What you bake
Donut Business Proposal: Costs, Price, and Margin (2026)
A one page proposal that shows your costs, your price, and the margin a buyer or lender can check.
On this page
What to remember
- One page beats ten pages. A buyer reads the numbers first.
- List ingredients, your own pay, and overhead as three separate lines.
- Show the margin after all three costs, not before.
- Use your real shop cost. Brevl is $20 a month with 0% commission.
You do not need a long document. A donut business proposal works best when it fits on one page and every number has a source you can point to. Start with the price you charge today, then work backward to the cost.
What goes on the one page
The page has five parts: what you sell, your price, your cost per donut, your margin, and how you take payment. Put your name and contact at the top. Leave out your life story and your recipe.
Name and contact
Your business name, your phone, and your email. If you have a shop link, put it here.
What you sell
List your donuts by type and size. Say how many you can make in a week.
Price per dozen
Write the price a customer pays. If you sell singles, show that price too.
Cost per donut
Break it into ingredients, your labor, and overhead. Overhead includes your Brevl shop at $20 a month.
Margin per donut
Price minus all three costs. This is the number a lender or buyer checks first.
The order matters. A buyer wants to see the price before the cost. If the price is too low, the cost page will show a loss. If the price is too high, the margin page will show why. For more craft guides, see the craft guides.
If you sell wholesale, add a case price. A case is usually 12 dozen or 24 dozen. Show the price per case and the margin per case. That is the number a grocery buyer wants.
The three costs a buyer looks for
Ingredients are the easy part. Your labor is the hours you spend mixing, frying, glazing, and packing. Overhead is everything else: your shop cost, boxes, labels, and power. Brevl charges one flat $20 a month and takes 0% of your sales, so your overhead line is simple to show.
Your labor is the number most home bakers forget. If you spend two hours on a batch and you want $15 an hour, that is $30 for the batch. Divide that by 12 donuts and your labor is $2.50 per donut. That changes your price.
Your ingredients change with the market. If eggs go up, your cost goes up. A proposal with a date tells the buyer when you checked the price. Update it every month.
A worked example with ingredients, labor, and overhead
Say a batch of 12 donuts uses $4.20 in ingredients. You pay yourself $6.00 for the batch. Your Brevl shop costs $20 a month, and you sell 200 donuts a month, so overhead is $0.10 per donut. That is $0.35 ingredients + $0.50 labor + $0.10 overhead = $0.95 per donut. At $2.00 each, your margin is $1.05 per donut. For a dozen, your cost is $11.40 and your margin is $12.60 at $24.00.
You can use the same math for a dozen. If your cost is $0.95 per donut, a dozen costs $11.40. At $24.00 a dozen, your margin is $12.60. If you sell 20 dozen a week, your weekly margin is $252.00 before any market fees.
If you sell 20 dozen a week, your weekly revenue is $480.00. Your weekly cost is $228.00. Your weekly margin is $252.00. That is before booth fees, gas, and any help you pay.
How to show your margin without guessing
Use your last ten orders, not your best guess. Add up the ingredients, the hours, and the overhead for those ten orders. Divide by the number of donuts. That is your real cost. Then subtract it from your price.
If you do not have ten orders, use one full market day. Count every donut you made and every dollar you spent. Brevl keeps your recipes, inventory, and orders in one place, so the numbers are already there.
Do not use a margin from a single good week. Use a month. A month covers the slow days and the busy days. A buyer trusts a month more than a Saturday.
What to check before you send it
Check your state cottage food rules before you promise a number. Some states limit where you can sell and how much you can make. Check that your price covers a bad batch, a refund, and a slow week. If you sell at a market, add the booth fee to overhead.
Check your Brevl shop cost. It is one flat $20 a month and 0% commission, so you can put that number on the page without a surprise. If you use another tool, check its fees and add them to overhead.
Check your insurance. Some markets and lenders ask for liability insurance. Check your permit. Some states require a cottage food registration before you sell. Put those costs in overhead.
Mistakes that cost you the yes
The first mistake is a proposal that hides the costs. The second is a price that changes every week. The third is no proof you can deliver. Show one past order, one repeat customer, or one market day with real numbers. If you want the bigger picture, read is a baking business profitable.
Another mistake is a proposal with no date. A buyer needs to know when the numbers were true. Add the month and year at the top. If your flour price changes, update the page.
A proposal with no contact information is a dead end. Put your phone and email on the page. If a buyer wants to say yes, make it easy.
Try the free bake pricing calculator
Free, no signup.
- Donut business from home: cost, price, and first order
- How much to charge for donut holes
- Name for your donut business: 5 checks before you print
Common questions
What is a donut business proposal?
A donut business proposal is a one page summary of what you sell, your price, your cost per donut, and your margin. It is not a formal business plan. It is a sheet you can hand to a lender, a market manager, or a wholesale buyer who wants to see the numbers fast.
How long should a donut business proposal be?
Keep it to one page. A buyer reads the price and the margin first. If you need more room, add a second page with your past orders. Do not add recipes or long paragraphs. The proposal is a decision tool, not a story.
What numbers must I include?
You must include ingredients, your own labor, and overhead. Overhead covers your shop cost, boxes, labels, and power. Brevl is $20 a month with 0% commission, so that line is easy. Then show the margin after all three costs. That is the number a buyer checks.
Do I need a proposal to sell at a market?
Not always. A market manager may only ask for your cottage food permit and your price list. A lender or a wholesale buyer will ask for the proposal. If you want a bank loan or a grocery account, have the one page ready.
How do I show overhead if I work from home?
Add up your shop cost, your packaging, and the power you use for baking. Divide that total by the number of donuts you sell in a month. Brevl costs $20 a month, so at 200 donuts your overhead is $0.10 per donut.
What if my margin is negative?
If your margin is negative, raise your price or cut a cost. Do not hide it. A buyer will see the loss and stop reading. Fix the number before you send the page. If your market will not pay more, shrink the donut or simplify the glaze.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Check your state cottage food rules and talk to a tax professional about your numbers.