Question

Start-up Business Plan
Assume yourself as an entrepreneur of a small-scale business in Saudi Arabia.

Q2. Explain your business plan.
•   What is important to you in your business?
•   To whom will you market your product?
•   Describe your Industry: Is it a growth industry? What long term or Short-term changes do you foresee in the industry? How will your company take advantage of it

Answer 1

Considering the high temperature of Saudi Arabia, one of efficient and effective entrepreneur ideas would be launching solar powered taxis and cabs in the country with several in-built batteries that charge themselves using solar power. Solar energy will be harnessed by the solar cells converting them into electricity which will run these cabs and taxis.

A few important factors for sustainable running of the business is:

(a) Optimal temperature conditions - Although it is quite obvious that there will be a limited amount of time available for the taxis to harness the solar energy of sun, at the other times (at night or during bad weather) energy needs to be restored previously in the cars to make sure that they run regularly even at nights or during poor weather conditions. Also, the humidity and the temperature needs to be optimal for the business to be a success.

(b) Government support - Government allowance and support is another obvious crucial factor to make this entrepreneur idea possible. Government can help promote the environment free commutation among the citizens.

(c) Stakeholders interest - Since the country has been using traditional vehicles run by engines from a very long time, edging and surpassing them would be a challenge. Huge investments from the shareholders shareholders and investors might be required at initial stages.

These will be directly targeted to daily travellers or people who often use taxis. Working employees or tourists often use taxis and even local transportation like buses can run on solar cells. Even school buses or cabs can take advantage of this business model. The idea can be promoted by both the government and the entrepreneur company.

Considering the fact that government is pressuring all the companies to use green products and also, promoting the safety of the environment, the solar energy based taxis will be growth industry as it is an idea of the future as the modern vehicles that run on fuel produce carbon emissions that harm the environment. So, the solar based products that are totally environment friendly are the future of the industry. Moreover, government provides subsidies to companies going green.

A few changes that can be foreseen in the industry is :

(a) The fuel consumption will be reduced to minimal as most of the taxis would run on solar cells harnessing solar energy and therefore, the hundred of dollars used on the fuel can be saved.

(b) The rate of travel per every kilometer of distance would reduce as the source of energy would be cheap, therefore making the transportation cheap and therefore, benefitting the travellers.

(c) In case of bad weather, customers would have to shift to fuel based vehicles and the solar powered taxis would suffer.

(d) Introducing environment friendly vehicles would pressurize other automative companies to produce vehicles that don't harm the environment.

Being a new business, this business model can have an upper edge over other automative companies that produce fuel vehicles that run on gas. It would take a good amount of time for those companies to go green. Being cheap and environmental friendly, this business model can attract more number of customers than other fuel based taxis as soon as it enters the market because no one would want to pay more for the same distance travelled and also, they would promote a cause for the safe and clean environment.