Wake up and smell the coffee: bookkeeping for café owners

Melburnians have a reputation for being coffee snobs. And the stats don’t lie: it’s estimated that on each Melbourne block, there are about 10 coffee machines smoothness of your lattes.

We’ve all heard the statistic that 60% of small businesses shut their doors within the first three years. But your cafe doesn’t have to be one of them!

In this week’s blog, we’re sharing some steps you can take to create a fruitful and long-term business venture!

1. Create a business plan

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

― Benjamin Franklin

It takes much more than a love for coffee to run a successful cafe.

In our experience, one of the cardinal sins that we often see business owners commit is failing to come up with a comprehensive (and long-term) business plan.

Having a business plan is about much more than just staffing and supplies. Ignoring or underestimating important financial cost projections, cost control and other factors can spell doom for any aspiring coffee shop owner.

Finally: once you have a good business plan in place, follow it! While it’s important to remain responsive, adhering to your plan can keep you focused and on-target.

2. Choose the right bookkeeping solution for your cafe

As part of a cafe’s good keeping practices, a system should be set. This would be one of the benchmarks when it comes to making sure things are running smoothly.

One good system that should be set is the point of sales systems or POS. A good POS system is much more than just a cash register. A good system track of all your cafe’s accounts, sales, costs, revenues and inventory.

A POS system can take a lot of the stress out of recordkeeping by recording all your transactions for you. Gone are the days when cafe owners had to spend their time after close rifling through paper receipts adding up debits and credits to get an idea of the success of their day!

MYOB bookkeeping makes things easy

We’ve blogged before about the benefits of choosing an MYOB system as a solution for your small business’ bookkeeping needs.

But did you know that MYOB also provides cloud-based POS systems?

MYOB’s POS software provides cafe owners with all the information they need to make decisions in one affordable, comprehensive software package.

MYOB believe in bookkeeping as easy as possible to those who don’t have the passion or knowhow for numbers.

The team at Maximum Business Solutions agrees: solid bookkeeping support should take the weight off your shoulders and let you get back to what you’re best at (and what you love doing) – running your business.
We are an MYOB partner based in Melbourne with the ability to provide bookkeeping advice and support for businesses that choose MYOB. If you believe MYOB is the best solution for your cafe, call us now for advice or support setting up your POS system.

3. Implore accurate record tracking

One aspect that commonly gets ignored in running a small business is bookkeeping.

Many coffee shop and cafe owners don’t include a certified bookkeeper in their business plans and take it upon themselves to look after their own financials. But before you know it, you’re days, weeks, and months behind. Panic and dread quickly sets in.

Accurate financial records make it easier for you keep track of your operating expenses and revenues. Keeping tabs on all this information tells you the score – is your business performing well? Poorly? What needs to change or improve?

Your bookkeeping is an essential decision-making tool. Make sure it’s done right!

Having a professional on your side minimises the possibility of mistakes and gives you and your staff more time to focus on doing what you do best. Hiring a professional bean counter (as in, bookkeeper) is a worthwhile and critical investment!

Maximum Business Solutions provides comprehensive bookkeeping support to small businesses of all shapes and sizes – cafes and coffee shops included. Get in touch with us today for customised bookkeeping solutions!

4. Make good coffee!

Even the best business plans, POS system, and most professional bookkeeper can’t change a cafe if its sandwiches are soggy and its coffee too bitter.

Is your cafe in need of bookkeeping help?

As more and more cafes open in Melbourne, it’s important that you know how to run yours to avoid early closure and stay ahead of the curve!

Bookkeeping and records are only one part of what makes a small business successful – but it’s also one of the most important ones. It pays to make sure it’s done properly.

For cafe owners who are not currently backed by an in-house bookkeeping team, Maximum Business Solutions can take care of your bookkeeping needs.

Whether your cafe operates in Beaumaris, Bentleigh, Cheltenham or any other Bayside or nearby suburb, we’ll help create bookkeeping solutions that work for your business. Let us take care of your bookkeeping needs while you concentrate on what you do best. We’ll take a flat white to go, please!

Organise an initial consultation with our bookkeepers or call (03) 9589 0128 today!