Foreign Trade Zone Operation Break-Even Analysis: Month 25

Fixed costs $143.9K Full-ramp base

Contribution margin 100% No tracked variable

Break-even revenue $143.9K Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 25 Cumulative breakeven

Break-even calculator

Test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs against the break-even point for a foreign trade zone operation.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Monthly zone income from leases and service fees drives the cash available to cover overhead. $ Low income High income Variable expenses Direct costs that rise with revenue are set to zero here because the source data does not show a variable cost line. $ Low costs High costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $194,000 $194,000 revenue - $0 variable expenses

Margin ratio

100%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead base from staff, property, security, insurance, maintenance, and utilities. $ Lean overhead Heavy overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which expenses are fixed and which move with sales in this zone operation?

Cost classification

Break-even is only reliable if stable overhead stays separate from usage-driven work. In this model, break-even at Month 25 depends on not burying labor ramps, utility load, and rented-site commitments inside one overhead line.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Property Taxes ($12,000/month)	Fixed	Include as monthly overhead from Month 1 through Month 60.	Treating taxes as if they rise and fall with shipment volume.
Security Services ($8,000/month)	Fixed	Keep in the fixed overhead base needed to operate controlled facilities.	Reducing security in the model when revenue is below plan.
Facility Maintenance ($15,000/month)	Semi-variable	Use the base monthly amount in overhead, then track added wear separately if volume data exists.	Calling the whole line fixed while more active zones increase upkeep.
Insurance Premiums ($10,000/month)	Fixed	Include as a stable monthly operating requirement across the planning range.	Allocating insurance per shipment and overstating variable margin drag.
Marketing and Trade Shows ($5,000/month)	Semi-fixed	Model the monthly plan as overhead and add step increases only when leasing pushes expand.	Flexing marketing automatically with every dollar of revenue.
Utility Base Fees ($4,000/month)	Semi-variable	Keep the base fee in overhead and separate usage-linked power or load charges when tracked.	Burying utility load growth inside one flat overhead line.
Core salaried team	Fixed	Include Operations Director, Leasing Manager, Compliance Officer, and Admin Coordinator as recurring salary overhead.	Treating salaried roles like per-shipment labor instead of committed payroll.
Rented zone commitments ($15,000, $20,000, and $12,000/month)	Fixed	Add each rented zone commitment once its site becomes active in the model.	Forgetting that rent starts as a fixed burden even before full occupancy.

How does break-even change from a lean two-zone setup to the full six-zone build?

Scenario table

Lean, base, and full setups change break-even because each step adds fee revenue faster than fixed cost load, but payroll and rented zones also rise. Since variable expenses are blank, this table keeps them at $0 and shows fixed-cost pressure only.

Planning assumptions only; actual results will differ, and variable expenses are blank in the source.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean two-zone setup	$130,000	$0	$111,900	100%	$18,100	Small cushion; a rent or payroll bump can erase it.
Base four-zone setup	$300,000	$0	$131,900	100%	$168,100	Strong cushion and the clearest Month 25 break-even path.
Full six-zone buildout	$405,000	$0	$168,900	100%	$236,100	Best cushion, but it fits mature utilization, not launch.

What pushes this foreign trade zone plan past break-even?

Stress test

Month 25 break-even works only if zone revenue lands on time. The weak spots are a $60,000 monthly hit from Zone Delta, $47,000 of rented-zone cost, and any variable handling or compliance cost not yet priced.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change to the base case.	$300,000	$0 cushion	The plan only works if launch revenue holds.
Revenue shortfall	Lose Zone Delta's $60,000 monthly fee.	$300,000	$60,000 gap	One missing zone erases the cushion fast.
Fixed-cost pressure	Add the $47,000 monthly rental load from Zones Beta, Delta, and Zeta.	$347,000	$47,000 gap	Leased space lifts the floor before revenue moves.
Margin pressure	Add unmodeled per-shipment labor, handling, and compliance costs.	$300,000+	$0 cushion	The model has no variable-cost cushion today.
Combined pressure	Lose Zone Delta revenue and add the $47,000 monthly rental load.	$347,000	$107,000 gap	A slow ramp plus fixed rent pushes break-even past Month 25.

Is the zone rollout, capex, and staffing plan tight enough to reach break-even before the Month 26 cash trough?

Founder checklist

Don’t commit to leases, hires, or equipment until the staged zone timing, $2.1M construction budget, $7.5M purchase base, $745K equipment plan, $54K monthly overhead, and Month 6 supervisor ramp fit the break-even path. The model still shows a -$3.459M cash trough in Month 26, so runway is the hard stop.

1Zone timingM1-M21

Verify Zone Alpha through Zone Zeta stay on their Month 1, 3, 6, 13, 17, and 21 starts so capacity comes online in stages and not before demand can use it.

2Construction$2.1M

Confirm the six construction budgets total $2.1M, because that is the near-term build cash needed before any zone can open.

3Purchase base$7.5M

Verify the owned-zone purchase commitments for Alpha, Gamma, and Epsilon total $7.5M, since those are the biggest upfront cash calls in the model.

4Equipment capex$745K

Check that security gates, CCTV, customs IT, office equipment, forklifts, and fire safety upgrades fit inside $745K and land before the zones need them.

5Fixed burn$54K/mo

Make sure property taxes, security, maintenance, insurance, marketing, and utility base fees stay at $54K per month, and keep the Facility Supervisor addition for Month 6.

6Cash trough-$3.459M

Stress test runway against the Month 26 minimum cash point of -$3.459M, because breakeven does not arrive until Month 25 and the cash dip hits right after.