The restaurant’s owner examines the sales, and then the bottom line before closing the report.
Does this sound familiar?
It could be an amazingly complete report, however when you only look at those two figures, it leaves the majority of its value on the table.
They shouldn’t be more dependent on an accounting firm. It should help them become more comfortable with their own financials. You don’t need to know every accounting rule or do a lot of work in the evenings completing invoices. You do need to understand how profit moved from the costs of food and labour and what issues need attention next week.
That’s the idea behind Bookkeeping Chef: Automate the bookkeeping process that doesn’t require a proprietor’s time while giving restaurant operators better financial information that they can utilize.
You Should Start By Looking at Weekly Numbers and Not Just Month-End
A monthly P&L is crucial, but restaurants don’t run monthly. Managers are able to schedule work this week. The chef has ordered food for today. Vendors change prices now.
This is why Bookkeeping Chef provides weekly prime-cost flash reports alongside monthly financial statements.
The primary cost is comprised of the labor and goods costs both of which are areas where restaurants can quickly progress. The information supplied by the Bookkeeping Chef reveals that prime costs typically account for 60 percent of the sales in restaurants.
If sales haven’t changed much however, the cost of prime increases. This number does not give an answer. It provides the person with the reason to conduct an investigation.
Did the hourly wage increase? Did you have overtime? Was the cost of food fluctuating? The invoice from the vendor seemed oddly large? Are there any changes in the sales mix?
This is much more valuable than discovering the same issue several weeks later.
Automate the repetitive Work
DIY bookkeeping isn’t limited to manually transferring POS figures into spreadsheets.
Automating the bookkeeping of restaurants can assist with repetitive financial data movements. It connects to various systems, including POS, QuickBooks, payroll vendor platforms inventory and recipe management, as well tools for AP/payment.
Automation is not the objective.
This reduces the time spent on manual data entry. Additionally, it keeps accounts of financial transactions up to date so that the owners are able to focus on reading information rather than gathering it.
That creates a different model of bookkeeping for restaurants: technology handles more of the mechanics while the owner remains engaged with the financial meaning.
P&L Questions: Find out to Ask Better Questions
Stop taking your P&L as something that could be an accounting test.
Start by reviewing sales. Next, look at the expenses needed to make the sales. Compare the food and beverage performance. Take a look at the labor. Go through operating costs and see what remains.
The importance of comparing periods.
If the sales increased, but the profit did not, something in between those two lines was changed. If food cost has increased, find out what was happening operationally. Compare the staffing levels and sales activities if labor percentages changed. If a figure appears to be odd, investigate rather than assuming the restaurant simply had an unlucky month.
Bookkeeping Chef offers monthly P&Ls which are completed within five days. The owners are able to look over the company’s performance without having to wait for months before receiving financial statements.
For restaurant owners who require bookkeeping solutions, speed is a must but understanding is the main objective.
There’s no need to do everything yourself by doing it yourself
There’s a middle-ground between handing the entire financial function to someone else and having your own bookkeeper full-time.
A business owner can be involved without manually performing every accounting job.
This could include the use of automated systems to keep track of information flow, reviewing the monthly P&L and weekly reports on prime costs or asking questions when something unexpected happens.
The services of specialized restaurant bookkeeping can aid in this process by maintaining the book’s structure while helping the proprietor know what the reports mean.
There is a good chance that you’ll end up with an accountant who is able to perform all the duties.
The owner should be able to take a seat with a P&L and have a frank conversation about their business.
The goal of financial independence is not to produce more reports, but to achieve financial freedom
Restaurants already generate enormous quantities of information. Dashboards don’t always make sense.
When an operator has the ability to review the weekly report on prime costs and see that something is different, they can then look into their P&L to look into what’s required for additional investigation.
Bookkeeping Chef’s strategy combines restaurant accounting automation, daily reports, monthly P&Ls as well as special financial assistance for restaurants, making this process possible.
Automate repetitive tasks. Check your prime costs every week. Learn the language of your P&L.
You don’t need to be an accountant professional.
It is important to understand the financials of your restaurant prior to when you are able to become the proprietor.