Learn three money words
Sales means the money earned from customers.
Costs means what it takes to deliver the camp.
Surplus means what is left after the costs in your plan. A loss means the costs are higher than sales.
The example below gives a planning surplus. It is not a final tax or accounting profit. Some lines are budget allowances. Actual spending may differ.
Start with a safe capacity
Suppose your approved program can serve 24 people for one week. One person attending that week uses one camper-week.
This is an assumed limit for the example. It is not a staffing rule. Your real limit must come from your venue, ages, activity, support needs, staff cover, insurer, and local rules.
Suppose each fully paid booking earns $400 before sales tax. There are no discounts or refunds in the base case.
Find the costs that rise with bookings
A variable cost changes when you serve another person.
| Participant-linked item | Planned cost per camper-week |
|---|---|
| Activity materials | $18 |
| Take-home item | $8 |
| Payment processing estimate | $12 |
| Extra hygiene supplies | $2 |
| Total | $40 |
The processing amount is fictional. Real fees depend on your provider, payment method, price, and payment plan. Recalculate them when those things change.
Each $400 booking leaves $360 after these costs.
That $360 is called the contribution. It helps pay the other costs.
Contribution per booking = net selling price − variable cost per booking
$400 − $40 = $360
Find the costs for the week
These costs are treated as fixed within this example's approved staffing and capacity plan.
| Week-level cost or allowance | Planned amount |
|---|---|
| Coach and support staff pay, including planned employer costs | $3,000 |
| Owner or director's work allowance | $1,000 |
| Venue | $1,400 |
| Insurance share for the week | $200 |
| Marketing | $400 |
| Software and administration | $100 |
| Equipment replacement allowance | $100 |
| Cleaning | $200 |
| Backup cover and other operating allowance | $600 |
| Total | $7,000 |
The owner's work is not free. Include it even when you are not yet able to pay yourself.
The owner allowance is a planning cost. How you pay and record it depends on your business structure. It is not automatically a deductible wage in your tax return.
Costs can jump. Adding a group may require another coach, room, or vehicle. Do not use this same $7,000 after changing the delivery plan.
Find break-even
Break-even means sales cover the costs in this plan.
Break-even bookings = fixed costs ÷ contribution per booking
$7,000 ÷ $360 = 19.44
You cannot sell 0.44 of this example's full-week booking. Round up.
The plan needs 20 fully paid bookings to cover its planned weekly costs.
See what happens at different booking levels
| Paid bookings | Sales | Participant-linked costs | Week-level costs | Planning surplus or loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | $4,800 | $480 | $7,000 | −$2,680 |
| 16 | $6,400 | $640 | $7,000 | −$1,240 |
| 18 | $7,200 | $720 | $7,000 | −$520 |
| 20 | $8,000 | $800 | $7,000 | $200 |
| 22 | $8,800 | $880 | $7,000 | $920 |
| 24 | $9,600 | $960 | $7,000 | $1,640 |
A camp can look busy and still lose money. At 18 bookings, three quarters of the example's places are sold. The plan still shows a loss.
At 20 bookings, the $200 cushion is small. One unexpected cost could use it up.
Give the business room to breathe
Suppose you want a $1,000 planning surplus.
Required bookings = (fixed costs + target surplus) ÷ contribution
($7,000 + $1,000) ÷ $360 = 22.22
Round up to 23 bookings. This is close to the 24-person limit. That tells you the plan may need a stronger price, lower non-safety costs, or a different format.
At capacity, the planning margin is about 17.1%: $1,640 divided by $9,600. This is before the excluded costs named at the start of the guide.
Test the weak spots
Run a low-sales case, a normal case, and a strong case. Change actual drivers, not just the final answer.
Test lower bookings, staff absence, an extra indoor rental, late refunds, higher wages, and cancelled days. Include startup-cost recovery and finance costs when assessing the whole business.
Your task: Work out break-even using your own costs. Make sure it is below your safe capacity, with a useful cushion above it.