make $100,000.
If your offer is $10,000, you need just 10 customers to make $100,000.
That perspective changes how you design offers and choose channels. For many service businesses in small communities, you don’t need thousands of people. You might only need 30–50 great customers to build a sustainable, profitable business. You can learn more about this in my full conversation with Elle 👇🏻
Customer Acquisition: The Real Startup Challenge
Getting customers is hard. Underestimate this and your plan collapses no matter how perfect your spreadsheet looks. A useful rule of thumb: you must create multiple touch points between a stranger and a paying customer. Expect anywhere from 6 to 26 meaningful interactions before someone hires you for a high-trust, high-price service.
Interactions can include:
A social media post or ad
Seeing a recommendation from a friend
Visiting your website
Reading an email
Attending an in-person event
Trying a small purchase or trial
So if your goal is 50 customers, plan how you’ll show up in front of 500 people (a rough 10:1 conversion from awareness to customer when you account for multiple touchpoints). That means mixing online marketing with personal outreach: networking, community events, pop-ups, partnerships, and repeatable content that builds trust over time.
Lifetime Value Trumps One-Time Sales
Too many entrepreneurs celebrate a first sale and then disappear. The profitable businesses are the ones that create relationships and sell repeatedly to the same customers. If you’re selling at a market and never collecting contact details, you’re making the next sale harder on yourself.
Focus on:
Ways to capture customer contact (email list, social follow, membership)
Offers that encourage repeat purchases or subscriptions
Service add-ons that increase average order value
Marketing Reality Check: Social Media Helps — But It's Not Enough
Even as an online marketing strategist, I think it's important to note that social media is an important tool, but it’s not the whole plan. For many service businesses, the most valuable leads come from in-person interactions and direct referrals. Social supports those relationships by reinforcing your expertise and staying top of mind but shouldn't be your only marketing channel.
Remember:
Social media is one interaction type among many.
It’s a tool to amplify your community, not a replacement for personal outreach.
Consistency beats perfection. Show up weekly rather than trying to post flawlessly every day.
Community as a Growth Engine
Elle and I want to encourage you to think beyond “followers.” Build a community around your business — customers who feel part of something bigger are your best promoters. Community-building can look like:
Hosting monthly meetups or workshops
Creating a membership or loyalty program
Encouraging customers to share stories and testimonials
Introducing members to each other (network building)
Community makes word-of-mouth measurable and repeatable. Rather than hoping for referrals, make it easy for customers to tell their friends and feel rewarded for doing so.
Testing and Preselling: De-risk Your Launch
Before spending thousands on build-outs or inventory, sell something. Pre-selling validates demand and raises early funds. Practical ways to presell:
Run a workshop or event from your living room — charge a modest fee (this is how many creators started including Elle).
Sell a limited release or early-bird offer via email or your social channels.
Use platforms like Kickstarter for physical products — customers fund production up front.
Pre-sell annual services or memberships to secure revenue before you build full infrastructure.
Pre-selling offers two big benefits: it proves market demand and gives you marketing momentum — the group of early buyers becomes your first community and your best marketers.
Financing: How Some Small Businesses Actually Start
One myth Elle really wanted to bust: most small businesses are not funded by big grants or angel investors. In reality, the majority of startups are funded by the entrepreneur’s personal funds, credit, or small loans from family. Grants exist — especially for student entrepreneurs, innovation projects, and specific sectors — but they are not a reliable path for every founder.
Practical financing sources:
Personal savings or a rainy-day fund
Personal line of credit or credit cards (use carefully)
Family loans or private loans with clear repayment terms
Small business loans through community lenders or banks (they’ll want to see skin in the game)
Pre-sales, community funding, or Kickstarter-style campaigns
Tip: work with a Small Business Enterprise Centre (SBEC) or equivalent in your area. These publicly funded centres offer practical advice, local resources, and often help with grant navigation. If you’re starting a business in Ontario Canada, your local SBEC is a great first stop.
Buying an Existing Business vs. Starting Fresh
Buying an existing business can accelerate momentum because it often comes with customers, systems, and history. But it may also include unseen liabilities — leases, debts, and fixed costs. If you’re considering buying, do the math and understand the liabilities you inherit.
Questions to ask when buying:
What are the existing fixed costs and liabilities (e.g., multi-year commercial leases)?
Are the historical cash flows realistic and reliable?
What investment will you need to grow or stabilize the business?
Does the business fit your risk tolerance and long-term goals?
Buying can be the right “stretch” — not a panic — if the investment size matches your comfort zone and you have a clear plan to make the business profitable. Don’t buy just because the opportunity exists; buy when the numbers and the fit make sense.
Timeline to Profitability: When Will You “Be Making Money”?
There’s no magic timeline, but general patterns help set expectations:
Service-based, non-brick-and-mortar businesses: Expect 3–6 months to build momentum if you’re consistent and intentional. Early months can feel slow and discouraging, but persistence usually pays off.
Brick-and-mortar businesses: Plan for a longer runway. Profitability often takes closer to three to five years because overhead is high and customer behaviours take time to change.
Buying an existing business: Even an established business might only be breaking even when you buy it. Expect at least a year to see meaningful improvements unless you have a clear strategy and immediate demand.
Plan your runway accordingly. Don’t assume revenue will show up instantly — plan for realistic timelines and conservative customer acquisition numbers.
Failure Isn’t Final: How “Failed” Projects Can Create Real Impact
Not every venture will be financially sustainable, and that’s OK. Early-stage projects often prove an idea and create learnings that lead to bigger outcomes. Elle shares a personal example, a student-run food recovery project might not be financially viable on its own, but it could demonstrate enough need and logistics to convince a larger organization to fund and scale the program.
When a project “fails” financially, ask:
What did we prove? (demand, process, supply chain)
Who benefited from the work, even if the original model didn’t last?
Can a partner or institution scale this better than a small, early-stage team?
Owning the story of why something ended can be powerful. It proves your learning, resilience, and ability to move work forward — all of which are core entrepreneurial skills.
Start Small, Test Often: Practical “Starting a Business in Ontario Canada How To” Steps
Here is a condensed “starting a business how to” checklist you can follow today. Use this as a baseline for any idea in Ontario, Canada or beyond.
Clarify your offer: One-sentence description of what you sell and who it’s for.
Build a one-page thought-through plan: Costs, revenue assumptions, minimum viable test, and customer math.
Talk to people doing what you want to do: Ask about hidden costs and day-to-day realities.
Test demand cheaply: Host a class, run a market stall, pre-sell a product, or offer a beta service.
Secure initial funding: Use pre-sales, personal savings, family loans, or small lines of credit as needed.
Track cash flow: Map monthly inflows and outflows. Update weekly in early months.
Focus on customers: Build relationships, collect contacts, and design repeatable offers.
Layer marketing: Combine social media, email, in-person events, and partnerships to create multiple touchpoints.
Manage risk: Avoid overextending with large leases or big purchases before demand is proven.
Protect your wellbeing: Set boundaries, keep activities outside the business, and schedule real rest.
Business Plan Outlines: A Short Template You Can Use
If you want a structure for a more formal document (or for a loan application), here’s a short business plan outline that aligns with the “thought-through” approach while still covering what lenders or partners expect.
Executive Summary: One-paragraph snapshot of the business idea and goals.
Business Description: What you sell, target market, value proposition.
Market Analysis: Who your customers are, how big the demand, key competitors.
Organizational Plan: Your role, any partners, contractors, staffing plan.
Products & Services: Offer details, pricing, and how you make money.
Marketing & Sales Strategy: Channels, messaging, and expected conversion metrics.
Financial Plan: Cash flow forecast, break-even analysis, startup costs, funding sources.
Risk & Contingency: Key risks and how you’ll mitigate them (small tests, phased investments).
That’s a compact, usable outline to adapt for loans or partners. But remember: the spreadsheet behind the Financial Plan is the most important part.
Practical Tools & Resources for Entrepreneurs in Ontario
If you’re starting a business in Ontario Canada, here are organizations and resources worth bookmarking:
Small Business Enterprise Centre (SBEC): Local advisors, workshops, and links to grants or community supports. They can help you test assumptions and provide encouragement — sometimes that’s the push you need to go for it.
Profit First by Mike Michalowicz: A recommended read on managing cash flow and ensuring you pay yourself.
Local business associations and chamber of commerce: Great for networking and local marketing opportunities.
Crowdfunding platforms (Kickstarter, Indiegogo): Useful for pre-selling physical products and building a launch community.
Online course platforms & event tools: Eventbrite, Facebook Events, or simple Zoom classes to validate offers quickly.
Balancing Life and Business: Protect Your Mental Health
When entrepreneurship becomes all-consuming, burnout follows. Treat your business like a powerful limb — love it, but don’t let it define every hour of your life. Practical boundaries that help:
Designate physical space for work when possible (a co-working or dedicated room).
Time-block recovery after high-energy events (webinars, workshops).
Keep hobbies and friendships outside of work — they replenish your creativity.
Plan deep rest days where you disconnect completely.
Hire or delegate early — don’t assume you must do everything yourself.
It takes time to grow into a founder who can step away for a week or trust others to run parts of the business. Give yourself grace while you build that capacity.
Final Encouragement: Start Small, Plan Smart, Keep Going
Starting a business in Ontario Canada (and beyond) is messy, thrilling, and full of trade-offs. You don’t need a long, intimidating business plan to begin. You need a simple, well thought-through plan — prioritized cash flow, customer math, and a testable path to revenue. Talk to advisors, reach out to people doing the work you admire, and de-risk early with pre-sales or small tests.
Most importantly: don’t let perfection stop you. Get one dollar in sales and you’ve started a business for real. Build from there.
FAQ for Starting a Business in Ontario Canada
How do I start the process of starting a business in ontario canada?
Begin with a few page thought-through plan: define your offer, list startup and monthly costs, calculate how many customers you need to pay yourself, and design a minimum viable test (workshop, presale, market stall). Connect with a local Small Business Enterprise Centre (SBEC) for free guidance and local resources.
Do I need a formal business plan to get funding?
You don’t always need a long formal plan for small loans or early-stage validation. Lenders and partners will expect clear financials: cash-flow forecasts, a realistic budget, and evidence of customer demand. Use a concise business plan outline with a strong Financial Plan to satisfy those needs.
What are realistic timelines before I see profit?
Service-based, non-brick-and-mortar businesses often see momentum in 3–6 months with consistent effort. Brick-and-mortar businesses typically need a longer runway — sometimes up to 3-5 years — because of higher overhead. Buying an existing business can shorten or lengthen timelines depending on its current performance.
How can I presell a product or service?
Offer a limited run, early-bird pricing, or membership pre-sales. Use platforms like Eventbrite for ticketed workshops or Kickstarter for product manufacturing. Share clear timelines and deliverables with early buyers and use the funds to finance production or build infrastructure.
Where can I get help with grants and funding in Ontario?
Contact your local Small Business Enterprise Centre (SBEC) to learn about local grants, workshops, and funding programs. Keep in mind that most small businesses are funded personally or with family loans; grants are often targeted and competitive.
What should I include in business plan outlines?
A compact business plan should include: executive summary, business description, market analysis, organizational plan, products & services, marketing & sales strategy, financial plan (cash flow, startup costs), and risk mitigation. Keep it focused and number-driven.
How do I balance life and business without burning out?
Set intentional boundaries: create a physical workspace, schedule recovery time after high-energy tasks, keep hobbies outside the business, and delegate tasks early. Real rest and community outside work are essential to long-term success.
Connect with Elle
Social Media Support with Brittany Miller Socials
@brittanymillersocials on IG
Mentioned links and resources: Read Profit First by Mike Michalowitz
Connect with SBEC (Small Business Enterprise Centre)
Episode Times & Topics
0:30 Introductions
1:20 Elle’s entrepreneurial journey
3:00 A well through plan
6:25 Getting customers
10:50 What to do after the plan
12:20 What it takes to get a customer
14:14 It’s more than social media
15:50 Building a community
18:15 Business resources
21:00 What is a safe risk
24:00 Next steps
27:00 Preselling your business
29:30 Most popular question for business advisors
32:45 When will I see profits?
36:40 First business flops
39:50 The power of entrepreneurship
41:32 How to balance life and business
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