Launch League

Free · self-paced · practical

Build a business, not just a business plan.

Business 101 takes an idea through the actual mechanics of entrepreneurship — problem, customer, offer, customers, sales, numbers, systems and pitch.

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No fluff

Every module ends with action.

Each one teaches how a part of a business really works, then sends you to go and do it — talk to customers, write the offer, run the numbers. You finish with real work, not just notes.

Real work, not just notes

  1. 01

    Find Something Worth Solving

    A real problem, confirmed by real people, before you build anything.

    You leave with: A one-sentence problem statement, backed by real conversations

  2. 02

    Know Who You're Building For

    One specific customer, and why they'd choose you over what they do today.

    You leave with: A customer definition and a positioning statement

  3. 03

    Build an Offer People Want to Buy

    Not just a product — what they get, what it costs, and why it's worth it.

    You leave with: A one-page offer

  4. 04

    Get Attention & Find Your First Customers

    How the right people will actually find out you exist.

    You leave with: A customer-acquisition plan, with one action already taken

  5. 05

    Sell, Deliver & Earn Trust

    The path from a stranger's attention to a customer who tells a friend.

    You leave with: A customer journey map

  6. 06

    Know Your Numbers

    The economics of one sale, and whether the business actually works.

    You leave with: Unit economics for one sale or customer

  7. 07

    Build a Business That Can Grow

    Priorities, a few numbers worth watching, and processes that aren't only in your head.

    You leave with: A 90-day priority, a three-number scorecard and one written process

  8. 08

    Tell the Story & Pitch It

    A clear story with the customer at the centre, at 30 seconds, 60 seconds and five minutes.

    You leave with: A 30-second pitch, a 60-second elevator pitch and a five-minute briefing

What you walk away with

By the end, you'll have:

  • A problem statement
  • A customer definition
  • An offer
  • A customer-acquisition plan
  • A customer journey
  • Unit economics
  • 90-day operating priorities
  • An elevator pitch

Everything that comes with it

The modules are the start. This is the rest.

Nothing here costs a student anything, nothing needs a credit card, and none of it is a trial. It's funded by sponsors and organizations so that it never has to be funded by you.

Written feedback on every complete competition entry is a promise in the rules, not a hope. Entries close March 31, 2027.

  1. 1Business 101 — 8 modules, each ending in something you go and doProblem, customer, offer, customers, sales, numbers, systems, pitch. Your work saves as you go.
  2. 2A one-page business plan built from your own answersFinish it in an evening. It's the plan judges read.
  3. 3The Launch Sprint: a plan to a first paying customerSeven stages with the Ontario paperwork that actually applies, and it keeps going after the course ends.
  4. 4Written feedback from a working businesspersonOn every complete competition entry, whether it places or not. Most students have never had this.
  5. 5Awards of $500–$2,500 each, 12 categories province-wideEach funded by its own sponsor, plus community awards where a local sponsor adds one. Winners spend it however they like.
  6. 6A certificate, mentors by request, and a record of your workEverything you build stays yours, is private by default, and can be exported or deleted from your account any time.
Start Module 1 Free · no card · from age 12

The course

The modules

In plain words:Start with a problem somebody actually has, not with your idea. Go and ask real people about the last time it happened to them.

What this covers

  • Problem discovery
  • How painful and how frequent
  • What people do about it today
  • Customer interviews
  • Validating before building
Plenty of businesses struggle not because the product was bad, but because nobody needed it badly enough. So a business starts with a problem, not an idea. Test a problem on three things. Pain: how much does it cost the person, in money, time, stress or embarrassment? Frequency: does it happen every day, or once a year? Alternatives: what do they do about it right now? That last one matters most. If people are already paying for a clumsy fix, or spending hours working around it, you have found something real. If they shrug and say it's fine, it probably is. Write the problem in one sentence without mentioning your solution. "Farm families lose a day every week driving equipment parts in from the city" is a problem. "An app for ordering parts" is a solution, and it is worthless if the problem underneath it isn't real. Then go and check. Talk to people who might have the problem, and ask about the past, not the future. "Tell me about the last time this happened" gets you the truth. "Would you use something that fixed this?" gets you politeness. People will say yes to be nice. They will not invent a story about last Tuesday. Look close to home: your school, your part-time job, your family's business, your town. Some of the strongest ideas come from someone who has lived the problem, because they know details an outsider would miss. You are not trying to prove yourself right. You are trying to find out whether you are wrong, cheaply, before you spend months building.

Words to know

Problem:
Something that costs a person money, time, stress or embarrassment. Not the thing you want to build.
Pain:
How much the problem bugs them. A dead phone battery on a school trip hurts more than one at home.
Frequency:
How often it happens. Every day beats once a year, because people will pay to stop it more often.
Alternative:
What they do about it right now, even if that's nothing. That's your real competition.
Validate:
Check you're right by asking people, before you spend time or money building.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya is a made-up example. She's 15 and wants to start a mobile bike tune-up service in her neighbourhood. Follow her through all eight modules to see how each step builds on the last.

Maya talks to six parents she knows from her street and her school. Four say the same thing: their kids' bikes need fixing, but taking one to the bike shop means loading it into the car, dropping it off and waiting a week, so the bike just sits in the garage. Her problem statement: "Busy parents don't have time to get their kids' bikes repaired, so the bikes sit unused."

Two more made-up founders

Ellie, 13, small town

Ellie thought she'd sell friendship bracelets. When she asked around, nobody was excited. But four parents said the same thing without being asked: nobody in town will cut the grass at a house with a big fenced yard and a dog. Her problem statement: "People with dogs can't get their lawns cut, because most lawn services won't go in the back yard."

Devon, 16, hockey family

Devon plays rep hockey and noticed everybody's gear stinks by January. He asked eight teammates' parents about the last time they dealt with it. Six said they just spray it and hope. His problem statement: "Hockey families have no easy way to get gear properly cleaned during the season."

What usually goes wrong

  • Asking "would you buy this?" People say yes to be nice. Ask about last time instead.
  • Picking a problem you've only seen on the internet. Pick one you can watch happen near you.
  • Writing the solution in the problem sentence. "People need an app" is not a problem.
  • Counting your own family as all five people. Mix in people who'll tell you the truth.

If you're under 18: Interview people you already know (family friends, neighbours you know, classmates, teachers), or have an adult with you. Meet in public or at school. Staying safe

Your action

Talk to at least five people who might have the problem. Ask each one about the last time it happened and what they did about it. Then write one clear problem statement.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write down three problems you've seen in the last week at home, at school, at a job, or in your town.
  2. Pick the one that happens most often and bugs people most.
  3. List five people who probably have it: family friends, neighbours you know, teachers, classmates, coaches.
  4. Ask each one: "Tell me about the last time that happened." Then: "What did you do about it?" Then stop talking and listen.
  5. Write down their exact words. Words like "I just gave up" or "I paid someone" are gold.
  6. Write your problem in one sentence, without naming your solution.

You leave with: A one-sentence problem statement, backed by real conversations

In plain words:Pick one kind of person you're building for, and get specific enough that you could go and find them. Then work out why they'd pick you over what they do now.

What this covers

  • Defining one primary customer
  • What that customer actually cares about
  • Alternatives and competition
  • Positioning
  • Why they would switch to you
"Everyone" is not a customer. It is a sign the work hasn't been done yet. Businesses that grow often start by serving one specific group extremely well, then expand. Describe one primary customer precisely enough that you could find them. Not "busy people" but "parents in rural Chatham-Kent with two kids in hockey and no second car." Where are they when the problem hits? What do they already spend money on? What would make them nervous about trying something new? Your competition is not only other businesses. It is whatever the customer does today, including doing nothing. A new tutoring service competes with other tutors, but also with YouTube, an older sibling, and a parent who says the grades are good enough. If you don't name the real alternative, you can't explain why anyone would switch. Positioning is the answer to one question: compared to that alternative, why you? It has to be something this customer genuinely values. Faster matters to someone short on time. Cheaper matters to someone short on money. Local, trusted, specialized or simpler each matter to someone. Pick the difference your customer cares about most and be clear about it. Being specific can feel like you are shrinking your market. You are not. You are making it possible for the right people to recognize that this is for them.

Words to know

Customer:
The person who pays. Sometimes that's a parent even though a kid uses it.
Primary customer:
The one group you serve first and best. Not "everyone".
Competition:
Anything else that solves the problem, including a YouTube video, an older brother, or doing nothing.
Positioning:
The one reason your customer picks you: faster, closer, cheaper, friendlier, more specialised.
Niche:
A small, clear group. Small is good at the start. It's easier to be the obvious choice for 50 people than an option for 5,000.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's primary customer: parents in her neighbourhood with kids aged 8 to 14 who ride bikes. What they do today: drive the bike to a shop and wait, try a YouTube video and give up, or do nothing. Why they'd choose Maya: she comes to their driveway, it's done the same morning, and nobody has to load a bike into a car.

Two more made-up founders

Priya, 15, sells cleaned and restored sneakers

Priya first said her customers were "people who like shoes". Too big. She narrowed it to: students in grades 9 to 12 at her school who wear white sneakers and hate how they look by November. Their alternatives: buy new ones ($120), scrub them with dish soap and give up, or wear them dirty. She wins on one thing: they look new again for $25, and she picks them up at school.

Sam, 12, farm eggs

Sam's customer isn't "people who eat eggs". It's neighbours on his concession road who drive 20 minutes to town for groceries. Their alternative is the grocery store, which is cheaper. Sam wins on fresh and no drive: eggs at the end of the lane, honour-box, restocked every second day.

What usually goes wrong

  • Saying "everyone" or "teens". That means the work isn't done yet.
  • Forgetting that the person who pays may not be the person who uses it.
  • Listing only businesses as competition. "They do nothing" is usually the biggest competitor.
  • Picking a reason you're better that your customer doesn't actually care about.

If you're under 18: When you look for customers to talk to, stick to people and places a parent, guardian or teacher knows about. Staying safe

Your action

Define one primary customer in a short paragraph. List what they do today instead of using you, and write two sentences on why they would choose you instead.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Describe your customer in one paragraph: age, where they live, what their week looks like, when the problem hits.
  2. Give them a name in your head, like "hockey moms in Dresden with two kids in rep". If you couldn't walk up and find them, get more specific.
  3. List every alternative they have today, including doing nothing.
  4. Beside each one, write what's annoying about it for them.
  5. Write two sentences: what your customer cares about most, and why you're better at that one thing.

You leave with: A customer definition and a positioning statement

In plain words:An offer is the whole deal, not just the thing you sell: what they get, how fast, what it costs, and what happens if it goes wrong. Make it easy to say yes to.

What this covers

  • Solution and value
  • Pricing and packaging
  • Speed, convenience and perceived risk
  • One-time vs recurring revenue
  • Why an offer is more than a product
A product is the thing. An offer is the whole deal: who it is for, what they get, how fast, what it costs, what happens if it doesn't work, and what happens next. Two businesses can sell the same product and get completely different results because one made a better offer. People weigh a few things when they decide whether to buy. How big is the result? How likely is it to actually work for them? How long until they see it? How much effort or hassle is involved? You improve an offer by making the result clearer, the risk lower, the wait shorter or the effort smaller. Often that matters more than lowering the price. Packaging changes value too. A lawn cut is a job. "Your lawn cut every Thursday all summer, no reminders, pay monthly" is an offer. It is easier to say yes to, easier to deliver, and it pays you every month instead of once. That is the difference between one-time and recurring revenue. A business that has to find a brand-new customer for every sale works much harder than one whose customers keep coming back. Look for a way your offer could repeat: a subscription, a maintenance plan, refills, a season pass. On price: don't guess, and don't automatically go cheapest. Start with what the result is worth to the customer and what they pay for the alternative today, then check that the price covers your costs with room to spare. You will test the numbers properly in Module 6. Reducing risk is one of the strongest things a new business can do. A trial, a guarantee, or "pay once it's done" can win customers who would otherwise wait for someone else to go first.

Words to know

Product:
The thing itself. A cut lawn. A cleaned pair of shoes.
Offer:
The whole deal around it: who it's for, what they get, the price, the promise, what happens next.
Packaging:
How you bundle it. "Every second Thursday all summer" instead of "one cut".
Recurring revenue:
Money that comes back on its own, like a monthly plan, instead of hunting for a new customer every time.
Risk:
What the customer is afraid of: that it won't work, that you won't show up, that they'll waste money.
Guarantee:
A promise that lowers that fear. "If you don't like it, you don't pay."

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's offer: a $59 driveway tune-up, booked for Saturday mornings. She checks and adjusts the brakes and gears, pumps the tires, and cleans and oils the chain, usually in under an hour. If a bike needs a new part, she tells the parent the price first and only replaces it if they say yes. To make it repeat, she adds a spring-and-fall plan: two tune-ups a year for one price.

Two more made-up founders

Priya's sneaker cleaning

Product: clean shoes. Offer: "Drop your sneakers with me at school on Monday, get them back Friday looking new, $25. If you don't think they look better, you pay nothing. Five cleanings for $100 if you buy the pack." Same work, much easier yes.

Nadia, 17, babysitting that isn't just babysitting

Instead of "babysitting, $15 an hour", Nadia sells "Friday Night Out: 5 to 10 p.m., supper made, kitchen tidy, kids in bed, $70." Parents know exactly what they get. She books three Fridays a month because it's the same deal every time.

What usually goes wrong

  • Pricing by guessing, or picking the lowest price because you're nervous.
  • Selling a thing instead of a result. People don't want a lawn cut; they want a yard they're not embarrassed by.
  • Forgetting to say what happens after they say yes. Uncertainty kills sales.
  • Promising something you can't deliver every time. One missed promise costs you the referrals.

Your action

Write a one-page offer: who it is for, what they get, what problem it solves, the price, why it is worth the price, and what happens after they say yes.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write what the customer gets, in their words, not yours.
  2. Add how fast it happens, and when.
  3. Set a starting price: what does it cost you, what do they pay today for the alternative, and what's the result worth to them?
  4. Add one thing that lowers their risk: a guarantee, pay-after, a free first one, or a photo of your last job.
  5. Find the repeat: could this be a monthly plan, a season pass, a refill, or a standing appointment?
  6. Read the whole offer out loud to one person and ask, "Would you say yes? If not, what's stopping you?"

You leave with: A one-page offer

In plain words:Marketing is just how the right people find out you exist, and why they trust you. Pick two ways that reach your customer, and do one of them today.

What this covers

  • Attention and distribution
  • Direct outreach, partnerships and referrals
  • Useful content and answering customer questions
  • Social platforms and search
  • Building trust and earning reviews
Marketing is not a logo, and it is not "we'll post on social media." Marketing is how the right people find out you exist, and why they trust you enough to take the next step. The best product in the world does nothing if nobody knows about it. There are only a handful of ways to get attention. You can reach out directly: messages, calls, knocking on doors. You can borrow someone else's audience through partnerships: a store that stocks you, a coach who recommends you, a business that bundles you in. You can earn referrals from happy customers. You can create useful content that the right people find: videos, posts, guides. You can be found in search when someone looks for exactly what you do. And you can pay for ads, which works better once you know what already works for free. Pick two channels to start, not ten. Choose based on where your specific customer already spends their attention. A trades business will find more customers through referrals, local search and a truck with its name on it than through a trending video. A product for teenagers might be the opposite. One of the most effective kinds of content is simply answering the questions customers already ask. What does it cost? How long does it take? What goes wrong? What's the difference between this and that? People research before they buy. The business that answers honestly, including the uncomfortable questions, earns trust before the first conversation. Trust is the real goal. Reviews, testimonials, before-and-after photos and a clear explanation of how you work all lower the risk of trying you. Early on, doing things that don't scale is fine: personally messaging people, showing up in person, helping someone for free in exchange for an honest review. You don't need everyone. You need your first ten customers, and a way to find the next ten.

Words to know

Channel:
One route to reach people: word of mouth, posters, Instagram, a school announcement, a partner business.
Direct outreach:
Going straight to people: messaging, calling, knocking (with an adult), asking face to face.
Partnership:
Borrowing someone else's audience. A coach, a store, a teacher, a hockey association.
Referral:
A happy customer telling someone else. The cheapest customers you'll ever get.
Content:
Anything useful you make that helps people find and trust you: a how-to video, before-and-after photos, an FAQ.
Reach:
How many of the right people actually see it. Ten right people beats a thousand random ones.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's two channels: a post her mom shares in the neighbourhood parents' group, and a partnership with the local kids' cycling club, whose coach mentions her to families. Her real action: she asks the coach, who agrees to share her flyer with the club's parents.

Two more made-up founders

Devon's gear cleaning

Two channels: (1) his coach mentions it once at practice, (2) a poster in the rink dressing-room hallway with a QR code to a booking form his mom set up. He skipped Instagram, because the parents who pay aren't there.

Ellie's lawn service

Two channels: a paper flyer in 40 mailboxes on three streets, and asking the two neighbours she already cuts for to tell one friend each. The flyer got 3 calls. The two referrals got 2 customers, and they were easier to sell.

What usually goes wrong

  • "I'll post on social media" isn't a plan. Which post, to whom, and why would they care?
  • Picking channels you like instead of ones your customer uses.
  • Doing ten things once instead of two things ten times.
  • Posting personal contact details. Use an email or a form a parent or guardian can see.

If you're under 18: Door-to-door outreach only with an adult. Most platforms need you to be 13 or older, so younger founders should use offline channels or a teacher-approved one. Don't post your address or personal number. Staying safe

Your action

Choose two acquisition/marketing channels and explain why your customer is reachable there. Then take one real action in one of them: send the messages, make the post, ask the partner.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write where your customer already spends attention: the rink, the parents' Facebook group, the school announcements, TikTok, the feed store bulletin board.
  2. Pick two channels from that list. Only two.
  3. For each, write the exact thing you'll do: the message you'll send, the poster you'll put up, the person you'll ask.
  4. Do one of them today, for real.
  5. Write down what happened, including "nobody replied". That's information, not failure.

You leave with: A customer-acquisition plan, with one action already taken

In plain words:Selling is listening first, then asking. Follow one customer from noticing you all the way to telling a friend, and find the step where people fall off.

What this covers

  • Understanding the customer's problem before pitching
  • Communicating value
  • Asking for the business
  • Setting expectations and delivering
  • Reviews, referrals and repeat business
Every business moves people along the same basic path: Attention → Lead → Conversation → Sale → Delivery → Review → Referral or Repeat Attention is someone noticing you. A lead is someone who shows interest: a message, a sign-up, a question. The conversation is where you learn what they need. The sale is when they say yes. Delivery is doing what you promised. The review, referral or repeat purchase is what turns one customer into the start of the next. Selling well starts with listening. Before you explain anything, understand the customer's situation: what they are trying to fix, what they have tried, and what a good result looks like to them. Then explain your offer in terms of their problem, not your features. Nobody wants a quarter-inch drill bit. They want a quarter-inch hole. Then ask. Many first-time founders explain everything beautifully and never actually ask for the business. "Would you like to book it for Saturday?" is not pushy. It is a clear next step, and the customer can say no. Set expectations you can beat. Say what will happen, when, and what it costs, then do slightly better. Many bad reviews come from a gap between what someone expected and what they got, not from a bad product. After delivery, ask for the review and ask who else might need you. A customer who had a good experience is usually happy to help. They just need to be asked. In many businesses that grow steadily, each customer brings in the next one. Where does your path leak? Maybe lots of people notice you but nobody reaches out, or conversations happen but nobody buys. Finding the weak step tells you exactly what to fix.

Words to know

Lead:
Someone who shows interest: a message, a question, a sign-up.
Conversion:
Turning interest into a yes. If 10 people ask and 2 book, that's 2 out of 10.
Customer journey:
The steps from noticing you to buying and coming back. Notice → ask → talk → buy → get it → review → tell a friend.
Expectations:
What the customer thinks will happen. Bad reviews usually come from a gap here, not from bad work.
Referral:
A customer sending you the next customer, usually because you asked.
Follow-up:
Going back to someone who didn't answer. Most sales are lost by never asking twice.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's journey: a parent sees the post (attention), messages to ask about Saturday (lead), Maya asks what's wrong with the bike (conversation), they book a time (sale), she does the tune-up in the driveway with her dad nearby (delivery), sends a before-and-after photo and asks for a review (review), and asks whether a friend's kids need one too (referral). Her weakest step: parents ask a question and then forget to book. Her fix is a simple booking link with Saturday times.

Two more made-up founders

Nadia's Friday Night Out

Her journey: a parent hears from another parent (notice), texts to ask if she's free (ask), Nadia asks how old the kids are and what bedtime looks like (talk), quotes $70 and books it (buy), does the night (deliver), texts a photo of the tidy kitchen and asks how it went (review), then asks if any other family needs a Friday (refer). Her leaky step: parents text, then go quiet. Her fix is answering with two exact dates instead of "let me know".

Sam's eggs

Sam's leaky step is different: people notice the sign but don't stop, because they don't carry cash. His fix is a tap-to-pay code taped to the box, set up on his dad's account.

What usually goes wrong

  • Talking about your features instead of their problem.
  • Never actually asking. "Want to book Saturday at 10?" is a normal question, not pushy.
  • Over-promising to win the job, then missing it.
  • Not asking for the review while they're still happy.

If you're under 18: For a job at someone's home, bring an adult or have one know exactly where you are. Take deposits and payments with a parent or guardian involved. Staying safe

Your action

Map your customer's journey through each step, from attention to referral. For each step, write what happens, what you do, and where people are most likely to drop off.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Draw the seven steps across a page: notice, ask, talk, buy, deliver, review, refer.
  2. Under each, write what actually happens in your business and what you do.
  3. Write one question you'll ask before you pitch, like "What's been going on with it?"
  4. Write the exact words you'll use to ask for the sale. Practise saying it.
  5. Pick the step you think leaks the most people, and write one fix you'll try this week.
  6. After a job, send: "Happy with it? Could you tell one person who might need this?"

You leave with: A customer journey map

In plain words:Work out what one sale earns you after costs, then how many sales it takes to cover everything else. Real numbers beat "it'll be profitable".

What this covers

  • Revenue, variable costs and gross profit
  • Gross margin and overhead
  • Net profit and cash
  • Break-even
  • Customer acquisition cost, lifetime value and recurring revenue
You don't need an accounting degree. You need to understand a handful of numbers well enough to know whether your business works. The easiest place to start is one single sale. Revenue is what the customer pays. Variable costs are what that one sale costs you to deliver: materials, packaging, fuel, payment fees. Gross profit is revenue minus variable costs. Gross margin is gross profit as a percentage of revenue. Say you sell a custom phone case for $30. The blank case, printing and packaging cost $9, and the payment fee is $1. Your gross profit is $20, a gross margin of about 67%. That $20 is what each sale contributes to everything else. "Everything else" is overhead: costs you pay whether you sell one case or a hundred, like a website, software, insurance or equipment. If overhead is $400 a month, you need 20 sales a month just to break even ($400 ÷ $20). Sale 21 is the first one that makes a profit. Net profit is what is left after both variable costs and overhead. Two more numbers explain whether growth is healthy. Customer acquisition cost is what you spend, on average, to win one customer. If you spend $100 on ads and get 10 customers, it's $10 each. Lifetime value is the gross profit a customer brings in over the whole relationship. If a customer buys three cases over two years, that's $60. When lifetime value is comfortably bigger than acquisition cost, spending to grow makes sense. When it isn't, growth just loses money faster. This is why recurring revenue matters. A customer who pays every month has a much higher lifetime value than one who buys once. Finally, profit and cash are not the same. A business can be profitable on paper and still run out of money if it pays for materials today and gets paid in 60 days. Keep an eye on when money actually comes in and goes out. A vague number is the most common mistake. "We'll be profitable" means nothing. "Each sale makes $20, and we need 20 a month to cover overhead" is a real answer, even if some of it is an estimate.

Words to know

Revenue:
The money the customer pays you. Not your profit.
Variable cost:
What that one sale costs you: materials, gas, the payment fee. More sales, more of these.
Gross profit:
Revenue minus variable costs. What one sale leaves in your hand.
Gross margin:
Gross profit as a percentage of the price. $20 kept out of a $30 sale is about 67%.
Overhead:
Costs you pay whether you sell one or a hundred: a website, tools, insurance.
Break-even:
The number of sales that covers your overhead. After that, you're making money.
Net profit:
What's left after variable costs and overhead. The real answer.
Customer acquisition cost:
What it costs, on average, to get one customer. $40 of flyers and 4 customers is $10 each.
Lifetime value:
The gross profit one customer brings over the whole time they buy from you.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

One tune-up: $59 price, about $9 in supplies (lube, cables, brake pads), so $50 gross profit, a gross margin of about 85%. Overhead: about $120 a month for her tool kit and repair stand (paid off monthly) and printing flyers. Break-even: $120 ÷ $50 = 2.4, so 3 tune-ups a month. Acquisition cost: $40 of flyers brought 4 customers, $10 each. Lifetime value: a family with two kids on the spring-and-fall plan is 4 tune-ups a year, $200 of gross profit. Cash: she buys parts before Saturday and gets paid by e-transfer to a parent's account the same day.

Two more made-up founders

Priya's sneakers, one sale

Price $25. Costs: cleaner and brushes $3, laces $2, bag $0.50, so $5.50. Gross profit $19.50 per pair. Margin: (19.50 ÷ 25) × 100 = 78%. Overhead: $30 a month for supplies she buys ahead and her booth at the school market. Break-even: 30 ÷ 19.50 = 1.5, so 2 pairs a month. Everything after that is profit.

Devon's gear cleaning, growing

Price $40 a bag. Costs $12 (cleaner, hydro, detergent). Gross profit $28. He spent $60 on rink posters and got 6 customers: $10 each to get a customer. If each one comes back three times a season, lifetime value is $84 of gross profit, which is much bigger than the $10 he spent to find them, so more posters make sense.

What usually goes wrong

  • Forgetting the small costs: gas, bags, payment fees, the tool you had to buy.
  • Counting your own time as free, then wondering why it isn't worth it. Try $15 an hour in your head and see if it still works.
  • Mixing up revenue and profit. $500 of sales with $480 of costs is $20.
  • Making up numbers. Look up a real price, ask a real supplier, or say clearly that it's an estimate.

Your action

Calculate the economics of one sale or one customer: price, variable costs, gross profit, gross margin, and how many sales a month you need to break even. Estimate what it costs to win one customer.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write your price for one sale.
  2. List everything that one sale costs you, and add it up. Include the small stuff: bags, gas, fees.
  3. Price minus costs = gross profit for one sale. Write it down.
  4. Divide gross profit by the price and multiply by 100 for your margin. ($20 ÷ $30) × 100 = 67%.
  5. List what you pay every month no matter what. Add it up. That's overhead.
  6. Overhead ÷ gross profit = how many sales a month you need to break even. Round up.
  7. Write what you spent to get customers, and how many you got. Divide. That's your cost per customer.

You leave with: Unit economics for one sale or customer

In plain words:Pick the one thing that matters for the next three months, watch three numbers each week, and write down anything you do more than twice.

What this covers

  • Ownership and responsibility
  • Setting priorities
  • Repeatable processes
  • Simple scorecards and 90-day priorities
  • Delegation and leadership
Doing all the work yourself can be a perfectly good business. But if you want it to grow beyond your own available hours, you'll eventually need repeatable processes and other people. A business that depends on one person can't take a holiday, and it stops the day that person gets sick. Building something that can grow starts earlier than most people think. Start with ownership. When something goes wrong, the useful question isn't "whose fault is it?" but "what will I change so it doesn't happen again?" Separate what you couldn't control from what you can improve next time. Strong founders focus their energy on the part they can change, and that earns trust from customers and the people who work with them. Next, priorities. There will always be twenty things you could do. Most of them don't matter much. Choose the one thing that would make the biggest difference over the next 90 days, like landing ten paying customers, launching the website, or getting the product into one store, and protect time for it. Ninety days is long enough to finish something real and short enough to stay focused. Then pick a few numbers to watch every week. Not twenty, three. For a small service business it might be enquiries received, jobs booked and average job value. Watching a few numbers each week tells you something is wrong while there is still time to fix it. Write down anything you do more than twice. How a customer gets a quote. How an order gets packed. What to check before leaving a job site. A written process means the work gets done the same way every time, a friend or employee can help, and you can improve it instead of reinventing it. Delegation and leadership come from those processes. You can hand work to someone else once it is clear what "done well" looks like. Leading isn't having all the answers. It's making the goal clear, giving people what they need, and holding the standard. None of this needs to be complicated. A one-page list of priorities, a note with three numbers, and a few written checklists put a new business in a much stronger position.

Words to know

Priority:
The one thing you'd finish if you could only finish one. Everything else waits.
90 days:
About three months. Long enough to finish something real, short enough to stay focused.
Scorecard:
The few numbers you check every week to see if it's working.
Process:
The steps for doing a job the same way every time. A checklist counts.
Delegate:
Handing a job to someone else, which only works once the steps are written down.
Ownership:
Asking "what will I change?" instead of "whose fault is it?"

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's 90-day priority: 25 paying customers. Her weekly scorecard: bookings made, tune-ups completed and reviews received. Her written process is a tune-up checklist (brakes, gears, tires, chain, a test ride, a photo) so every bike gets the same job, and so a friend could help on busy Saturdays.

Two more made-up founders

Ellie's lawn service

90-day priority: 12 regular weekly customers. Weekly numbers: calls received, yards cut, money collected. Her written process: "Before I leave: trimmed edges, gate latched, clippings off the walk, text the photo, collect or confirm payment." Her little brother can now do a yard while she does another one.

Priya's sneakers

90-day priority: sell 40 cleanings. Weekly numbers: pairs in, pairs out, repeat customers. Her process is a drying checklist, because the one time she skipped it, a pair went back damp and she lost that customer.

What usually goes wrong

  • Ten priorities. That means none.
  • Tracking numbers you can't change, like followers, instead of enquiries and jobs.
  • Keeping everything in your head, then being the only person who can do the work.
  • Blaming customers or the weather. Ask what you'd change next time instead.

Your action

Write down one 90-day priority, three numbers worth tracking every week, and one process in your business that should be written down, then write it.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write the one thing you want true in 90 days. Make it countable: "25 paying customers", not "grow".
  2. Pick three numbers you'll write down every week. Most small businesses use: enquiries, jobs booked, average price.
  3. Write what a good week looks like for each number.
  4. Pick one job you do over and over and write the steps, in order, like a recipe.
  5. Test the checklist by having a friend follow it without you explaining anything.

You leave with: A 90-day priority, a three-number scorecard and one written process

In plain words:A pitch is a short, clear story about your customer's problem and what you do about it. Say it in 30 seconds, then 60, then five minutes, and practise out loud.

What this covers

  • Customer-first communication
  • Problem and solution
  • Credibility and evidence
  • How it works and the economics
  • The successful outcome and the ask
A pitch isn't mainly a story about you. Start with the person who has the problem. Show that you understand their situation, explain how your business helps, show evidence that it can work, and tell the listener what happens next. A clear pitch answers these, in this order: The problem. Who has it, and why it matters. Make the listener feel it. The solution. What you do about it, in one or two plain sentences. The evidence. Why anyone should believe you: conversations you've had, pre-orders, a pilot, early customers, your own experience with the problem. How it works. What the customer actually does, and how you reach them. The economics. What a sale earns and what it takes to grow, from Module 6. The outcome. What success looks like for the customer, and for the business. The ask. What you want from the person listening: feedback, a customer, a partner, funding, an introduction. Everything you built in the earlier modules goes here. The problem statement, the customer, the offer, the channels, the journey, the numbers and the 90-day priority are the pitch. You are summarizing work you have already done, not inventing claims. Build three versions. A 30-second version you can say to anyone. A 60-second elevator pitch that covers problem, solution, evidence and ask. A five-minute briefing that walks through all of it, which is the length of the competition's plan briefing video. Practice out loud and time yourself. If you can't explain it simply, it isn't ready yet. Expect questions, and don't bluff. "I haven't worked that out yet. Here's how I'd find out" is a strong answer. Experienced businesspeople respect honesty far more than polish.

Words to know

Pitch:
A short explanation of your business, built for the listener, not for you.
Evidence:
Proof: conversations, customers, sales, photos. It's what makes people believe you.
The ask:
What you want from the person listening: a customer, feedback, an introduction, a chance.
Elevator pitch:
About 60 seconds. The time you'd have with someone in an elevator.
Briefing:
The longer version, about five minutes, that walks through the whole business.

Example: Maya's bike tune-ups

Maya's 60-second pitch: "Lots of kids in our neighbourhood have bikes sitting in the garage because their parents don't have time to take them to a shop and wait a week. I'm Maya, and I do bike tune-ups right in your driveway on Saturday mornings, for $59. I talked to six parents before I started, and my first four customers came from one flyer at the cycling club. Each tune-up makes $50 after supplies, and I need three a month to cover my tools. My goal is 25 families in the next 90 days. I'm looking for more families to try it, and for a local bike shop that would sell me parts at a discount."

Two more made-up founders

Ellie, 30 seconds

"People with dogs can't get their lawns cut, because most services won't go in the back yard. I do: I cut, trim and latch the gate, and I text a photo when I'm done. I have nine regular customers and I'm looking for three more on the south side of town."

Devon, the ask

Devon's ask is specific: "I'd like the association to put one line about gear cleaning in the weekly team email." Specific asks get answered. "Any help would be great" doesn't.

What usually goes wrong

  • Starting with yourself instead of the customer's problem.
  • Using words nobody says out loud, like "synergy" or "disruptive".
  • Making up numbers to sound impressive. Judges ask, and honesty scores better.
  • Ending without an ask, so nothing happens next.
  • Reading it off a page. Know the four sentences, then talk like a person.

Your action

Write and record three versions of your pitch: 30 seconds, 60 seconds, and a five-minute briefing. Play them for someone and ask which part was unclear.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Write one sentence about the problem, from the customer's side.
  2. Write one sentence about what you do.
  3. Write one sentence of evidence: who you talked to, who has paid, what happened.
  4. Write your ask: what do you want from the person listening?
  5. Say those four sentences out loud and time it. That's close to your 30 seconds.
  6. For 60 seconds, add how it works and one number from Module 6.
  7. For five minutes, add the journey, the 90-day priority and what success looks like.
  8. Record it on your phone, play it for one person, and ask: "What part didn't make sense?"

You leave with: A 30-second pitch, a 60-second elevator pitch and a five-minute briefing

Out in the world

Staying safe while you build

Business 101 asks you to go and talk to real people. If you're under 18, follow these rules every time.

  • Talk to people you know, or have a parent, guardian or teacher with you. Meet in public places or at school, never in a stranger's home or car.
  • Keep your home address, personal phone number and school off flyers, posts and messages. Use a contact a parent or guardian can see.
  • Only sell door to door or make deliveries with an adult who knows where you are.
  • Most social media and video platforms require users to be at least 13. Follow each platform's rules, let an adult see your business accounts, and don't privately message adults you don't know.
  • Payment apps and online checkouts usually need an adult account holder. Take payments with a parent or guardian involved.
  • Some work needs insurance, a licence, safety training or an adult: food, childcare, ladders and roofs, power tools, and anything involving driving. Ask an adult before you say yes to a job.
  • If something feels wrong, stop and tell an adult you trust. You can also reach Kids Help Phone any time at 1-800-668-6868 or by texting CONNECT to 686868.

Community involvement

Does this count for my 40 hours?

To graduate from high school in Ontario, you need at least 40 hours of helping your community, without being paid. You can start the summer before Grade 9. Your principal has to say yes to each activity before you do it, and someone who watched you has to sign off your hours.

Most of what you do here does not count, and it's better to know that now than in Grade 12.

Does doing Business 101 in class count?No
Nothing that is part of a class, course or program you are enrolled in can count.
Does my co-op count?No
Co-op is a course. The rule names it by name.
Does running my own business count?No
It isn't unpaid help for the community — it's work you'd normally be paid for, and the money is yours.
Does entering the pitch competition count?No
It's good for you, but it isn't helping your community. The hours are meant for serving other people.
Does working a shift at a business for free count?No
If a person would normally be paid to do it, it can't count. Doing a job for free isn't the same as helping your community.
Does a free project that helps my community count?Yes, if approved
Unpaid, outside class time, not part of a course, and actually helping people — that's the whole idea. Ask your principal first.
Does teaching younger kids what I learned count?Yes, if approved
Running a free workshop at a library, a community centre or a club — outside class — is exactly the kind of thing boards approve. Ask first.
Does raising money for a local charity count?Maybe
Helping a charity usually counts. Handling the money yourself might not — activities involving banking or valuable items are on the ineligible list. Ask how the money will be handled.
Before you count any hours, check all six
  • Nobody is paying me for this, and nobody would normally be paid to do it.
  • It isn't part of any class, course or co-op I'm taking.
  • It happens outside class time.
  • It helps other people or my community, not just me.
  • My principal approved it before I started.
  • I know who will sign my hours, and I've kept the form.

Only your principal can approve an activity, and it has to happen before you start. Launch League can't approve hours.

Doing the money test in Grade 10? Practise the seven topics in plain words — budgeting, pay, interest, taxes, credit, smart buying and scams.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to finish Business 101 before entering the competition?
No. Entering is free and never requires the course. But every module builds a piece of a stronger entry — the problem, the customer, the offer, the numbers and the pitch — so we recommend it.
How long does it take?
It's self-paced. Reading the 8 modules is quick; the actions take longer, because they happen in the real world — talking to customers, writing an offer, running your numbers.
Do I need an account?
Not to read. Every lesson is open to anyone. A free account saves your answers, records your progress, and builds your one-page business plan from what you write. If you're under 18, we also ask a parent or guardian for consent.
Is this only for high school students?
No. It's written so a 12-year-old can follow it and useful enough for an adult starting a business. Anyone can take it, free.
Is this just about writing a business plan?
No. A plan matters, but a plan is not a business. Business 101 teaches how a business actually works — validating a problem, building an offer, finding customers, selling, understanding the numbers and building systems — so the plan you write describes something real.
Does completing it guarantee I'll win?
No. It covers what the published judging rubric looks for, and it will make your entry stronger, but judging is independent.

Stage 2: Plan

Ready to put it into a plan?

Everything you built here — the problem, the customer, the offer, the numbers — is the raw material for a real business plan and a pitch.
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