Large Scale Investment in South Texas Top Industry

**tumphres** · 01-02-2011 07:30 PM

I am looking for a large scale investor to invest in a whitetail deer management ranch. This is a thriving industry in Texas and is becoming more popular by the day. Clients and customers will flock from across the world to visit our ranch and partake in the trophy buck hunts that we offer. This will be a long term investment. Start up cost are extremely high. However once we have our business established it will flourish. I can explain the more about this industry to anyone who is intersted. Please email me with any questions or comments. Thank you for your time.

**jake_russell** · 01-02-2011 09:59 PM

tumphres,

One day I would love to own a wildlife ranch so I envy your position. If I may though... Why will people come to your ranch from all over the world instead of the hundreds of other ranches in Texas? How big is a big investment? How long is a long payback period? What type of payback percentage can an investor expect? Are you selling ownership in the ranch or just wanting a loan? All of these questions are just some of the questions that investors will ask. I am sure you have your answers lined out but it might help to go ahead and post them. I think investors will be more open if they hear some of the specifics.

just my 2 cents

**tumphres** · 01-03-2011 07:34 PM

jake-russell,

Thank you for input, I truly appreciate this. In answer to your questions; I am still working on the exact numbers, but in a rough estimate i would say somewhere in the upwards of $15 million in staart up costs. With a business like this it will take approximately three years to get your herd to the desired quota. Until you reach that point, your overhead will out weigh your income. Also your yearly income will depend on the quality of your herd and the number of management bucks you can afford to sell off in a given year to hunters and/or breeders. Also you have the option to sell off some of your fawns and does to other breeders seeing as how you obviously cant keep all of them. Thus being said your payback period would be hard to calculate, however I would estimate in the neighborhood of ten to fifteen years. I am interested in an investor that is willing to be an active partner. Said person would have half ownership of the ranch, and I would hope that he or she shows a genuine interest in this industry and would be willing to help with the large amount of work that goes in to this. I have spent the past two years working part time in this industry learning everything I can about the proper way of working deer. I have developed quite a few lasting relationships with other ranch owners around, and they would be more than happy to provide any now financial services needed to get an operation started. In this industry many of the ranches work in sort of a cooperative. If for some reason one ranch cannot make accomodations for a customer, they will provide the customer with information on other ranches in the area. The owners of the ranches also hunt on the other ranches. After seeing their deer from birth to harvest, the have no desire to hunt one of their own. The ranches also rely on each other for hands and advice for the proper breeding and production of there deer. I am not saying that our operation will be the only one in the area to gain customers, but this is an expanding industry, and i will strive to be competetive in our sales. We will of course you many ways of advertising including a website, online directories, conventions and trade shows, and of course word of mouth refferals as well as many available conections to the oilfield. I am also interested if the opportunity should arise to go to a whitetail artificial insemenation training course as well as a semen extraction course. Many of the ranches that I have had the opportunity to work on hire a vet out of Ohio to travel to texas to A.I. their deer. This is because there is no one in this area that can offer that service. As to the pay back percentage, what I am working on, and please give me your opinion, is that 23% of the annual profit would go to the partners. The remaining 77% would remain in the company to build and expand with as well as go towards the daily expenses such as employee wages, maintance, and feed. The 23% that goes to the partners would be split evenly between all partners. Ie 2 parnters would be 50/50, 4 would be 25/25/25/25. ect. I hope that this answers your questions and provides a more detailed plan. If you have anymore questions or pointers, I am interested in them. I always welcome another persons insight.

Thank You

**jake_russell** · 01-04-2011 11:29 PM

sounds like you have some work experience in the industry so that is a big plus. I understand the want to get the money flowing up front so you can begin a process that you have a passion for. unfortunately the fun part (opening and running the business) comes only after the not-so fun part (research and writing a business plan). I am only assuming you do not have a business plan because of the ambiguity in some of your numbers.

any time you are wanting to raise as much money as you are a proper business plan is absolutely required. this plan will help you understand what differentiates you from your competition as well as how much money you may need. (along with numerous other things)

if you have not written a full business plan that is probably your next step. good luck and stay focused it may take a long time to raise the necessary money but if this is your dream go for it

**joemac** · 01-08-2011 04:41 PM

I'm an avid hunter and outdoorsman but I have nearly zero experience on the business side of operations. This is the area I plan to major in when I transfer out to a four year school-wildlife habitat/rangeland ecology and or outdoor enterprise management. I question whether this area of the industry is actually growing. As the economy pinches most Americans are they actually spending more on these kinds of things? My gut would say no, but I could be wrong.

Other than the purchase price of land what makes up the $15M? I'd think if that area has excess population which most areas in the country do right now you could sell doe hunts which will also help with management. Maybe you could graze cattle or let another ranch graze cattle while getting the game operation set up. I seriously doubt this will effect game operations and could help offset costs up front. What about small game? Things like coyotes/bobcats/hogs? I think most areas in TX have these and this is one area I know is expanding.

Good luck with your search, I will be searching for the same thing in a few years when I attempt to get a ranch going.