Create a stocking policy and keep to it!
Pubs often have limited stock policies other than keeping shelves full while retaining a cellar full of goods available for sale later. Every stock item in the cellar is costing money while sitting there. That cost can only be justified in commercial terms if the quantities being held will be required before the next delivery is due or has been purchased at an abnormally lower price.
Every pub has its own stock requirements with many different factors being applicable. The important message is not what should be done about this item or that item but the fact that there is an overall stock policy appropriate to enable your pub to function at maximum volume with minimum financial investment in stock.
Reviewing your pub’s sales and your stock policy can reduce the cash flow and working capital requirements of the business. The increased cash flow can then be used to improve the purchasing policy to take advantage of offers as they arise to increase overall profitability.
A lack of stock control can result in dire consequences should cash flow and liquidity be so strained that the cash resources of the business run out. Good stock control can avoid such drastic consequences.
Dispense Flow Monitoring equipment – how to make it work for you.
Running a pub is an art, in terms of customer relations and ambience, but making it profitable is a science. Many of you will have draught beer dispense monitoring equipment installed by your landlord (Brulines is the major supplier of these systems in the UK).
Whether you believe the voracity or accuracy of the Brulines equipment or not the information that you can get from this unpopular “spy in the cellar” can prove invaluable in determining your stock levels and your stocking policy.
Your landlord will use this information to help them set rents etc. You should use this information to help you protect your business from their ever increasing demands.
Understanding and using the information these systems provide can mean the difference between a successful pub and just another one of the hundreds of pub failures every year in the UK.
For further guidance on Stock Take Reports click here
Understanding the trends of your business, the hot spots, the dead zones etc is key to this and I have produced a simple set of reports that will enable you to see these trends and act upon the reports I can generate for your business. Please see the consultancy services section of the website.