Sari-sari store business plan template for the Philippines

What this store is

Example: [Store name] will sell snacks, school supplies, drinks, cooking basics in small packs, load and household items from the front of the owner's house on [street], Barangay [name], [city or municipality]. The owner, [name], will register as a sole proprietor at barangay scope. Opening hours: [time] to [time], seven days a week, with a busier stock of snacks and school supplies on school days.

Start-up cost is ₱____ (your figure), most of it first stock. The owner funds ₱____ from savings. If you are borrowing, state the amount, the lender and the monthly payment of ₱____. For a fuller worked example of a sari-sari plan, see the business plan hub.

Location and what it allows

Measure the distance from your store to the nearest point of the school's perimeter and to any public playground. RA 9211 prohibits selling or distributing tobacco products within 100 metres of either. If you are inside that distance, your plan should say plainly that the store will not sell cigarettes, and your sales estimate must not count on them.^[4]

Outside 100 metres, cigarette sales come with duties: no sales to minors, verify age when in doubt, and post a clear notice that selling tobacco to minors is unlawful. Vapes and heated tobacco products are 18 and over only, and the retailer must check a valid government photo ID.^[4,5]

Note your space too: [size] square metres, a window or counter facing the street, shelving on [number] walls, a chest freezer for ice and ice candy, and where you will store sacks of rice and cases of soft drinks.

Buyers and nearby stores

Fill-in example. Pupils and parents pass between [time] and [time] and again at [time]; we counted [number] on [three school days]. Households within a two-minute walk: [number], by our own count. Tricycle drivers at the corner buy drinks and load. In a door-to-door talk with [number] households, [number] said they buy cooking basics daily in small packs.

Competition. [Number] other sari-sari stores within [distance], open [hours]; a [convenience store] at [distance]; the palengke at [distance]. Write what each does better, and what you will do differently: [later hours, school supplies, a suki notebook with strict limits].

Running the store

Stock. Buy from [wholesaler], [grocery] and [distributor] every [period]. Keep a stock notebook or app; count fast movers weekly. Move items near expiry to the front.

Prices. Consumer Act Art. 81 requires tags, labels or markings showing the price of products sold at retail. For basic necessities and prime commodities, selling without a price tag is prima facie evidence of profiteering under the Price Act. DTI cites fines of ₱200 to ₱5,000 and/or one to six months in jail. Tag every shelf, even if buyers ask you by voice.^[3]

Insect spray and pest products. If you retail household pesticides, ask FPA about a licence. FPA licenses dealers and retailers of fertilizer and pesticides and sets the fee. Decide in your plan whether you will carry them.^[6]

Credit. A suki notebook with a limit of ₱____ per household, collected every [payday]. Write this rule down; unpaid utang is the most common drain on a small store's cash.

Registration and permit costs

If your store qualifies, a BMBE certificate from the Negosyo Center can help with local taxes; see the BMBE guide for who can apply.

Financial plan

Start-up. Shelving ₱____; chest freezer ₱____; counter and window grille ₱____; price tag supplies ₱____; first stock ₱____; DTI name ₱200 plus ₱30 stamp tax; FPA licence ₱____ if you sell household pesticides; barangay clearance ₱____; mayor's permit ₱____; cash reserve ₱____.^[1,6]

Monthly. Restocking ₱____; electricity ₱____ (the freezer is the main load); load wallet top-up ₱____; owner's pay ₱____; helper's pay ₱____ if any.

Sales. Buyers per day [number] × average sale ₱____ × [days] = ₱____. If you are within 100 metres of the school, leave tobacco out entirely. Break-even = fixed costs ₱____ ÷ gross margin ____%.

Risks and responses

Utang piling up. Response: hard credit limit, no new credit until the last balance is paid.

A DTI price check. Response: tag every item when it goes on the shelf, and retag after each price change.

School breaks. Response: plan lower snack orders in [months] and push household goods and load instead.

Permit and registration costs: sari-sari store

Questions people ask

Can a sari-sari store near a school sell cigarettes?

Not within 100 metres of any point of the school's perimeter or a public playground. RA 9211 prohibits tobacco sales there.

Do I need a licence to sell insect spray?

You may need one. FPA licenses dealers and retailers of fertilizer and pesticides and sets the fee, so ask FPA.

What happens if I do not put price tags?

DTI cites fines of ₱200 to ₱5,000 and/or one to six months in jail under the Consumer Act.

Can I copy the sales numbers from another store?

No. Another store's street, hours and suki are different. Use your own foot traffic count and test your first month.