CaSCA Webinar: Writing Your First Business Plan

Zoom Webinar held on Thursday 26th February 2026

Kevin Thorn

is a Beefarmer with 50 hives in and around Lavenham, Suffolk. Kevin is passionate about improving his bees to be calm, healthy and productive and working to educate beekeepers in this area. He and his wife Julie run Stour Valley Apiaries and Busy Bees Cosmetics. Kevin has established a Bee Improvement Group at Abberton Reservoir in Essex, working with local beekeepers, Colchester BKA, Essex and Suffolk Water and Essex Wildlife Trust to reintroduce the native black bee to the area.

Commercial and Semi-Commercial Apiarists (CaSCA) hosted a member webinar focused on writing your first business plan for beekeeping-related activities.

The session began with a short presentation by Kevin Thorn, followed by an open group discussion, allowing members to ask questions, share experiences, and learn from one another.

This webinar was aimed at all beekeepers who:

Are considering making some or all of their income from beekeeping
Want to move from hobby beekeeping into a more structured business
Simply want a clear plan to help cover the costs of their beekeeping hobby

The discussion focused on practical, realistic business planning for beekeepers, including:

What a business plan needs (and what it doesn’t)
Keeping plans proportionate and achievable
Common mistakes and pitfalls
How a simple plan can help with decision-making, growth, and sustainability

This session was intended to be practical and accessible, particularly for those writing a business plan for the first time but will be useful for those updating their business plan.