Final Business Plan Project

Marketing Business Plan

Elizabeth Hofstetter
Manoj Kumar
Rohit Krishna
Manjot Sidhu

Peaceful TransiTions

Table of Contents
Executive Summary ….…………………………………………………………………...3
Missions Statement..……………………………………………………………………....4
Background …………………………………………………………………………….....5
Importance of Immigration ……………………………………………………………….7
Company Overview …………………………………………………………………........9
Current Gaps within the Rental Housing Industry ………….…………………...............11
Services ………………………………………………………………………………….12
Business Collaborations ………………………………………………………………....14
Competitors ……………………………………………………………………………...16
Primary Research ………………………………………………………………………..18
Company Operations ...………………………………………………………….............19
Marketing Strategies …………………………………………………………….............21
Partners …………… …………………………………………………………………....23
SWOT …………………………………………………………………………………...24
Financial Overview ……………………………………………………………………...26
Sales Forecast ……………………………………………………………………………27
Start Up Costs …………………………………………………………………………...28
Recurring Costs ……………………………………………………………………….....29
Income Statement ………………………………………………………………………..30
Balance Sheet ……………………………………………………………………………31
Cash Flow …………………………………………………………………………….....32
Appendix …………………………………………………………………………….......33
References …………………………………………………………………………….....39

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Executive Summary
Peaceful Transitions is a rental housing assistance service which provides individuals and
families find affordable housing while providing essential information and resources to
make immigrating to Canada more comfortable. Peaceful Transitions services will
include:

• Providing tenants with potential residences
• Creating comfortable mediation and administration between landlords and
potential tenants
• Providing legal guidelines around laws and regulations concerning Government
Publications and Lease Details
• Help adapt to new cultures and demographic area

Peaceful Transactions' head office will be located in Mississauga and will be promoted
throughout the Greater Toronto Area in addition to Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville,
Burlington, Etobicoke, Richmond Hill and Markham.

The business will promote their services through newspapers, online advertising,
international bilingual website, radio advertising, flier distribution, and direct contact
with established local businesses.

With business collaborations with major agencies based out of India, such as, The Canam
Group, Y-Axis, The Chopras and Edwise International, Peaceful Transactions will
distinguish itself from online competitors by recruiting clients before they even come to
Canada. While providing our services in person, telephone and online; Peaceful
Transactions will provide counseling and assistance critical to the needs of our client.

Mission Statement

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Our mission is to find newly immigrated families and individual’s safe and affordable
housing in Canada. We believe that by assisting in the smooth and peaceful transition
into Canada, we will facilitate newcomers to begin their essential integration into society.

Background

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“Canada has a strong tradition of welcoming immigrants from around the world to help
enrich our communities—socially, culturally and economically” – Stats Canada
Families and Individuals
According to Stats Canada, there has been a significant increase of the number of
immigrants coming into Canada. More specifically, 2.2 million immigrants were
admitted into Canada in 1990’s; the most significant increase we have seen for the past
100 years. According to the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants of Canada (LSIC), a
study that examined the primary problems faced by recent Canadian immigrants, both
housing location and cost were among the major problems of newcomers. Combined with
limited financial resources, newcomers usually arrive with the limited knowledge of their
surroundings. LSIC found that 40% of newcomers are provided this information via
previously landed family and friends, thereupon leaving 60% of individuals whom do not
have this resource. With 81% of newly landed immigrants looking for rental
accommodations at time of arrival, we aim to facilitate the process of assisting them by
providing affordable housing solutions that enable the individuals to live more
comfortably while making their transition smoother.
Diversity
Canada is known for a broad immigration policy which is a direct reflection of Canada’s
ethnic diversity. According to the 2001 census by Statistics Canada, Canada has 34 ethnic
groups. 16.2% of Canadian population belonged to visible minorities, and that number
has been significantly increasing. Moreover, in 2001, 250,640 people immigrated to
Canada. Based on the Canada 2001 Census total population of 30,007,094 people,
immigration represented 0.834% population growth that year. Immigration rate
represents 8.7% population growth over 10 years, or 23.1% over 25 years (or 6.9 million
people). Since 2001, immigration has ranged between 221,352 and 262,236 immigrants
per annum. According to Canada's Immigration Program (October 2004) Canada has the
highest per capita immigration rate in the world (Wikipedia, 2010).
* The three main official reasons given for the high level of immigration are:
A. The social component – family reunification.
B. The humanitarian component – Relating to refugees.
C. The economic component – Attracting immigrants who will contribute economically
and fill labour market needs.
There are three main immigration categories:
Economic immigrants - Citizenship and Immigration Canada uses several sub-categories
of economic immigrants. The high-profile skilled worker principal applicants group
comprised 19.8% of all immigration in 2005. Canada has also created a VIP Business
Immigration Program which allows immigrants with sufficient business experience or
management experience to receive the Permanent Residency in a shorter period than

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other types of immigrations. The Province of Quebec has a program called the Immigrant
Investor Program
Family class - Under a government program, both citizens and permanent residents can
sponsor family members to immigrate to Canada.
Refugees - Immigration of refugees and those in need of protection.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Canada

Importance of Immigration

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Population and Economy
*appendix A
“The only factor of growth will then be immigration.” – Stats Canada
In 2007, studies showed that, two-thirds of Canada’s population growth over the past five
years has been by immigrant newcomers. In 2007 the population of native-born
Canadians increased by only 400,000 between 2001 and 2006. During the same time, 1.2
million newly immigrated peoples have helped push the country’s population to a total of
31.6 million. An average 240,000 newcomers per year more than compensated for the
country’s flat fertility rate. The 2006 census data by Statistics Canada, showed an overall
population growth of 5.4 percent; this is the highest population increase among the Group
of Eight industrialized nations (Wikipedia, 2010).
In addition to the slow fertility growth rate of native Canadians, in coming years there
will enviably be an increase in the number of deaths in Canada due to the aging baby
boomer population. Thus the number of deaths will exceed the number of births and the
natural increase will become negative (Wikipedia, 2010).
Canada is widely known for its natural resources, vast geography, diverse peoples,
abundant opportunities, accessible health and social services. Throughout its history,
Canada has relied on a large stream of immigrants for its economic success. Because of
stale population increases, Canada has faced economic issues because of labour
shortages. Canada has responded actively by searching for immigrants whereby
successfully meeting existing labour market needs. An increase of immigrants helps
Canada develop a strong and competitive economy (Wikipedia, 2010).
Demographic
*appendix B
According to Stats Canada, between the years of 1970-2000, immigrants have come
predominately from Britain, the United States, Italy, Portugal, Greece, China, India,
Pakistan, Philippians, and the Republic of Korea. LSIC found that of the participants
studied, one third of the total immigrant populations have come from East Asia. To
narrow down our target demographic, we will focus on assisting immigrants coming from
India (Stats Canada, 2003).
Furthermore, according to LSIC, 66% of the participants were between the ages of 25-44
years old, leaving 16% and 17% younger and older, respectively. Out of these
participants, 42% arrived with family, 29% arrived alone, whereas 23% arrived married
with no children (Stats Canada, 2003). Therefore, we will target landlords who are
willing to rent to families with and without children as well as individual units. These
statistics provide us with the knowledge of not only geographical locations to which
solicit potential landlords but also relevant demographic neighborhoods. In addition, it
allows us to assess to what types and size of properties that we will be able to fill.

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Company Overview
“We are a housing assistance service that is here to help you and your families find
affordable housing while providing essential information and resources to make Canada
your home.”

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Housing
We provide a service by which we help newly immigrated individuals and families find
and secure affordable housing within the GTA and surrounding areas. Over the past
seven years in Ontario, apartment rents have risen over 40 per cent. New laws about the
rights of landlords and tenants can sometimes make it difficult for a newcomer to get an
apartment, especially if they have just arrived in Canada and do not have good English
language skills. They may be unaware of their rights. For example, a landlord has the
right to refuse to rent you an apartment if he thinks you do not make enough money.
Therefore, we assist in finding housing while providing services that make new comers
aware of Canadian Tenant Laws.
We connect tenants with furnished or unfurnished rental units of the following kind:
Basement Apartments
One of the more popular rental units among new immigrants are basement apartment.
These apartments are in homes owned by landlords who opt to rent out (usually) an entire
floor. Ideally, the apartment would have its own entrance, kitchen, bathroom, laundry,
sitting room and 1 to 2 bedrooms, size depending.
Bachelor – Three Bedroom Apartments
Other fairly common rental units are apartment within apartment buildings/complexes.
Apartments are a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. These
are owned by the landlord and rented out on a contractual basis. Privately-owned
apartment buildings can vary in size from buildings that have only two apartments, to
buildings or building complexes that have hundreds of apartments. The apartments vary
in size from a bachelor (open concept) to three bedroom units. These are completely
private apartments since each is an individual unit within the building. Usually, you are
required to sign a lease, agreeing to the amount of rent you pay for one year, and that you
will not move out before the end of that year.
Townhomes
Townhouses are multi-story homes in rows. Units are connected to each other by shared
vertical walls, and they may have attached garages or individual driveways as well as
front and/or back lawns. There are usually maintenance fees that might be on top of or
included in the monthly rent that include such things as lawn and sideway maintenance,
and any amenities that are included on the property.

Detached homes
These are detached multi level or bungalow style houses. The tenant would have the
entire home for themselves and their family. These are generally less popular because of
the increased cost of renting an entire house.

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Cooperative Housing
A co-op is a housing arrangement in which a corporation owns single residential units. A
board of directors governs the corporation and each resident has one vote. As a result,
each resident is a shareholder in the corporation but you don’t own any real property.
Subsidized Housing
Subsidized housing is also provided by the city. "Subsidized" means that there is a
special fund that pays part of the rent on your behalf if you cannot afford to pay the full
rent. Because of the high demand for such apartments and how long it takes for one to
become available, the waiting time to get this kind of housing is usually between five and
ten years.
*We will provide information on these services but since they are government regulated
we will not be placing tenants in these units.
*We will not be placing tenants with condominium rentals as they can be much more
expensive than other traditional rental units.
Location
Approximately 35 percent of Canada’s total population lives in three metropolitan
regions, Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal and they attract more than 80 per cent of
immigrant newcomers. The census shows that Toronto remains Canada’s biggest
metropolitan area, with 5.1 million people. Therefore, our target areas include the
Toronto and Greater Toronto Areas, Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington,
Etobicoke, Richmond Hill and Markham.

Current Gaps within the Rental Housing Industry
Stats Canada lists some of the major housing problems faced by new immigrants upon
arriving in Canada, namely:
1. Low income

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2. Finding suitable housing without compromising other essentials
3. Finding housing in a suitable environment
4. Receiving inaccurate information about housing and location from friends and families
Among these problems, newcomers often face:
Discrimination
Discrimination based on race or ethnicity still exists. "Sorry, it's taken"; is a problem
many newcomers experience when trying to find an apartment. It is important that they
know their rights in such situations. This is where our immigrant housing and counselor
assistance can help. If a landlord asks for more than two months rent; if he/she asks for
rent in cash and does not give you a receipt; or if he/she rents the apartment to someone
else after he tells you it's taken, he/she is breaking the law. One of our primary goals is to
educate newcomers on Canadian rules and regulations regarding tenant and landlord
laws. This includes, information regarding the Residential Tenancies Act, Tenant
Protection Act, Eviction Protection, Lease Agreement Documents, in addition to lease
payments, rental periods, and other documentation and rules specified by landlords i.e.
noise, smoking, pets, furnishing, included or excluded amenities.
Language Barriers
Many of our competitors assist with available rental units but leave it up to the tenants to
contact the landlords on their own. Unfortunately, many Canadian new comers have a
substantial language barrier and only a limited knowledge of the English language. We
aim to fill this gap by employing proficient multi-lingual staff proficient in Hindi and
English, who are able to work as mediators between the landlord and the tenant.
Location and Cultural Information
Being a new immigrant to Canada can be daunting enough as it is without having the
additional stress of living in a place where nothing is familiar to you. We aim to provide
counseling services which educate clients about their surroundings and finding housing
conducive to their needs and lifestyle so they may make Canada their home.
Through our research, we have found that many of these problems are let with unmet
solutions. We aim to facilitate in this area by providing mediation services between
tenants and landlords in addition to educating tenants about their rights as renters in
Canada so they may be fully informed when they agree to a lease.
Services
We provide many services which assist tenants to find housing suitable to their needs and
wants. Some newcomers prefer to live in communities of their own ethnic group. The
advantages are that they feel more comfortable being in a community where they share
the same language, culture and religion. Additionally, many prefer that the schools their

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children attend are mostly made up of the same ethnic group where they can speak their
own language thus preserving the native language of their parents.
Therefore, we assist in helping answer some of the major questions posed by new
comers, including:
How much money do I have?
Can I afford to live where I want to or do I have to take any place that I can find for the
money I have?
Do I want to live close to other family members and friends?
Is there a temple, a church or a mosque close by?
Is there a school nearby? What kind of a school is it - does it have many English-
speaking children or does it mostly have children from my own language and culture?
Do I want to live where there are many different ethnic groups, few ethnic groups, or
within my own ethnic community?
With this in mind, we offer in depth information services that include:
Location: type of community, transportation (bus routes, train, subway), stores,
community centers, laundry, parks and recreation, medical clinics and hospitals, schools,
places of worship, restaurants, shopping centers and any other service that is conducive to
their needs and lifestyle.
Government Publications and Lease Details: Residential Tenancies Act, Tenant
Protection Act, Eviction Protection, Lease Agreement Documents, lease payments, rental
periods, in addition to other documentation and rules specified by landlords (noise,
smoking, pets, furnishing, included or excluded amenities)
Mediation and Administration: arranging appointments between landlords and potential
tenants, online secured website with available housing and personal information
Referrals: subsidized housing, financial resources (banks and financial advisors)
(The Royal Bank of Canada has a program for newcomers to Canada who want to buy a
home as soon as they arrive. The RBC mortgage program for immigrants in this situation
requires you to put a minimum of 35 per cent of the cost of the house towards the
purchase yourself. They also require that you have enough money to cover two years
worth of payments.)
Staff: multi-lingual staff proficient in Hindi and English
Website: Our website, www.peacefultransitions.com is a website dedicated to our clients.
Once registered with our company, they will be given a username where they can log into
the site and have their own personalized page. They can write about themselves on a
message board so landlords can see who the prospective tenants are. They will also be

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able to view available rental units, with descriptions and pictures. The website will also
provide information about our company, our toll free phone number and an email
address, www.peacefultransitions@rogers.com. We will also provide some useful tools,
such as local maps of Toronto and important numbers such as Emergency, Hospitals, and
Schools etc.
Telephone: Our working hours are 8am-8pm Monday to Friday, 10am-4pm on Saturday
which allows us to provide superior services to our clients. We will have a telephone
number by which out clients can call one of our counselors, during business hours.
We have one counselor based out of India which will be able to service our clients before
they leave India. Our counselor in India can then forward all the needed information, via
fax or internet so that when the client arrives, we can set up meeting times with the
landlords. The counselor based out of India will be home based. The hours of operation
are 8am-6pm Monday to Friday.

Business Collaborations
Marketing within the Indian market is of outmost importance. We will be partnering with
major Indian agencies, namely, The Canam Group, T-Axis, The Chopras and Edwise
International which deal with immigration services. These companies provide assistance
to people applying for Canadian visas by assisting with paperwork and immigration
services. We will partner with these agencies as they will refer their clients to our service,

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before they arrive in Canada. This is an essential step in our business as we will enable
clients to make all their lodging arrangements before physically arriving in Canada.
Individuals coming to Canada will first approach one of these agencies for all their
immigration services. From there, potential clients will be referred to Peaceful
Transitions and be directed to our Counselor based out of India. The counselor then will
provide all the aforementioned information included in our services. The counselor will
then connect with the other counselor in Toronto where they can contact the landlord and
arrange a meeting when the client arrives.
These agencies will promote our services and will provide marketing leverage to Peaceful
Transitions and will get paid based per registered client.
Below are descriptions of each of our partnering agencies.
The Canam Group
http://www.canamgroup.com
“Canam Consultants Ltd. is the largest ISO 9001:2000 certified Immigration and
Education consulting Company in the Asian sub-continent. Established in 1996, Canam
made a deliberate foray into immigration consulting for four countries i.e. Canada,
Australia, New Zealand and UK and student visas for USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, Singapore, Ireland, Switzerland, and Ireland, for providing a wider and unbiased
perspective to our clients because each individual's goal is unique. Their pragmatic
approach has been appreciated and reputation is built on trust, resourcefulness, integrity
and years of experience.
Canam's Board of Directors comprise of highly qualified Canadian and Australian
Citizens and international advisors based in Canada, Australia and UK, who are well
versed with the culture, job market, economy, business potential, and social welfare
programs of the respective countries. Canam works within the guidelines specified by
MARA (Migration Agents Registration Authority) and the CSIC (Canadian Society of
Immigration Consultants) and is an accredited approved member of the OPIC
(Organization of Professional Immigration Consultants) and Corporate Member of Indo-
Canadian Business Council. They are well acquainted with the intricacies of the
immigration process and thus clients get appropriate, accurate, reliable and timely
guidance and assistance.”

Y-Axis
http://www.y-axis.com/aboutus.html
Y-Axis Overseas Careers is India's No.1 and fastest growing Overseas Careers and
Immigration Consultant. Over the last 9 years of being in business, we have earned the
trust of our clientele purely on the basis of our professionalism, strong research and
success rate. Clients enjoy a good rapport with our competent, knowledgeable and

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experienced consultants who offer high quality and life changing career counseling for
free.
Our service fee is affordable and we are paid only if we are successful. We offer various
flexible payment options to suit your pocket. Our core competence visa documentation
and expertise in green cards. We process the highest number of immigration cases in
India; about 20% of India's HSMP applications is filed through us. These thousands of
case studies have given us the experience and expertise to handle any type of case. What
our clients are comfortable is the trust of our brand and the transparency of our process
which is backed by a proper legal agreement including a clear refund policy. Our global
resettlement services offer end-to-end solutions including job search services and
allowing you to land in any country and feel our support until you settle down
permanently.”
The Chopras
http://www.thechopras.co.in/aboutus.php?flag=aboutus
“It is this vast combined international experience of the directors that has been packaged
into a successful business in an area of activity where first-hand, hard-core knowledge is
a pre-requisite to advice students realistically and factually. No other company in this line
of work can match this. They set up this company in New Delhi in 1995, originally
operating from a business centre. It currently spans 17 cities with twenty nine branches
and is now housed in over 60,000 square feet, and growing, of space nationwide.”
Edwise International
http://www.edwiseinternational.com/sitehtm/aboutus.htm
“Edwise is the one stop solution for all your international study needs. Its core activity
lies in assisting students to make the right choice with regard to pursuing education in
overseas educational institutions. Edwise provides information regarding higher
education in various countries such as UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA,
France, Switzerland and Ireland, and has a command over the education system world
wide. Edwise is a solution-oriented company, with a single mind approach in tailoring
career paths to suit individual profiles within the parameters that may prevail in each
case. The parameters may be educational, financial or personal.”

Competitors
Through research conducted with fifty-five international students, the most well known
rental services include online resources, including, kijiji.ca, torontorentals.net, viewit.ca,
renters.ca, craigslist.ca and homestayservices.ca. Newspaper classifies such as the
Toronto Star and Toronto Sun are less popular for newcomers, therefore we will focus on
these services.

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Kijiji - kijiji.com
Kijiji is one of Canada’s most popular local classified site where people may buy, sell,
and trade various products and services. Kijiji has become very popular for finding rental
units and thus is one of our main competitors. Adding an ad to Kijiji is free, however to
place an ad on the homepage, the cost is $68.75 per 7 days.
Toronto Rentals - torontorentals.net
Toronto Rentals is a site dedicated to providing various rental listings within the Greater
Toronto Area. Additionally, they have a sister site, Rentit.ca which allows potential
tenants to look for rentals within Canada. Individuals looking to rent may register for free
on this site which allows them to post a description of the type of housing they are
looking for via a message board. Landlords are then able to look through the message
board to find suitable tenants. There is a one time fee of $10.50 for landlords to post an
ad on Toronto Rentals which includes posting up to 5 pictures of the rental unit.
View It - viewit.ca
View It is a rental site that has rental units all over Canada. This service is free to those
looking to rent however there is a charge of $54.95 per month to advertise on the site.
The site lists its advantages as being cheaper then advertising in various magazines and
newspapers as well as fast responses.
Renters - renters.ca
Renters.ca is a service with includes listings all over Canada. The cost per single vacancy
ad is $37.00 per month. This price includes a description of the unit, up to 200 words in
addition to up to 4 pictures of the rental unit. This service is free for all potential tenants.
Craig’s List - craigslist.ca
Craig’s List is a site, similar to kijij.com which enables people to bull, sell, trade various
types of services and products, including rental units. This site is very popular, especially
in North America. To place an ad on this site is free, with exceptions to various States.
Home Stay Services - http://homestayservices.ca/en-schools.html
Home Stay Services (HSS) is a service which assists international students in finding a
place to live by connecting them with host families. HSS is affiliated with many colleges
in the Toronto area and are available via a direct link from the schools website. They
provide many of the same services which we provide, but solely to students. The rental
units are also exclusive to host families that house international students. There is an
administrative fee for these services of $190/individual or $240/couple. The housing
prices vary depending on the type of unit available in addition to in inclusion or exclusion
of food packages. There are also additional charges for other amenities such as a
television and internet in the unit, a private bathroom and airport pickup. The prices range
from $615.00 to $1300.00 per month, excluding additional amenities.

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How We Differ
Peaceful Transitions distinguishes itself from many of these online competitors. Unlike
these resources which solely provide a description and pictures of available rental units in
the Toronto area, we offer in person, telephone and online services which counsel and
provide information about location of the rentals and find housing that are conducive to
the needs of our client. In addition, we offer our services in Hindi and English so that we
may better serve our international clients and understand their needs.
HSS is the competitor most closely related to our service however they serve to
exclusively students whom are attending colleges and universities on temporary student
visa basis. Additionally, all of our units are individual units whereby many of the rentals
from HSS are rooms rented by the host families.
Other competition come from non-profit organizations such as Housing Help Centers
offered by various cities. We are distinct from these organizations by which we guarantee
quick and efficient placements as many of these resources require you to be placed on a
waiting list until a unit becomes available. This process could take up to 6 months or
longer.

Primary Research
Samples from our Primary Research
Questions asked to Landlords:

1. Would you use our service to promote your rental unit?

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2. Would you prefer to pay a one time fee to advertise on our site or a one time fee when
we found a suitable tenant?
Responses:
“We have a basement apartment in our house which we rent. We advertise in Indian
stores and worship places but getting suitable tenants usually takes longer. As a result, the
house stays empty. So I would definitely pay a one time fee for this service instead of
loosing $600.00/month on rent.”
“I wouldn’t use this service only because my house is very closer to Humber College
(just a 5 min walk) and almost all my previous tenants were students of the Humber
College. The house is always on demand for students looking for an accommodation
close to college. I can advertise on college notice board for free.”
Questions asked to Tenants:
1. Would you pay for this service?

2. What services are important to you?
Responses:
“I would use this service. I think it is a really helpful service and something I would have
loved to have available to me when I moved here.”
“I faced so many problems when I landed here. Finding good accommodation at right
place and at right price was really tricky. I would have loved to use this service. If you
can find me accommodation then it will save time and give me all the helpful knowledge
about the area where I want to live. It would be also good if you can provide a service
where you can connect use with employment agencies.”

Company Operations
Organizational Structure
Peaceful Transitions is owned by four-person partnership; each person will lead a specific
section of the business and be the leader of that section. The board of directors will
constitute of 4 persons, Rohit Krishna, Elizabeth Hofstetter, Manjot Sidhu and Manoj
Kumar. Each board of member will also act as the chief of a department; leading and
motivating his/her team and will be responsible of his/her department. We prefer a more

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informal and decentralized structure of the enterprise and will try to build a more work
friendly and safe environment for each of our employees. We will maintain high
standards of work ethic and business honesty in each of our business transactions and will
try to be as eco-friendly as possible in our operations.
We will have 5 counselors who will help our clients in getting the most updated
information and help them in adjusting to their new surroundings.
Finance: Headed by the Chief Financial Officer, Rohit Krishna. This department will
deal with the financial transactions and obligations of the enterprise. Namely the
maintaining of the balance sheet, profit and loss accounts, budgeting, cash flows and the
cycle of taking care of working capital .Forecasting would be an integral part of the
functioning of the finance department. Within the finance department, we have a Chief
Financial Officer.
Human Resources and Office Manager: Headed by the Human Resource manager,
Elizabeth Hofstetter. This department will look into all our human resource needs and
documentation. It includes the hiring process of employees and their induction process
into the enterprise, formalizing the job specification and job description details,
organizing interviews and complying with all the labor laws. Other than this the
department will keenly and actively look into keeping the morale of our employees, as
we strongly believe in the well being of our team and people. In addition to these
responsibilities will also act as the office manager to our icehouse counselors and
handling with problems and concerns faced by our clients.
Marketing: Headed by the Marketing manager Manoj Kumar and Manjot Sidhu. This
department will look into all the marketing operations of the enterprise. We will have a
dedicated team for this operation, which will involve in every aspect of marketing
including both sales and direct marketing and maintaining public relations activities. We
have divided the organizational structure into two main broad parts: The first is for the
Indian marketing process and the second is for our Toronto office. Our marketing
strategy will have to deal with varied cultural, social and geographical environments and
so our marketing team will be of both people from India and Canada. The marketing
executives will do marketing functions like promotional functions, giving presentations
in colleges and student forums and spreading awareness about the enterprise for the
general public. The Indian division executive will be looking into and taking care of the
liaison activities (with the Indian immigration assistance agencies) and maintaining an
excellent client relationship. The structure includes the Marketing Chief that has directs
reports including Marketing Executives from the Canadian and Indian division.
Location
*appendix
Our head office located on Lakeshore 2733 Lakeshore Boulevard West, Toronto
Main floor office, 600 SQFT, wood flooring and high ceilings, parking, TMI and our
extended office on 2nd floor office suite, 650 sq/ft, parking, TMI.

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This location will provide us advantage of being center within the area we are serving.
Also we will enjoy easy access to almost every major part of the city.
Office structure: We will have the receptionist’s desk at the entrance of the office, where
there will be a visitor’s lounge. And after that would be our executive manger’s office
and adjacent would be our marketing manager’s office. We will keep our first floor office
space for documentation room and supplies store. We have taken special care of correct
location as our business is highly marketing oriented and requires correct location
planning.
Office Utilities: For the smooth functioning of the day to day procedures of the enterprise
we will be requiring some office items and utilities. Given below is an itinerary of all the
items required:

Marketing
Marketing Strategy in Canada
Newspapers
Indian Express Canada
Tel: 905-795-2791, Email: rekhadua@gmail.com
CanIndia News Weekly
A Division of WORLD MEDIA CORP (Canada) Inc
Tel: (905) 673-6625 or 866-757-0070

20


Both the Indian Express Canada and CanIndia News Weekly are multicultural
newspapers and e-newspapers, popular among immigrant families. It has the latest news
from India an around the world in addition to sports, entertainment, shopping, videos,
blogs etc. We believe that this would be an effective way to reach both landlords and
tenants for our service.
Radio Station
CMR Diversity 101.3 FM
CMR is currently North Americas only South Asian owned and operated FM radio
station. It services cultural diversity by broadcasting in 24 different languages from 20
different ethnic groups. Along with a diverse set of music and news programs, the station
also encourages discussion via their forum, specifically for immigrated individuals and
families. We plan on placing a short ad on the program called, Radio Voice, which is a
Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati language broadcast that services the Indian community. The
program airs for 2 hours starting at 3pm, Monday to Friday.
Pearson Airport
Pearson airport sees more then 31.5 million customers per year and as a result we want to
be front and center when people arrive in Toronto. We feel that marketing within the
airport is of extreme importance, so most of our advertising budget will be focused in this
area. There are many advertising opportunities available at Pearson, however we have
chosen to utilize Pearson’s website advertising. We will have a small spot on the page
with the name of our company, our phone number and a brief description. This will also
be a selling strategy for those landlords who will be placing their add on our site.
Gerrard Street East
*Appendix E,F
Gerrard Street East in Toronto, is commonly referred to as “little India”. There are many
shops, grocery stores, restaurants, fashion boutiques, electronics and jewelry stores within
this Indian district, making this area the largest South Asian market place in North
America. Because this area is populated with our target demographic, we plan to
distribute fliers within shops and restaurants in this area. The rationalization for
marketing this area is two fold. Firstly, this area is a main tourist area, especially during
the summer months when the Gerrard India Bazaar is held; this is one of the largest
markets for Asian goods in North America. This annual festival attracts thousands of
locals and tourists yearly. Therefore, we will gain substantial exposure. Secondly, since
the majority of the local residents in this area are of Indian decent, we will market our
services so that they may connect family and friends who are coming to Canada and need
assistance finding housing.
In addition to Gerrard Street East, there are a few other prominent places within and
around the Greater Toronto area that are Indian centered, including, Dundas Street in
Mississauga and Gore Road in Brampton. In these places, one can find everything Indian

21


starting from Grocers, Jewelers, furniture’s showrooms and Indian restaurants. We intend
to place advertisements within some of these popular locations as well.
Sales Force
We have a sales force who will be actively working to get landlords to register to
Peaceful Transitions. They will be recruiting clients from those people whom live in the
general areas that we want to place our tenants and who are currently advertising rental
units on free websites. The main advantages of advertising on our site will be a fast fill
rate. We aim to have each available unit filled within one month of registering with the
company.
Viral Marketing
One of the most important aspects of marketing are through viral marketing, therefore we
feel that advertising through Canadian newspapers and radio stations that service the
Greater Toronto Area are an important marketing tool. Many Canadian newcomers have
family already located in Toronto or the surrounding areas and are quite familiar with
these media outlets. Therefore, we are relying on these families’ members to relay
information to their relatives and friends who are coming to Canada. In addition, we will
also be reaching potential landlords as well.
Marketing Strategy in India
Much of our marketing in India will be from referrals from our partnering counselors.
Many people looking for information utilize these counselors for all of their immigration
needs, therefore we anticipate a large number of our clients from them.
In addition to the counselors, we will place a small ad within the popular newspaper,
Hindi Daily. This is one of the most famous newspapers in India, thus we will give
Peaceful Transitions excellent exposure.

Partners
To begin a life in Canada, there are many essential services that new immigrants need,
including banking, telephone connection with long distance services, grocery, and
broadcast communications. That being said, we have solicited 5 corporate sponsors for
Peaceful Transitions so that we will refer our clients to for their services, including,
Royal Bank, Bell Mobility, Tim Hortons, Loblaws, AM 640 Radio.
There are many benefits for our corporate sponsors, including:

22


1. Allows the sponsor to strengthen and develop links within the local community and
getting their name known to new immigrants. In all probability, this will result in a log
term commitment of the individual which would be a viable asset to the sponsor.
2. We can provide a direct link to our sponsors by distributing information, coupons, and
contact information to our clients.
3. Increase sponsor companies reputation by client referrals to other family and friends.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

- We distinguish ourselves from our competitors by offering our services that
specifically cater to the Indian community with proficient, multilingual staff who
may assist our clients

- We offer our landlord clients quick and efficient placements for their rental units
which differ from our competitors

23


- We have both online and in person mediation and counseling which allows our
clients to feel more secure and comfortable, making their transition into Canada
much less intimidating

- We will provide excellent customer service as our current target market is small
and will devote time towards our customer’s needs

- The geographic location of our company allows us to service the Greater Toronto
Area, which is the most popular area for East Asian immigrants when they first

- All of our staff are multilingual in both English and Hindi which gives us an
advantage over our Canadian competitors whom many have communication
barriers

- We have a presence in India that allow our clients to research and find housing
before they immigrate to Canada

- Our website has a vast amount of resources that will allow easy access for both
our tenant and landlord clients to browse and communicate on a message bored.

Weaknesses

- We specialize in offering our services to Indian immigrants which may limit our
clientele
- May also be limiting our landlord clientele as potential tenants may want to rent
from someone with similar cultural background to make them more comfortable
- Because we only have a small marketing team, we have to be extremely diligent
to recruit clients, both tenants and landlords
- We intend to gain many clients from our Indian parents but can only fund one
counselor in our Asian market

Opportunities

- Once we start becoming more well known and making a profit, we can expand
our services to include assistance with other nationalities

- Canadian government’s initiative to fast track visa processing times for highly
skilled labour
- Introduction of SPP(Student Partner Program), an initiative by Canadian
government along with around 30 universities and colleges to invite more
students to study in Canada

24


Threats

- Lots of competition for rental housing services available to anyone through online
services
- Many questions regarding location, housing, schools, shopping and other cultural
related information can be found online using Google, Yahoo and other popular
search engines
- Many of our online competitors are already well known and have a large clientele
- Many new immigrants have family and friends already residing in Canada,
therefore may receive housing information from them

Financial Overview

Based on our thorough research on actual expenses for setting up a new business in
Toronto, we have found that for setting up our business we need $388,850.00 as start up
costs, which includes both one time and recurring costs. The costs include all the IT
requirements, salaries, marketing expenses, office furnishings and supplies, rents etc. Our
main sources of income are from a one time administrative fee and a commission fee
from our tenant clients, as well as a one time registration fee from our landlord clients.
Other sources of income include revenues from our partners and third party advertising

25


from the Royal Bank of Canada, Bell Mobility, Tim Horton’s, Loblaw’s, and AM 640
radio.

As per our income statement, the overall revenues for the first year are estimated to be
$465,625.00 and the overall expenses are estimated to be $470,175.20. We are almost
breaking even but ending up with a low loss margin of $4550.20. Additionally, we have
also qualified for a bank loan of $50,000.00 as an unsecured short term loan and also
setup a line of credit with the bank so as to pool in money for any emergency
requirements.

For the second year, our revenues are projected to increase to $1,398,925.00 due to the
expansion of Peaceful Transitions and our expenses are at $494,160.00. We have
projected an increase of profits by the second year of $904,765.00. In the third year our
profits are projected to rise to $1,378,440.00.

Sales Forecast
Year 1
Revenue Costs Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
Number of Clients 85 175 265 400 925
$ $ $ $ $
Admin Fee from Tenants 200.00 17,000.00 35,000.00 $ 53,000.00 80,000.00 185,000.00
$ $ $ $ $
Admin fee from land lords 75.00 6,375.00 13,125.00 $ 19,875.00 30,000.00 69,375.00
Commission from tenants
20% from an avg. Rent of $ $ $ $
$850 14,450.00 29,750.00 $ 45,050.00 68,000.00 157,250.00

26


Revenue from $ $ $ $ $
partners/month 700.00 10,500.00 10,500.00 $ 10,500.00 10,500.00 42,000.00
No. of Partners 5 5 5 5
3rd party $ $ $ $ $
advertising/month 250.00 3,000.00 3,000.00 $ 3,000.00 3,000.00 12,000.00
No. of slots 4 4 4 4
Total Revenue $ 465,625.00
Year 2
$ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $
20% from an avg. rent of $ $ $ $
$900 99,900.00 124,200.00 $ 142,200.00 158,400.00 524,700.00
$ $ $ $ $
Revenue from partners 850.00 12,750.00 12,750.00 $ 12,750.00 12,750.00 51,000.00
$ $ $ $ $
3rd party advertising 300.00 5,400.00 5,400.00 $ 5,400.00 5,400.00 21,600.00
Total Revenue $ 1,398,925.00
Year 3
$ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $
20% from an avg. rent of $ $ $ $
$900 167,400.00 183,600.00 $ 199,800.00 216,000.00 766,800.00
$ $ $ $ $
Revenue from partners 900.00 13,500.00 13,500.00 $ 13,500.00 13,500.00 54,000.00
$ $ $ $ $
3rd party advertising 350.00 6,300.00 6,300.00 $ 6,300.00 6,300.00 25,200.00
Total Revenue $ 2,017,500.00

Start up Costs

Year
One time costs Year1 2 Year3

Computers $ 4,500.00

Office Furnishings $ 3,200.00

27


Kitchen supplies $ 640.00

Computers Accessories $ 1,800.00

Business Cards $ 150.00

Business Incorporation $ 250.00

Legal Fees $ 1,800.00

Name Board $ 150.00

Website Designing & Hosting $ 2,500.00

Total one time costs $ 14,990.00

Recurring Costs Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Salaries $ 23,500.00 $ 27,300.00 $ 37,900.00

28


from employees 7 FTE 8 FTE 11 FTE
Marketing Expenses $ 5,000.00 $ 5,000.00 $ 3,500.00
Employee Health Insurance $ 140.00 $ 160.00 $ 220.00
Phone and Internet $ 200.00 $ 200.00 $ 200.00
Website maintenance $ 15.00 $ 15.00 $ 20.00
Office Rent $ 2,000.00 $ 2,100.00 $ 2,200.00
Office maintenance costs $ 150.00 $ 160.00 $ 160.00
Office Supplies $ 150.00 $ 170.00 $ 180.00

Total Recurring
Costs/month $ 31,155.00 $ 35,105.00 $ 44,380.00
Total Recurring Costs/Year $ 373,860.00 $ 421,260.00 $ 532,560.00

Total Costs per Year $ 388,850.00 $421,260.00 $ 532,560.00

Income Statement
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
Revenues

29


Admin Fee from Tenants $ 185,000.00 $ 583,000.00 $ 852,000.00
Admin fee from Landlords $ 69,375.00 $ 218,625.00 $ 319,500.00
Commission from Tenants $ 157,250.00 $ 524,700.00 $ 766,800.00
Revenue from
partners/month $ 42,000.00 $ 51,000.00 $ 54,000.00
3rd party advertising/month $ 12,000.00 $ 21,600.00 $ 25,200.00

Total Revenue $ 465,625.00 $ 1,398,925.00 $ 2,017,500.00

Expenses
Payroll & Insurance $ 283,680.00 $ 329,520.00 $ 457,440.00
Marketing Expenditure $ 60,000.00 $ 60,000.00 $ 42,000.00
Commissions to consultants $ 23,150.00 $ 72,900.00 $ 106,500.00
$50/Client
Business loan $ 51,985.20
$ $ $
IT Expenses 8,980.00 180.00 240.00
Rent $ 24,000.00 $ 25,200.00 $ 26,400.00
$
Office Supplies & Furnishings 5,940.00 $ 2,040.00 $ 2,160.00
$
Business incorp & Legal 2,050.00 $ - $ -
Miscellaneous $ 10,390.00 $ 4,320.00 $ 4,320.00

Total Expenses $ 470,175.20 $ 494,160.00 $ 639,060.00

Net Income Before Tax -$ 4,550.20 $ 904,765.00 $ 1,378,440.00

Balance Sheet Year 1 Year2 Year3
Assets
Current Assets

30


Cash $ 465,625.00 $ 1,398,925.00 $ 2,017,500.00

Fixed Assets
Equipment $ 10,140.00
Less depreciation $ 9,126.00 $ 8,112.00
Total Assets $ 475,765.00 $ 1,408,051.00 $ 2,025,612.00

Liabilities
Accounts Payable $ 26,400.00 $ 27,600.00 $ 28,800.00
Commissions to consultants $ 23,150.00 $ 72,900.00 $ 106,500.00
Business loan $ 51,985.20
EMI of 4332.10/month @ 7.25% /Annum
Principle amount $50000
Marketing Exp $ 60,000.00 $ 60,000.00 $ 42,000.00
Legal Fee $ 1,800.00
Total Liabilities $ 163,335.20 $ 160,500.00 $ 177,300.00

Owners Equity $ 312,429.80 $ 1,247,551.00 $ 1,848,312.00
Liabilities & Owners Equity $ 475,765.00 $ 1,408,051.00 $ 2,025,612.00

Cash Flow
Statement

Month Month Month Month
Cash Inflow Month 2 Month 3 Year 1 Year2 Year3
1 4 5 6

31


-$ -$ -$ $
Cash available at -$ -$ -$
5,780.0 5,643.3 5,506.7 900,214.8
the beginning 6,053.34 5,916.68 4,550.20
2 6 0 0
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
Admin Fee from
15,416. 15,416.6 15,416.6 15,416. 15,416. 15,416. 185,000. 583,000.0 852,000.0
Tenants
67 7 7 67 67 67 00 0 0
$ $ $ $ $ $ $
Admin fee from $ $
5,781.2 5,781.2 5,781.2 5,781.2 69,375.0 218,625.0 319,500.0
Land lords 5,781.25 5,781.25
5 5 5 5 0 0 0
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
Commission from
13,104. 13,104.1 13,104.1 13,104. 13,104. 13,104. 157,250. 524,700.0 766,800.0
Tenants
17 7 7 17 17 17 00 0 0
$ $ $ $ $
Revenue from $ $ $ $
3,500.0 3,500.0 3,500.0 3,500.0 42,000.0
partners/month 3,500.00 3,500.00 51,000.00 54,000.00
0 0 0 0 0
3rd party $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $
advertising/mont 1,000.0 1,000.0 1,000.0 1,000.0 12,000.0
1,000.00 1,000.00 21,600.00 25,200.00
h 0 0 0 0 0
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
Total Cash Inflow 38,802. 38,802.0 38,802.0 38,802. 38,802. 38,802. 465,625. 1,398,925. 2,017,500.
09 9 9 09 09 09 00 00 00

Cash Outflow
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
Operating
40,523. 34,333.3 34,333.3 34,333. 34,333. 34,333. 418,190. 494,160.0 639,060.0
Expenses
33 3 3 33 33 33 00 0 0
$ $ $ $ $
Emi towards bank $ $
4,332.1 4,332.1 4,332.1 4,332.1 51,985.2
loan 4,332.10 4,332.10
0 0 0 0 0
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
Total Cash
44,855. 38,665.4 38,665.4 38,665. 38,665. 38,665. 470,175. 494,160.0 639,060.0
Outflow
43 3 3 43 43 43 20 0 0
-$ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ -$
Net Cash Flow 6,053.3 904,765.0 1,378,440.
136.66 136.66 136.66 136.66 136.66 4,550.20
4 0 00
-$ -$ -$ -$ $ $
-$ -$ -$
Cash Balance 6,053.3 5,643.3 5,506.7 5,370.0 900,214.8 2,278,654.
5,916.68 5,780.02 4,550.20
4 6 0 4 0 80

Appendix

*Appendix A

32


A) Population of Canada, Data of FAO, year 2009; Number of inhabitants in millions

*Appendix B

Population Growth Rates Derived from: Statistics Canada - (table) Population and Dwelling Counts, for
Canada, Provinces and Territories, 2006 and 2001 Censuses - 100% Data

33


*Appendix C

1996 http://www.statcan.gc.ca/c1996-r1996/feb17-17fev/vm-mv-can-eng.htm

2001http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/highlight/Ethnicity/Page.cfm?
Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=0&View=1&Table=1&StartRec=1&Sort=2&B1=Counts

Percentage of national
Rank Name and flag Abbr 2006 pop. 2001 pop. Growth % Change
pop.

1 Ontario ON 12,160,282 11,410,046 750,236 6.6 38.47%

2 Alberta AB 3,290,350 2,974,807 315,543 10.6 10.40%

3 Quebec QC 7,546,131 7,237,479 308,652 4.3 23.87%

4 British Columbia BC 4,113,487 3,907,738 205,749 5.3 13.01%

5 Manitoba MB 1,148,401 1,119,583 28,818 2.6 3.63%

6 Nova Scotia NS 913,462 908,007 5,455 0.6 2.89%

7 Northwest Territories NT 41,464 37,360 4,104 11.0 0.13%

8 Nunavut NU 29,474 26,745 2,729 10.2 0.09%

9 Yukon YT 30,372 28,674 1,698 5.9 0.09%

10 Prince Edward Island PE 135,851 135,294 557 0.4 0.43%

11 New Brunswick NB 729,997 729,498 499 0.1 2.31%

12 Newfoundland and Labrador NL 505,469 512,930 -7,461 -1.5 1.60%

13 Saskatchewan SK 968,157 978,933 -10,776 -1.1 2.96%

Total Canada 31,612,897 30,007,094 1,605,893 5.4 100.00%

2006http://www.recensement2006.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/ethnic/pages/Page.cfm?
Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=1&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=2&Display=Page

34


Year 1996 1996% 2001 2001% 2006 2006%

South Asian 670,590 2.35% 917,070 3.09% 1,233,275 4.00%

Chinese 860,150 3.02% 1,029,395 3.47% 1,168,485 3.70%

Black 573,860 2.01% 662,215 2.23% 783,795 2.50%

Filipino 234,195 0.82% 308,575 1.04% 389,550 1.30%

Latin American 176,970 0.62% 304,245 1.00%

Arab 265,550 0.90%

Southeast Asian 172,765 0.61% 231,425 0.70%

West Asian 156,700 0.50%

Korean 64,835 0.23% 138,425 0.40%

Japanese 68,135 0.24% 60,415 0.20%

Multiple visible minorities 61,575 0.22% 104,215 0.30%

Visible minority, n.i.e. 69,745 0.24% 71,420 0.20%
*Appendix D - http://www.statcan.gc.ca/
daily-quotidien/100325/t100325a1-
Total visible minority population 3,197,480 11.21% 3,983,845 13.44% 5,068,095 16.20% eng.htm

Components and factors of demographic growth
Non-Visible Minority Population 25,330,645 88.79%
25,655,185 86.56% 26,172,935 83.78%

Fourth quarter Fourth quarter Fourth quarter 2008 and fourth
Total Population 28,528,125 100.00% 29,639,030 20081
100.00% 20092
31,241,030 100.00% quarter 2009

number difference

Total growth 64,572 57,473 -7,099

Natural increase 30,063 29,610 -453

35


Components and factors of demographic growth

Fourth quarter Fourth quarter Fourth quarter 2008 and fourth
20081 20092 quarter 2009

Births 92,348 93,731 1,383

Deaths 62,285 64,121 1,836

Net international
34,509 27,863 -6,646
migration

Immigration 53,544 56,370 2,826

Net non-permanent
-8,349 -17,765 -9,416
residents

Emigration3 10,686 10,742 56

1. Updated estimates.

2. Preliminary estimates.

3. Emigration also takes into account net temporary emigration and returning emigration.

* Appendix E - http://maps.google.ca

36


readingt.readingcities.com

*Appendix F

37


We assist Canadian immigrants find safe and affordable rental housing. Specializing
in serving the Indian community, we help people find housing conducive to their
lifestyle and cultural needs through individualized counseling.
All of our counselors are proficient in both English and Hindi so that we many better
serve our clients. Call one of our very knowledgeable and dedicated counselors today
and let us help you find a home!

CALL US TODAY!!

416 272-4423 or visit us at peacefultransitions.com

Email: peacefultransitions@rogers.com

References

http://www.canamgroup.com/

38


http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/03/13/3742894.html

http://www.edwiseinternational.com/sitehtm/aboutus.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_impact_of_immigration_to_Canada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Street,_Toronto

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Canada

http://www.garamchai.com/LittleIndiaGlobal.htm

http://im.metropolis.net/research-
policy/research_content/doc/Housing_issues_facing_newcomers_to_Canada_ROSE.pdf

http://www.moneyinstructor.com/art/communityliving.asp

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-bin/imdb/p2SV.pl?
Function=getSurvey&SDDS=4422&lang=en&db=imdb&adm=8&dis=2

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/imdb-bmdi/document/4422_D1_T1_V3-eng.pdf

http://www.thechopras.co.in/aboutus.php?flag=aboutus

http://www.toronto.com/shopping/listing/179994

http://www.y-axis.com/aboutus.html

39

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