Legacy Soil & Stone — Financials
Companion to the master proposal. Numbers reflect a self-funded launch.
1. Stream A unit economics (Memorial Pearls)
COGS includes binder (colloidal silica), pigments (mica, pearlescent, mineral oxides), cremains-slurry materials, sealant, polishing supplies, packaging, shipping carton, and apportioned aggregator consumables. Excludes operator labor (treated as Schedule C profit, not COGS — see §6).
| Tier | Cremains | Pearls | Price | COGS (est.) | Gross profit | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XS | < 0.5 lb | 2-10 | $250 | $22 | $228 | 91.2% |
| S | 0.5-1 lb | ~25 | $475 | $42 | $433 | 91.2% |
| M | 1-2 lb | ~45 | $695 | $68 | $627 | 90.2% |
| L | 2-4 lb | ~70 | $995 | $98 | $897 | 90.2% |
| XL | 4-9 lb | ~85 | $1,295 | $135 | $1,160 | 89.6% |
| Blended (mix-weighted) | ~$735 | ~$73 | ~$662 | ~90.0% | ||
Stream A blended assumes a mix slightly weighted toward XS/S tiers (smaller and partial-keepsake orders dominate volume; full-cremation XL orders are the minority). Mid-volume mix produces blended ~$735.
2. Stream B unit economics (Private NOR + Cedar Vessel)
Stream B restructured per April-11 research: 3 tiers, standardized 1.5 cu ft return + standardized hand-built cedar planter for every tier. Pricing scales with vessel cycle complexity (JK270 dual-chamber for Tiny vs JK400 for Small-Medium and Large), not output volume. COGS includes cedar planter materials + finish, NOR vessel consumables, soil packaging, shipping, certificate. The Bloom-tier baseline ($475 → $70 COGS at 85.3%) is carried forward as the consistent cedar-piece cost.
| Tier | Pet weight | Vessel cycle | Return | Price | COGS (est.) | Gross profit | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tiny | < 10 lb | JK270 dual | 1.5 cu ft + cedar | $475 | $70 | $405 | 85.3% |
| Small-Medium | 10-30 lb | JK400 dual | 1.5 cu ft + cedar | $675 | $80 | $595 | 88.1% |
| Large | 30-40 lb | JK400 full | 1.5 cu ft + cedar | $895 | $95 | $800 | 89.4% |
| Blended (mix-weighted) | ~$634 | ~$78 | ~$556 | ~87.6% | |||
Mix weighting per Pet_Weight_Vessel_Sizing research: Tiny 35%, Small-Medium 52%, Large 13%. Tiny tier carries the lowest margin because the standardized cedar planter is a fixed share of a smaller revenue base; Small-Medium and Large each clear 88%+.
Surplus from Large tier (pet yields 2.5-3 cu ft vs 1.5 cu ft delivered) feeds the Mother Pile — the active hot inoculant pile at the workshop. Finished memorial soil also plants the Unconditional Forest memorial grove on-site.
3. Line 3 — Community Composting (pass-through to shelters)
| Item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Customer fee | $150 | Single price, no weight tier — communal vessel |
| Direct cost per participant | $30 | Intake handling, batch labeling, soil bag, packaging, shipping |
| Net donated to shelter partner | $120 | Year-end donation receipt totaled across program |
| Legacy retained margin | $0 | Operating costs absorbed; not booked as Legacy revenue |
Customer pays for a service ($150) that funds a donation. The $150 is not customer-tax-deductible. Customer-facing copy uses "proceeds support shelter partners," not "donate."
4. Year 1 → Year 2 → Steady-state revenue projections
Volume baseline: Year 1 = 10 Stream A orders/month + 3 Stream B orders/month = 120 + 36 annually. Year 2 ramp = 2.5× as regional reach builds. Year 3 onward = steady-state at Year 2 volumes — the business intentionally does not chase compounding growth past maturity. Workload, artisan pace, and operator capacity are the constraint, not market size.
| Year | Stream A orders | Stream A revenue | Stream B orders | Stream B revenue | Total revenue | Gross profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 (Validation) | 120 | $88,200 | 36 | $22,824 | $111,024 | ~$99,400 |
| Year 2 (Maturity) | 300 | $220,500 | 90 | $57,060 | $277,560 | ~$248,600 |
| Year 3+ (Steady-state) | 300 | $220,500 | 90 | $57,060 | $277,560 | ~$248,600 |
Stream A blended price ($735) × volume; Stream B blended price ($634) × volume. Mix assumption per Pet_Weight_Vessel_Sizing research. Year 3+ holds at Year 2 maturity volumes — the brand is built around a workshop pace, not a growth pace.
5. Operating expenses (business-level)
Operator's compensation is not shown as a business expense here. Legacy is a single-member LLC (disregarded entity); all business profit is the operator's Schedule C income, taxed on the operator's personal return. The operator's tax and benefit load is itemized separately in §7.
| Line item | Year 1 | Year 2 / Steady-state | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | $5,000 | $8,000 | Web, print, regional partnerships |
| Insurance package | $5,500 | $5,800 | GL + product + Care/Custody/Control rider + commercial auto + business personal property + cyber. CCC rider is essential — standard GL excludes property in operator's possession (cremains/remains). |
| Merchant fees (~3% of revenue) | $3,300 | $8,300 | Stripe / payment processing |
| Accounting / legal | $2,400 | $3,000 | Bookkeeping retainer + year-end + occasional legal review |
| Equipment depreciation | $3,500 | $3,500 | JK270/JK400 vessels, aggregator pan, painting station, cedar tools (5-year straight line) |
| Licensing, permits, PPE, small misc | $1,500 | $1,800 | GA EPD PBR maintenance, sales tax registration, PPE, signage |
| Misc operating | $5,000 | $7,000 | Utilities, supplies, software, freight overhead |
| Total operating expenses | $26,200 | $37,400 |
Sales tax: Stream A and Stream B products are tangible personal property. Legacy collects GA sales tax (~6-8%) at checkout from the customer and remits to the state. Sales tax is a customer pass-through, not Legacy's expense, but registration and remittance are operator obligations.
6. Net income (business-level operating profit)
| Year | Revenue | Gross profit | Operating expenses | Operating profit (Schedule C) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 (Validation) | $111,024 | ~$99,400 | $26,200 | ~$73,200 |
| Year 2 (Maturity) | $277,560 | ~$248,600 | $37,400 | ~$211,200 |
| Year 3+ (Steady-state) | $277,560 | ~$248,600 | $37,400 | ~$211,200 |
Operating profit = the operator's Schedule C income, before the operator's personal tax obligations and self-employed benefit costs. See §7.
7. Operator's tax & benefit load — what actually lands in the operator's pocket
| Line | Year 1 | Year 2 / Steady-state | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule C operating profit (from §6) | ~$73,200 | ~$211,200 | Operator's gross self-employment income |
| Self-employment tax | ~$10,300 | ~$27,500 | 15.3% × 0.9235 × profit (SS portion caps at 2026 wage base $176,100) |
| Federal income tax (after QBI deduction) | ~$3,500 | ~$24,000 | 20% Section 199A QBI deduction assumed; verify with tax advisor that memorial-services qualifies as non-SSTB |
| Georgia state income tax | ~$3,900 | ~$11,400 | 5.39% flat 2026, applied to Schedule C profit (simplified). |
| Self-employed health insurance | ~$10,000 | ~$10,000 | Individual on the GA marketplace, mid-range Silver-plan estimate. Above-the-line deductible. |
| Total tax + benefit load | ~$27,700 | ~$72,900 | |
| Effective take-home (operator) | ~$45,500 | ~$138,300 | Schedule C profit minus tax + benefit load |
Year 1's ~$45K effective take-home is the validation-phase reality. Year 2's ~$138K take-home is the maturity-phase reality once the business reaches steady-state volume.
Recommended tax-side moves: open a Solo 401(k) by Dec 31 of Year 1 (allows substantial annual deferral combined with employer profit-share, especially for operators eligible for the age-50 catch-up). Run an S-corp election analysis at the start of Year 2 — once Schedule C profit is past ~$150K, S-electing and paying a reasonable W-2 salary saves ~$11-14K/year in SE tax. Quarterly federal 1040-ES and GA 500-ES estimateds are required from Year 1.
8. Line 3 community-program flow (donations to shelters)
| Year | Community participants | Pass-through to shelters (donation total) |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | ~30 | ~$3,600 |
| Year 2 (Maturity) | ~80 | ~$9,600 |
| Year 3+ (Steady-state) | ~80 | ~$9,600 |
Line 3 numbers don't appear on Legacy's revenue ledger. These are donation-receipt totals to shelter partners — useful for the brand story, the academic-outreach narrative (Line 4), and the year-end shelter-partnership reports.
9. Capital plan
What it would cost to launch. Self-funded.
10. Notes & assumptions
- Stream A blended margin ~90%; Stream B blended ~87.6%; Line 3 community = pass-through to shelters at $150/participant
- Volume Y1 = 120 Stream A + 36 Stream B; Y2 ramp 2.5×; Y3+ steady-state at Y2 volumes
- Single-member LLC (disregarded entity); operator pays SE tax on full Schedule C profit
- Tax estimates assume 2026 federal brackets, 2026 GA flat 5.39%, $15K standard deduction, 20% QBI deduction (verification required), $176,100 SS wage base
- Self-employed health insurance estimate is mid-range for an individual on the GA marketplace; actual cost varies by plan, age, and subsidy eligibility
- Launch capital ~$185K — largest line is land (~$100K, 10 acres N Georgia foothills, research-grounded mid-range).