LED Volume Stage Break-Even: $195K Monthly Revenue Hurdle

Fixed costs $156.8K/mo Base burn

Contribution margin 91.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $171K/mo Revenue floor

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Use this to test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs against break-even.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Use the monthly top line; it sets the pool available to cover variable and fixed cost. $ Light book Heavy book Variable expenses Use direct labor, power, and project spend that move with each booking. $ Tight spend High spend

Money available to cover fixed costs $957,245 $1,132,833 revenue - $175,588 variable expenses

Margin ratio

85%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs Use monthly overhead plus salaried staff that do not move with one job. $ Lean base Heavy base

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which expenses are fixed and which move with sales for an LED volume stage?

Cost classification

Break-even is only reliable when fixed overhead, usage-driven costs, and staffing steps stay separate. In the first operating year, recurring fixed overhead starts at $72,200/month before payroll, so small classification errors can move the break-even target fast.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Studio Facility Lease	Fixed	Use $45,000/month in the fixed overhead base.	Don’t tie it to booked stage days.
Software Subscriptions	Fixed	Use $8,500/month as recurring operating overhead.	Don’t bury it in project costs.
General Liability Insurance	Fixed	Use $3,200/month as baseline coverage.	Don’t mix it with project-specific insurance.
IT and Data Storage	Fixed	Use $5,500/month as core infrastructure overhead.	Don’t ignore render storage load.
Core Payroll	Semi-fixed	Use $84,583/month in the first year, then step up with capacity.	Don’t hire ahead of booked stage days.
Direct Power and Utilities	Semi-variable	Model the usage-linked portion at 6.0% of first-year revenue.	Don’t assume power is flat.
Sub-Rental and Consumables	Variable	Model at 4.0% of first-year revenue.	Don’t leave out client-driven gear needs.
Marketing and Commissions	Variable	Model at 7.0% of first-year revenue.	Don’t count gross bookings as net margin.

How does break-even change from lean launch to full scale at an LED volume stage?

Scenario table

Lean still clears fixed costs, but the cushion is thinner because revenue is lower. Base improves coverage, and full scale wins on margin as occupancy rises faster than payroll and overhead.

Planning assumptions only; actual bookings, staffing, and mix can move the result.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean launch	$538k	$105k	$157k	80.5%	$276k	Break-even holds, but this is the tightest cushion.
Base growth	$710k	$124k	$157k	82.5%	$429k	This is the cleanest proof that utilization covers fixed load.
Full scale	$1.82m	$228k	$233k	87.5%	$1.36m	Best margin cushion, but bookings and staff have to scale with it.

What breaks the break-even plan if bookings slip or costs rise?

Stress test

At baseline, the plan clears break-even with about $343,156 of monthly cushion. The risk is not the first profit line; it’s booking slippage, cost creep, and a Month 6 cash dip to negative $2.522 million.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$194,761	$343,156 cushion	Baseline clears break-even, but the cushion is not huge.
Revenue shortfall	Monthly revenue is 10% lower.	$194,761	$289,364 cushion	Delayed bookings and weak hold conversion cut the safety net.
Fixed-cost increase	Fixed overhead plus payroll is 15% higher.	$224,000	$313,917 cushion	Lease add-ons or early hires eat the margin fast.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise 5 points.	$207,700	$330,217 cushion	Power, sub-rentals, commissions, and insurance push break-even up.
Combined pressure	Revenue is 10% lower, variable expenses rise 5 points, and fixed overhead rises 15%.	$238,800	$245,300 cushion	Runway gets tight fast, so cash control has to stay ahead of demand.

Can you prove bookings, rates, and cash cover before you sign the studio lease and buy the LED volume package?

Founder checklist

Operating break-even shows up in Month 1, but the build still drives to a negative $2.522 million cash low in Month 6. Don’t sign the lease or buy the full LED build until demand, rates, and funding are all proven.

1Booked Demand35% Y1

Verify signed or highly probable stage bookings can support 35% Year 1 occupancy, the listed day rates, and $62,000 a month of extra income before you commit.

2Build Cost$4.84M

Confirm the funding path covers the full $4.84 million capex stack for panels, servers, tracking, cameras, network, HVAC, workstations, and client space before the lease is signed.

3Fixed Load$156.8K/mo

Check that booked room days can carry the $156.8 thousand monthly fixed load from lease, software, insurance, IT, maintenance, admin, and payroll.

4Contribution80.5% CM

Test that power, sub-rental, marketing, and project insurance stay at 19.5% of revenue so contribution margin remains 80.5% before fixed costs.

5Staffing Ramp8 FTE

Hire against confirmed production load; Year 1 needs 8 FTE, and the move to 16 FTE by Year 5 should follow booked volume, not hope.

6Launch Cash($2.522M)

Keep enough cash to absorb the Month 6 trough of negative $2.522 million and have power, HVAC, storage, maintenance, and vendor support ready at opening month.