Building a Successful Permaculture Business

1. Building a Successful Permaculture Business Presented by Jack Spirko

2. A Successful Business is Profitable Well Duh! – But What Attributes Are In All Profitable Businesses? • The business mission is well defined • The revenue model is well defined • Both models can be explained in a few sentences or less • The business is resilient • The business has multiple revenue streams • The business is easy to do business with • The business SELLS easy to understand value I Also Believe Permaculture is a Business Model

3. A Successful Business has 8 Forms of Capital These definitions of capital are not approved by the IRS! • Social Capital • Financial Capital • Living Capital • Intellectual Capital • Human Capital • Spiritual Capital • Cultural Capital • Material Capital • Credit to Ethan Roland at http://appleseedpermaculture.com/8-forms-of-capital

4. A Successful Business Act Like a Business Don’t be a Walking Lawsuit or Tax Audit Waiting to Happen! • All consulting should be done with a written agreement • Have and use a good CPA • Discuss your corporate entity with a CPA and Tax Lawyer, not legalzoom.com! • Set up a business accounts (PayPal, merchant, bank, etc.) • Carry necessary insurances (get a good agent) • Accept Bitcoin Just Because it Pisses Off the Establishment!Actually I consider Bitcoin a Global LETS System

5. Show Me The Money! The Education Revenue Stream • PDCs – This one is oversold and undervalued • Workshops – Hands on or multi day specific classes • Classes – One day or less affairs (an hour or three type of thing) • Writing/Video/Audio – This is both revenue and marketing • Location Specific Education – The most overlooked opportunity

6. Show Me The Money! The Consulting Revenue Stream • Property planning – basic design, what to plant, etc. • Full design – end to end planning with professional design • Project Management – on site oversight of installation, earth works, etc. • Doing the Work – this changes the legal relationship. Now you are a landscaper, a tradesman, etc.

7. Show Me The Money! The Production Revenue Stream • Farming – producing vegetative products for market • Ranching – producing animal products for market • Value Add – like sauces, pickled eggs, etc. • Seeds – hugely profitable because they are valuable • Plants – from back yard nursery to large scale production

8. Show Me The Money! Getting Really Creative • Commercial Site Development – Huge opportunity with churches, apartments, private schools, corporate campuses etc. • Farm and Ranch Co Management – more on this in a bit • Property Value Increase – flipping land vs. houses • Niche Production – Jujubes for Asian Markets for one example • What other revenue opportunities can you think of?

9. How To Sell Permaculture The Directive and Three Ethics are the Ultimate Sales Tool! Mr. and Mrs. Landowner what we are able to do with Permaculture is show you how you can better provide the highest quality food and care for yourselves and your children. We can show you how to do this in a way that will never do any harm to your land or your neighbors land. In fact the land will become more fertile year after year. The techniques and materials we use will also never do anything to harm people, pets or livestock. In fact by eliminating toxic food and replacing it with food better than anything you can buy your family can become healthier year after year. The best part is our systems generate surpluses in abundance which can be continually reinvested so that you can always provide top quality food to your family and continuously improve the natural systems around you. This is something that actually matters and applies directly to you and those you care about. It is something we can help you do now, no political action is required, no massive shift in your lifestyle, just a better way to live though a few gentle shifts we can help you accomplish over a single season or two.

10. The PermaEthos Business Model Flexibility and Adaptability Pays Off Mission Statement – PermaEthos establishes, manages and builds thriving community based Permaculture farms. Our farms profit from three primary revenue streams, agricultural production, plant and seed propagation and educational programs. • We will manage both client owned and company owned community farms • We will develop ground breaking and affordable web enabled educational programs • We will cultivate not just plants we will cultivate human beings • “The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.”