One-Page Startup Plan: A Simple Template for Founders

A one-page startup plan puts your business on a single page in nine short answers: the problem, the customer, your solution, your advantage, how you make money, the market, the competition, your next milestone and what you need. You can write a first version in about an hour. It works like the Lean Canvas, a one-page template Ash Maurya created in 2010.

The page is for you before it is for anyone else. It forces each idea into a sentence you can defend, shows you which assumptions you have not tested and gives you something short to share with a co-founder, mentor or programme. Below is the template, a prompt for each box, a filled example and how to keep it current.

How is a one-page plan different from a Lean Canvas or a business plan?

• Business Model Canvas. Strategyzer's canvas describes how a business creates, delivers and captures value on one page (Strategyzer). It suits a business that already runs.
• Lean Canvas. Maurya adapted the Business Model Canvas for early startups, with blocks such as problem, existing alternatives, unfair advantage and key metrics (LEANSpark). It is built for testing risky assumptions.
• A full business plan. Sequoia's guide to writing a business plan lists ten sections, from company purpose and "why now?" to financials and vision.

The one-page plan below borrows from all three. It keeps the Lean Canvas focus on assumptions and adds two lines investors and programmes always ask about: your next milestone and what you need to reach it. If you want the fuller canvas, our guide to building a Business Model Canvas walks through it.

What do I need before I start?

• One problem you have seen someone struggle with, and the name of a person who has it.
• Three to five potential customers you can call this week.
• A blank page, on paper or in Google Docs, and a 60-minute timer.
• Permission to be wrong. The first version exists so customers can correct it.

What goes in each of the nine boxes?

Box 1: The problem

Who has the problem, how often, and what does it cost them in money or time? Be specific to a place and a group. "Small businesses struggle with payments" is too broad. "Salon owners in Kasarani lose bookings because clients cannot confirm a slot after hours" is a problem you can test.

Box 2: The customer

Describe the first 100 people you will serve, as if you could meet one for tea: their work, their income, where they are and the moment in their day when the problem bites.

Box 3: The solution

One sentence in plain words: what your product does and the relief the customer feels. If the person in Box 2 would not understand it, rewrite it.

Box 4: Your advantage

Why you, and why now? Years in the industry, access to a distribution channel, a partnership or a rule change in your favour. "We will work harder" is not an advantage, so keep thinking until you find one others cannot copy quickly.

Box 5: How you make money

Finish this sentence: "We make money when..." Name who pays, how much and how often: a subscription, a commission, a markup or a fee per transaction. Pick one model to start.

Box 6: The market

Count from the bottom up. How many customers like the one in Box 2 can you reach in year one, and what would they pay? Reachable customers times your price gives you a realistic ceiling. A continent-sized number does not help you plan.

Box 7: The competition

Who solves this today, even badly? Your main competitor may be a notebook, a WhatsApp group or doing nothing. List the two closest alternatives and the one thing you do better.

Box 8: The next milestone

Which single number in the next 90 days proves this is working? First 20 paying customers, first KES 100,000 in revenue or first repeat order are examples. Choose one and organise your weeks around it.

Box 9: The ask

What do you need right now to hit Box 8? Money, a technical co-founder, ten pilot customers, a licence or an introduction. Be precise about the amount and what it pays for.

What does a filled one-page plan look like?

This is a made-up example. The business and every figure in it are for illustration only.

• Problem: Salon owners in Kasarani lose evening and weekend bookings because clients cannot confirm a slot after closing time.
• Customer: 40 salons along two streets, each run by an owner who takes bookings by phone and WhatsApp.
• Solution: A booking link the salon shares on WhatsApp, which takes an M-Pesa deposit and confirms the slot by SMS.
• Advantage: The founder ran a salon for five years and knows the owners on both streets.
• How we make money: KES 300 a month per salon.
• Market: About 1,000 salons reachable in Nairobi's eastern estates in year one.
• Competition: A paper diary and WhatsApp messages. We do better on deposits, which should cut no-shows.
• Next milestone: 20 salons paying for two months in a row within 90 days.
• The ask: One developer for three months and introductions to two salon supply shops.

Every line is short, and every line can be tested by talking to a salon owner this week.

How do I use the page once it exists?

1. Read it to a customer. Watch where they frown or correct you, and write their words down. Our guide to validating a startup idea sets out how to run those conversations.
2. Review it every two weeks. Cross out what customers disproved and write the new version above it. Boxes that survive several rounds become your strategy.
3. Use it when you apply for support. The page gives you clear answers for applications. The Hackhouse Residency runs for 12 weeks with no equity taken, with a Spark track for idea-stage founders (KES 25,000) and a Scale track for growth-stage founders (KES 35,000). Applications for HH Gen 27.1 are open.
4. Share it with people who will push back. Bring it to one of our events and ask another founder which box they doubt most.

What mistakes should I avoid?

• Writing it for investors first. Write it for yourself, then adapt it.
• Filling boxes with adjectives such as "innovative" and "scalable" instead of facts.
• Describing the customer as "everyone" or "all of Africa".
• Skipping the advantage box because it is uncomfortable.
• Treating the page as finished. It should change as you learn.

Key facts

• A one-page startup plan has nine boxes, from problem to ask.
• The Lean Canvas, a one-page template for startups, was created by Ash Maurya in 2010.
• Strategyzer's Business Model Canvas describes how a business creates, delivers and captures value on one page.
• Sequoia's business plan guide lists ten sections, including "why now?" and vision.
• Aim to write the first version in about an hour and review it every two weeks.

Frequently asked questions

What should a one-page business plan include?

The problem, the customer, your solution, your advantage, how you make money, the market, the competition, your next milestone and what you need. Keep each answer to two or three sentences.

Is a one-page plan enough for investors?

It is enough to start a conversation and to show you understand your business. Most investors will then ask for a pitch deck and, later, financial detail.

What is the difference between a Lean Canvas and a one-page plan?

The Lean Canvas is a fixed template with its own blocks, such as key metrics and existing alternatives. The one-page plan here is a simpler version that adds your next milestone and your ask.

How often should I update my one-page plan?

Every two weeks in the early months, and whenever a customer conversation changes what you believe about the problem or the price.

Sources

• Lean Canvas, LEANSpark, checked 5 Nov 2026
• The Business Model Canvas, Strategyzer, checked 5 Nov 2026
• Writing a Business Plan, Sequoia Capital, checked 5 Nov 2026

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