A Daily Exhibit of Your Business
In order to accomplish this, you ought to keep a record similar to that shown by Fig. 187 — a Daily Exhibit of your business.
The advantage of this record is that it will give any battery man daily information as to the following facts of his business:
1. The amount of stock on hand.
2. The amount of gross profit.
3. The percentage of gross profit.
It will give monthly information as to:
1. The expense and percentage of expense.
2. The actual net profit.
3. The percentage of net profit.
Such information will help you to locate exactly when and where your losses come; during what months and from what causes. It will enable you to turn losing months this year into profitable months next year; to tell whether your losses were due to a too great expense account, or to too low gross profits.
The percentage columns on the sheet are the most important, because only by percentages can you make proper comparisons, and know just how your business is headed. You cannot guess percentages; you must have a way of knowing continually what they are, in order to be certain of getting the right return on your investment.
In analyzing this Daily Exhibit, you will note that it is ruled for five weeks and two extra days, in order to provide for any one and all months of the year. The various columns are provided so that the entries in them will give a clear-cut story of the actual state of your affairs, daily, weekly, and monthly. Each column will be considered in the order in which it appears on the form.
First Column — “Merchandise on Hand.”
In starting this record the first day, the figures entered in this column must be an actual physical inventory of your stock on hand, priced and extended at cost. Do not total this column.
Second Column — “New Goods Added to Stock.”
The figures entered in this column should be the total value of all new goods received from manufacturers or jobbers on the particular day. If you return any articles to the seller immediately upon receipt, and before putting them into your stock, deduct such goods from the invoices and enter only the net amount in this column. This column should be totaled every week and every month.
Third Column — “Goods Returned by Customers; — Deduct from Sales.”
The total value of all goods returned by customers extended at the prices charged customers should be entered in this column daily. Every week and every month this column is totaled.
Fourth Column — “Cost of Goods Returned; — Deduct from Cost of Goods Sold.”
The cost of all goods returned by customers should be entered in this column. The cost prices can always be secured from the Stock Record cards, as previously explained. Total this column every week and every month.
Fifth Column — “Goods Returned to Manufacturers.”
Sometimes there is occasion to return merchandise after it has been put into stock. In such cases, the money value of the articles sent back to manufacturers or jobbers should be entered in this column. This does not mean such goods as were returned on the day received, and were deducted from the seller’s invoice, and at no time have appeared in the second column, “New Goods Added to Stock,” but only to such merchandise as was originally entered in the second column, and later returned to the manufacturer. This column should be totaled every week and every month.
Sixth Column — “Goods Sold, Less Goods Returned.”
Enter here total of selling prices on sales tags for each day, after deducting amount in the third column. Total this column every week and every month.
Seventh Column — “Cost of Goods Sold, Less Cost of Goods Returned.”
The total of the sales extended at cost prices for each day, minus the amount showing in the fourth column, should be entered in this column. It should be totaled every week and every month.
Eighth Column — “Gross Profits.”
To arrive at the figures to be entered in this column deduct the amount in the seventh column from the amount in the sixth column. Total this column every week and every month.
Ninth Column — “Per Cent to Sales.”
This percentage should be figured every day, and every week and every month, and is arrived at by dividing the figures in the eighth column by the figures in the sixth column. It will pay you to watch this column closely. You will be astonished at the way it varies from day to day, week to week, and month to month. If you watch it closely enough, you will soon learn a great deal more about your business than you ever knew before. You do not need to total this column.
Tenth Column — “Accounts Receivable.”
On the day the Daily Exhibit is first started, the figures for this column must be taken from whatever records you have kept in the past. Do not total this column.
Eleventh Column — “Collections.”
Every day you collect any money from those customers who run charge accounts with you, enter the amount collected in this column. Total it every week and every month.
Twelfth Column — “Cash Sales.”
Every day enter the amount of cash sales in this column, and total it every week and every month.
Thirteenth Column — “Charge Sales.”
The amount of daily sales made to those customers who do not pay cash but run a charge account should be entered in this column. Every week and every month this column should be totaled.
General Calculations.
To arrive at the amount of “Merchandise on Hand” after the first day, which is, as has been previously explained, an actual physical inventory, add the amounts showing in the first and second columns, and deduct from this total the sum of the fifth and seventh columns. Enter this result in the first column for the next succeeding day. Continue as above throughout the entire month.
After the first day the figures in “Accounts Receivable” column are obtained by adding together the amounts showing in the tenth and thirteenth column and deducting from this total the amount in the eleventh column. This balance will be entered in the tenth column for the next day, the same procedure being followed for each day thereafter.
“Merchandise on Hand” after the close of business on the last day of the month should be entered in the first column on the line marked “Month Total.” This same amount will br carried forward to the first column of next month’s sheet and entered on the line of the particular day of the week on which the first of the month falls.
Following the “Month Total” are the “Year to Date” and “Last Year to Date.” These figures are important for purposes of comparison. Arrive at total for “Year to Date” by adding the total for the present month to the total for “Year to Date” found on the previous month’s sheet. The figures for “Last Year to Date” are taken directly from the sheet kept for the same month last year. It is, of course, evident that this cannot be done until one year’s records have been completed.