Increase your Profits with  Stock Takes

Dramatic success stories throughout the hospitality industries are one of the many reasons liquor stock auditing services are considered to be important tools for achieving business success. Hotels, pubs, bars, restaurants & indeed any commercial F & B  business that sells liquor is often unaware of the following which can be highlighted through regular liquor stock takes & the computerised reports generated by such an audit:-

• incidences of theft
• incidences of fraud
• inconsistencies
• excessive wastage
• excessive staff drinks

Preventing trouble with Stock Taking

All the above have a negative effect on stock, yield & overall profitability. One of the first alarming signs that something is not right is often a low yield & reduction in gross profit. It is surely better to have this information flagged up on a regular basis throughout the year? This means you can make alterations to the way you do business there & then, rather than find out this information at the end of the year & not be able to make any positive changes to that year's trading figures.

Why get a professional stock taker to take stock?

Liquor stock taking can be a tricky & tedious process. Its requirement for measuring stocks in particular measurements according to spirits or kegs for example can further complicate matters. In addition, it is time consuming & it probably won't be the highlight of a licensee's job!

Professional stock takers are equipped with the right expertise & skills to do the job correctly. Equally important is the fact that they are independent from the business. They perform liquor stock audits daily for many businesses & have daily experience of how other businesses within the industry are performing. They can therefore not only give advice on how each individual business is performing but give general but valid observations on the industry as a whole.

How will the professional stock taker take a view on my business?

To enable the stock taker to get a view of how your business is performing, they must not only count the stock but be given a range of information about the business. The stock taker will need to see all delivery notes & invoices, all records for pipe-cleaning, wastage, staff drinks etc as well as figures for income taken. If a PLU till is being used, then they must also see the Z2 report. This will enable them to pinpoint problem areas more effectively.

The stock taker will then produce on site & at the time of audit a range of computerised reports which can include the following:-

• product range by item & by product group
• size, measure, purchase price & selling price
• opening & closing stock
• sales at cost & at retail
• sales ratio per product group
• purchasing information
• individual GP per product item, GP per product group & GP overall
• days stock & average daily sales per product
• estimated result & actual result
• trading loss or surplus
• cumulative trading position for that year
• historical performance

All these reports will mean that a accurate picture is available of how your business has performed over the period in question.

How will my business benefit from professional wet stock taking?

The costs of using a qualified & professional stock auditor are recovered many times over by savings made possible by good stock auditing. From hotels, pubs, bars to all businesses selling liquor seeking advice from an independent professional can mean the difference between profit & loss. They can help make sure you are as competitive as possible in today's high pressured trade & challenging economic climate.

Professional stock audits can provide:-

• a complete picture of how you business is performing against current trends
• a comparison with similar trading periods to give a historical trading performance
• information to ensure gross profits are maintained for every single product
• an indication of surplus/deficit trading positions

A tightening up on loss & profit in this way means that professional, independent wet stock auditing will help you make better decisions.

To get a better idea of what happens in reality, please view our Liquor Stock Audit Case Study or have a look through an example Liquor Stock Audit Report.