Small business simulator
See what your small business would turn over, how many customers you'd win and who you'd lose them to — month by month for two years — before you spend real money.
One shop on the high street, the big-box store out of town, and the internet. This one opens as Main Street Supply: An independent store in a small town, selling to households, local trades and the odd visitor. Rename it, reprice it, or describe your own small business and let Nova rewrite it to fit.
What a steady shop ends up with
Played steadily for all two years — quality first, then growth, a fair share of the bank spent each year — a steady shop here ends its last year on $228k of revenue and $3.5k of profit, with 304 customers and 4.2% of the market (#5 of 5).
It starts from nothing: $120k in the bank and you, 50 hours a week, with no customers yet.
People who play it well do better, and a bad plan runs out of money.
Revenue in the last year: $228k
Profit in the last year: $3.5k
Customers at the end: 304
Share of the market: From nothing to 4.2%
Where it finishes: #5 of 5
Years and decisions: 2 years, monthly
What you'll decide each month
Each month you set your prices, decide how much stock and how many staff to carry, choose what to spend on being known in your town, and whether to open in the next town over.
Each decision shows on a forecast before you file it, and every period resolves against the rivals and the economy.
Who your customers are
A local shop is won on being near and lost on price: the big-box store will always be cheaper, so the question is how many customers will pay a little more for being served properly, close to home.
8,880 customers in all, across your town.
Everyday locals: Households who pop in for the ordinary things and notice every price rise. About 4,620 of them, worth $563 a year each.
Particular buyers: People who will pay more for the right thing and a proper answer. About 1,950 of them, worth $1.1k a year each.
Trade and local firms: Small businesses who buy often, in bulk, and expect an account. About 710 of them, worth $3k a year each.
Visitors and one-offs: Passing trade and people who came because of a review. About 1,600 of them, worth $338 a year each.
Who you're up against
Three rivals are already in it, and they play to win: they cut prices, spend on marketing and answer what you do. Most of the market is theirs on day one.
The established shop: The biggest, and slow to change — it has stopped listening to its smaller customers. Holds about 30% of the market.
The big-box store out of town: Wins on price and little else; its customers leave the moment somebody is better. Holds about 20% of the market.
Buying it online: Clever and quick, but stretched thin and hard to get hold of. Holds about 12% of the market.
How it works
Free until you start: building and previewing cost nothing, and starting is $10, once.
Build it — free: Press build and you get your own copy of this market: four kinds of customer, three rivals and one towns.
Make it yours: Change any number, describe your small business in a sentence or two and let Nova fill it in, or upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history to fit it to your real figures.
Preview — free: See what a steady shop ends up with, and every warning worth reading, before you pay anything.
Start — $10: Pay once to start, your seat included. Then run it month by month for two years.
Also for
high street · main street · village · town · local · hardware
How much does the small business simulator cost?
Building and previewing are free: make your own copy of this small business market, change anything in it and see what a steady shop ends up with without paying. Starting the simulation is $10, once, and your own seat is included.
Can I make it match my own small business?
Yes. Every number can be changed — the customers and what they pay, the rivals, the towns, the costs and the starting cash. Or describe your small business in a sentence or two and Nova, SparkTower's AI, fills every section in for one Nova action. If you already trade, upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history and the simulation is fitted to your real numbers, starting from where your business stands today.
Are the numbers realistic for a small business?
The template is checked against what real ones do: played steadily, a believable one finishes year two turning over between $120k and $600k, with between 250 and 2,500 customers. This one's preview comes to about $228k and 304. Your own prices, costs and figures change that, which is the point of trying it here first.
Can I use it to test a small business plan?
That is what it is for. Put your plan's prices, costs and starting cash in, play it forward month by month, and see whether the money lasts, how many customers you would need and what a rival's price cut does to you — before you put real money in.
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