How to create a financial forecast for a water taxi company?

Creating a financial forecast for your water taxi company, and ensuring it stays up to date, is the only way to maintain visibility on future cash flows.
This might sound complex, but with the right guidance and tools, creating an accurate financial forecast for your water taxi company is not that hard.
In this guide, we'll cover everything from the main goal of a financial projection, the data you need as input, to the tables that compose it, and the tools that can help you build a forecast efficiently.
Without further ado, let us begin!
Why create and maintain a financial forecast for a water taxi company?
Creating and maintaining an up-to-date financial forecast is the only way to steer the development of your water taxi company and ensure that it can be financially viable in the years to come.
A financial plan for a water taxi company enables you to look at your business in detail - from income to operating costs and investments - to evaluate its expected profitability and future cash flows.
This gives you the visibility needed to plan future investments and expansion with confidence.
And, when your trading environment gets tougher, having an up to date water taxi company forecast enables you to detect potential upcoming financing shortfalls in advance, enabling you to make adjustments or secure financing before you run out of cash.
It’s also important to remember that your water taxi company's financial forecast will be essential when looking for financing. You can be 100% certain that banks and investors will ask to see your numbers, so make sure they’re set out accurately and attractively.
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

What information is needed to build a water taxi company financial forecast?
The quality of your inputs is key when it comes to financial modelling: no matter how good the model is, if your inputs are off, so will the forecast.
If you are building a financial plan to start a water taxi company, you will need to have done your market research and have a clear picture of your sales and marketing strategies so that you can project revenues with confidence.
You will also need to have a clear idea of what resources will be required to operate the water taxi company on a daily basis, and to have done your research with regard to the equipment needed to launch your venture (see further down this guide).
If you are creating a financial forecast of an existing water taxi company, things are usually simpler as you will be able to use your historical accounting data as a budgeting base, and complement that with your team’s view on what lies ahead for the years to come.
Let's now zoom in on what will go in your water taxi company's financial forecast.
The sales forecast for a water taxi company
From experience, it usually makes sense to start your water taxi company's financial projection with the revenues forecast.
The inputs used to forecast your sales will include the historical trading data of your water taxi company (which can be used as a starting point for existing businesses) and the data collected in your market research (which both new ventures and existing businesses need to project their sales forward).
Your water taxi company's sales forecast can be broken down into two key estimates:
- The average price
- The number of monthly transactions
To assess these variables accurately, you will need to consider the following factors:
- Weather conditions: Unpredictable weather can affect the number of customers willing to use your water taxi service. Stormy or excessively hot weather can discourage people from going out on the water, resulting in a decrease in the number of monthly transactions.
- Competition: The presence of other water taxi companies in the same area can impact your average price and number of monthly transactions. If there are multiple companies offering similar services, customers may have more bargaining power, which could lead to lower prices for your service.
- Tourism season: If your water taxi company operates in a tourist destination, the number of monthly transactions may vary depending on the tourist season. During peak season, there may be an increase in the number of customers, resulting in higher average prices. Conversely, during the off-season, there may be a decrease in the number of customers, leading to lower average prices.
- Fuel prices: The price of fuel can directly affect your water taxi business's costs, which can impact your average price and number of monthly transactions. If fuel prices increase, you may need to raise your average price to cover the extra cost, which could result in a decrease in the number of customers. On the other hand, if fuel prices decrease, you may be able to offer lower average prices, which could attract more customers.
- Infrastructure development: If there are any changes or improvements made to the waterways or docks where your water taxi operates, it can affect your average price and number of monthly transactions. For example, if a new dock is built in a popular tourist area, it could attract more customers, resulting in higher average prices. However, if there are any construction or maintenance works happening in the area, it could disrupt your services and lead to a decrease in the number of monthly transactions.
Once you have a sales forecast in place, the next step will be to work on your overhead budget. Let’s have a look at that now.
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

The operating expenses for a water taxi company
The next step is to estimate the expenses needed to run your water taxi company on a day-to-day basis.
These will vary based on the level of sales expected, and the location and size of your business.
But your water taxi company's operating expenses should include the following items at a minimum:
- Staff costs: This includes salaries, benefits, and training for all employees, including captains, deckhands, and customer service representatives.
- Accountancy fees: You will need to hire an accountant to manage your financial records, prepare taxes, and provide financial advice.
- Insurance costs: As a water taxi company, you will need to have insurance to cover your boats, employees, and liability for any accidents or damages.
- Software licenses: In order to manage reservations, payments, and schedules, you will need to invest in software licenses for a booking system and accounting software.
- Boat maintenance: Your boats will require regular maintenance and repairs to ensure they are safe and in good working condition.
- Fuel expenses: As a water taxi company, you will have significant fuel expenses for operating your boats.
- Dock fees: You will need to pay fees for docking your boats at marinas or other locations.
- Marketing and advertising: In order to attract customers, you will need to invest in marketing and advertising efforts, such as online ads and brochures.
- Office rent: You may need to rent office space for your staff and operations.
- Communications expenses: This includes costs for phone and internet service for your office and communication devices for your staff.
- Uniforms: You may choose to provide uniforms for your staff to maintain a professional appearance.
- Training and development: In order to provide high-quality service, you may need to invest in ongoing training and development for your employees.
- Customer amenities: To enhance the customer experience, you may choose to provide amenities such as bottled water, snacks, and magazines on your boats.
- Banking fees: You will have fees associated with maintaining business bank accounts and processing payments.
- Legal fees: You may need to seek legal advice or services for contracts, liability issues, or other legal matters.
This list is, of course, not exhaustive, and you'll have to adapt it according to your precise business model and size. A small water taxi company might not have the same level of expenditure as a larger one, for example.
What investments are needed to start or grow a water taxi company?
Creating and expanding a water taxi company also requires investments which you need to factor into your financial forecast.
Capital expenditures and initial working capital items for a water taxi company could include elements such as:
- Water taxi vessel: This is the most significant capital expenditure for a water taxi company. You will need to purchase or lease a vessel that can transport passengers safely and efficiently. The cost of the vessel will depend on its size, features, and condition.
- Docking facilities: In order to operate your water taxi, you will need a dock or pier where passengers can board and disembark. This may involve leasing or purchasing waterfront property, building a dock, and obtaining necessary permits and licenses.
- Navigation and safety equipment: As a water taxi company, it is essential to have navigation and safety equipment on board your vessel. This includes GPS systems, radios, life jackets, and first aid kits. These items are crucial for the safety of your passengers and crew.
- Maintenance and repair: Just like any other mode of transportation, your water taxi will require regular maintenance and occasional repairs. This may include engine maintenance, hull repairs, and other upkeep costs. It is important to budget for these expenses to keep your vessel in good condition and ensure the safety of your passengers.
- Insurance: While not a fixed asset, insurance is a necessary expense for a water taxi company. You will need to have liability insurance to protect your business in case of accidents or injuries. You may also want to consider insurance for your vessel and crew.
Again, this list is not exhaustive and will need to be adjusted according to the circumstances of your water taxi company.
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

The financing plan of your water taxi company
The next step in the creation of your financial forecast for your water taxi company is to think about how you might finance your business.
You will have to assess how much capital will come from shareholders (equity) and how much can be secured through banks.
Bank loans will have to be modelled so that you can separate the interest expenses from the repayments of principal, and include all this data in your forecast.
Issuing share capital and obtaining a bank loan are two of the most common ways that entrepreneurs finance their businesses.
What tables compose the financial plan for a water taxi company?
Now let's have a look at the main output tables of your water taxi company's financial forecast.
The profit & loss forecast
The forecasted profit & loss statement will enable you to visualise your water taxi company's expected growth and profitability over the next three to five years.

A financially viable P&L statement for a water taxi company should normally show:
- Sales growing above inflation
- Stable or expanding (ideally) profit margins
- A net profit
This will of course depend on the stage of your business: a new venture might be loss-making until it reaches its breakeven point in year 2 or 3, for example.
The projected balance sheet
The projected balance sheet gives an overview of your water taxi company's financial structure at the end of the financial year.
It is composed of three categories of items: assets, liabilities and equity:
- Assets: are what the business possesses and uses to produce cash flows. It includes resources such as cash, buildings, equipment, and accounts receivable (money owed by clients).
- Liabilities: are the debts of your water taxi company. They include accounts payable (money owed to suppliers), taxes due and bank loans.
- Equity: is the combination of what has been invested by the business owners and the cumulative profits to date (which are called retained earnings). Equity is a proxy for the value of the owner's stake in the business.

The projected cash flow statement
A projected cash flow statement for a water taxi company is used to show how much cash the business is generating or consuming.

The cash flow forecast is usually organised by nature to show three key metrics:
- The operating cash flow: do the core business activities generate or consume cash?
- The investing cash flow: how much is the business investing in long-term assets (this is usually compared to the level of fixed assets on the balance sheet to assess whether the business is regularly maintaining and renewing its equipment)?
- The financing cash flow: is the business raising new financing or repaying financiers (debt repayment, dividends)?
Cash is king and keeping an eye on future cash flows is imperative for running a successful business. Therefore, you should pay close attention to your water taxi company's cash flow forecast.
If you are trying to secure financing, note that it is customary to provide both yearly and monthly cash flow forecasts in a financial plan - so that the reader can analyze seasonal variation and ensure the water taxi company is appropriately capitalised.
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

Which tool should you use to create your water taxi company's financial projections?
Building a water taxi company financial forecast is not difficult provided that you use the right tool for the job. Let’s see what options are available below.
Using online financial forecasting software to build your water taxi company's projections
The modern and easiest way is to use professional online financial forecasting software such as the one we offer at The Business Plan Shop.
There are several advantages to using specialised software:
- You can easily create your financial forecast by letting the software take care of the financial calculations for you without errors
- You have access to complete financial forecast templates
- You get a complete financial forecast ready to be sent to your bank or investors
- You can easily track your actual financial performance against your financial forecast, and recalibrate your forecast as the year goes by
- You can create scenarios to stress test your forecast's main assumptions
- You can easily update your forecast as time goes by to maintain visibility on future cash flows
- You have a friendly support team on standby to assist you when you are stuck
- It’s cost-efficient and much cheaper than using an accountant or consultant (see below)
If you are interested in this type of solution, you can try our forecasting software for free by signing up here.
Calling in a financial consultant or chartered accountant
Outsourcing the creation of your water taxi company financial forecast is another possible solution.
This will cost more than using software as you can expect as your price will have to cover the accountant’s time, software cost, and profit margin.
Price can vary greatly based on the complexity of your business. For a small business, from experience, a simple three-year financial forecast (including a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement) will start at around £700 or $1,000.
Bear in mind that this is for forecasts produced at a single point in time, updating or tracking your forecast against actuals will cost extra.
If you decide to outsource your forecasting:
- Make sure the professional has direct experience in your industry and is able to challenge your assumptions constructively.
- Steer away from consultants using sectorial ratios to build their client’s financial forecasts (these projections are worthless for a small business).
Why not use a spreadsheet such as Excel or Google Sheets to build your water taxi company's financial forecast?
You and your financial partners need numbers you can trust. Unless you have studied finance or accounting, creating a trustworthy and error-free water taxi company financial forecast on a spreadsheet is likely to prove challenging.
Financial modelling is very technical by nature and requires a solid grasp of accounting principles to be done without errors. This means that using spreadsheet software like Excel or Google Sheets to create accurate financial forecasts is out of reach for most business owners.
Creating forecasts in Excel is also inefficient nowadays:
- Software has advanced to the point where forecasting can be done much faster and more accurately than manually on a spreadsheet.
- With artificial intelligence, the software is capable of detecting mistakes and helping decision-making.
Spreadsheets are versatile tools but they are not tailor-made for reporting. Importing your water taxi company's accounting data in Excel to track actual vs. forecast is incredibly manual and tedious (and so is keeping forecasts up to date). It is much faster to use dedicated financial planning tools like The Business Plan Shop which are built specially for this.
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

Use our financial projection templates for inspiration
The Business Plan Shop has dozens of financial forecast templates available.
Our examples contain a complete business plan with a financial forecast and a written presentation of the company, the team, the strategy, and the medium-term objectives.
Whether you are just starting out or already have your own water taxi company, looking at our financial forecast template is a good way to:
- Understand what a complete business plan should look like
- Understand how you should model financial items for your water taxi company

Takeaways
- A financial forecast shows expected growth, profitability, and cash generation metrics for your water taxi company.
- Tracking actuals vs. forecast and having an up-to-date financial forecast is key to maintaining visibility on your future cash flows.
- Using financial forecasting software is the modern way of creating and maintaining financial projections.
We hope that this guide helped you gain a clearer perspective on the steps needed to create the financial forecast for a water taxi company. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions!
Need a convincing business plan?
The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

Also on The Business Plan Shop
- Financial forecast example
- How to project revenues for a business?
- Example of financial forecast for business idea
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