Profit First is a Cash flow Management System that supports prioritizing Financial Sustainability and getting business owners paid.

It is a tool for helping you implement a financial strategy that will lead to financial sustainability and profitability. I am a proponent of the strategy because it has proven to be a valuable extension to the work that I do with my clients and program members, BUT Profit First will NOT make you financially sustainable and operating as a cash-based business overnight.

What Profit First CAN Do is:

1.Help with the implementation of your financial strategy

Have you ever created a budget, a financial model or plan, and after a few weeks or months the whole thing is out the window because you didn’t stick to it? It’s totally normal and co common because it’s human nature! Many of us, me included, need some guidelines on spending to stick with the plan. Profit First is a strategy that can provide that for us.

2. Normalize Cash Flow

Rather than peaks and valleys in your cash accounts, rather then getting caught in the “debt cycle” where you pay off a bunch of debt with the cash on hand, only to run short on cash a few weeks or months later REQUIRING you to rely on Credit again, the Profit First cash flow strategy helps bring consistency.

3. Enable you to understand HOW and WHERE you are spending money in your business

Separating your cash into different accounts allows you to easily identify where you spend the most money, and if you have a tendency to 'overspend' or make purchases without thinking about the overall budget and ROI, or if you’ve been hanging on to money that could be reinvested into your business to help it grow.

a group coaching program member recently shared with me…

“I want to thank you for implementing Profit First in your coaching - it has really given me the confidence to buy materials and ingredients to prep for the holiday season! And your tools have been so helpful for assessing our new wholesale prices.”

Join us in the Profitable Food Business Community where we're talking Shipping Offers, Product Bundles + Discount Strategies for a Profitable Holiday Season!

If you haven't yet, complete your Profit Assessment to get a clear understanding of your numbers and make informed financial decisions as we head into the holidays. Learn more here.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 8 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

Profit First is a Cash flow Management System that supports prioritizing Financial Sustainability and getting business owners paid.

It’s a tool for helping you to implement a financial strategy that will lead to financial sustainability and profitability. And I am a proponent of the strategy because it has proven to be a valuable extension to the work that I do with my clients and program members. 

BUT Profit First will NOT make you financially sustainable and operating as a cash-based business overnight.

There are 4 Steps to Implementing Profit First in Your Food Business:

1. Understand where your business is financially right now

2. Identify WHERE you want to be, and by when (your financial goals)

3. Create a Plan for achieving those goals

4. Then, begin implementing Profit First cash flow strategies to assist in becoming financially sustainable, profitable, and eventually Cash-based.

Let's dig into each.

STEP 1 - Understand where your business is financially right now. We do this through a Profit Assessment

Profit First offers a Profit Assessment structure, but for Food Businesses it will look a bit different.

They refer to a category called Materials & Subs -- stands for Materials and Sub--contractors, and the items that are included in Materials must equate to 25% or more of real revenue.

For Food Businesses we eliminate “Materials & Subs” and utilize COGS - Specifically your Ingredients & Packings, Labor or Co-packing Costs AND all other COGS -- we want to see every penny that you are spending to produce and deliver your product / service to your customer. And that includes Merchant Fees, Sellers Fees, Market Fees, Shipping Costs, etc.

These costs are variable and affected by how much product you produce and sell, so we want to get VERY clear on what they are.

We also look at your Operating Expenses, current Owner’s Pay, Business Tax Savings and Profit to get a clear picture of you Business Profitability, not just your operational profitability.

The Assessment helps you to see your business finances in a whole new way, and identify what’s working, what’s not, and exactly where to focus your attention to improve your financial outcomes.

STEP 2 - Get Clear on Your Financial Goals, or what we call Your Financial Success Formula

What COGS% is going to help you maximize your Gross Profits, or as they call it in the Book your “Real Revenue”

And what % of your real revenue do you want to be able to set aside as Profit?

What Owners Pay % will help you reach your salary goal

What Tax Savings % will cover your quarterly or annual tax payments?

And What Operating Cost % is going to help you achieve financial sustainability?

These are your TARGETS. When you’re clear on your targets you can create a plan for getting there from where you are right now.

Step 3 - Create Your Roll-out Plan for Achieving these goals.

Financial sustainability comes by making incremental, meaningful changes to reach your targets in the time-frame that is right for you.

What is that time-frame? Is this an emergency financial situation?

Do you have some time to make these changes? Once you identify the time-frame you can see how your targets will change between now and then.

For example, if you are not currently paying yourself, your current allocation is 0% to Owners Pay - Your goal may be 40% of Real Revenue in 12 months. They might break down into 10% allocation increase each quarter from now until the end of the year to reach your goal.

So at the end of quarter one you’re allocating 10% to Owners Pay, at the end of Quarter 2 you’re allocating a total of 20% of Real Revenue to Owner’s Pay and so on…

Step 4 - Identifying the Strategies to Reach Your Goals

You want to take Implementation Step-by-Step based on where you can make the most financial impact, and remember it’s VERY RARE that the answer to your financial problems is ONLY to SELL MORE. You may need to increase sales but what can you do INSIDE your business - the things you have control over - to improve your financial situation?

Inside our Profit Assessment Online Course we’ve got a Roll-out Calculator And Strategy Finder to help you do this work.

When your Roll-out Plan is created, your key strategies are identified it’s time to Open Your Profit First Bank Accounts & Make Your Allocations

To learn more or to schedule a free 30 minute consult visit our website you an also find Sarah on Instagram: @sarah.delevan.consulting and LinkedIn

Join the FREE Profitable Food Business Group hosted on Mighty Networks

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To do so, follow these easy steps:

• Click here to find my podcast in iTunes

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THANK YOU for helping to support & promote The Good Food CFO! I look forward to connecting with you again soon.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program and host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

Something I hear from food business owners is that they feel like they need to pay off their credit card bills in full every month, even if doing so is going to result in not having enough cash in the business to pay for operations… requiring them to continue using the credit card… eventually paying off all or a big chunk of the debt, and then being low on cash and having to rely on the card again.

We call this the DEBT CYCLE.

So what can you do to prevent this cycle and begin moving toward becoming a cash-based business?

Release the need to pay off your credit card(s) immediately, and Create a Plan.

Get clear on where you are financially right now, what is realistic in terms of servicing or paying down your debt, and create a plan to first stop utilizing the credit card for business purchases, and then for paying down the debit within a stated time frame.

Here are a few tips:

DETERMINE IF YOU HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO COVER YOUR MONTHLY DEBT SERVICE PAYMENTS

We're talking about JUST the minimum payments you must make to keep your account(s) current.

Total them up and subtract the amount from your average monthly Income - is the amount of income remaining enough cash for you to cover your average monthly expenses?

If the answer is YES - make the monthly minimum payments and begin operating your business on a cash basis - not utilizing the credit card any further for the time being.

The Profit First strategy can be really helpful here - encouraging you to allocate or set aside a set percentage of your Income to Debt Service each month. The allocation should cover your minimum payments in your slow months, and then during your higher sales months will cover the minimum payment and then some, helping you to pay DOWN the debt - not just service it. This is the strategy that I use and recommend for my clients.

If the answer is NO, you DON’T have enough cash left to cover your operating expenses - you’ve got to identify where you can cut costs immediately, and then where you can create efficiencies to reduce costs further.

YES - growing sales can help, but that is an external factor and before focusing on that, it’s important to be sure the internal factors that you CAN control are taken care of.

Here are the STEPS TO REDUCE SPENDING SO YOU CAN COVER YOUR MONTHLY DEBT PAYMENTS:

1. Identify What you DON’T NEED to operate successfully and eliminate the expense.
   Music subscriptions, subscriptions to tools or services you don’t use, memberships, etc.

2. Review your subscriptions and the service level for each.
   Where are you paying for more than you need or more than you’re actually utilizing? Lower your subscription level to cut costs. I usually review this quarterly as so much can change in just 3 months!

3. Take a deeper dive into your business and identify WHERE you may focus your attention to improve physical and financial efficiencies.
   

I talk a lot about the Profit Assessment because it is a GREAT tool for seeing your business finances in a new light and determining what area of your business is not working FOR YOU.

For example, your COGS may be high and limiting the amount of cash you have in your business. Maybe your Gross Profit aka Real Revenue is great, but your Labor Costs are high -- this is insightful information to help you take action and become more financially sustainable.

Financial sustainability doesn’t happen overnight, but with consistent action in the right parts of your business you’ll get there.
And when you’ve got the trifecta -- controlled costs, financial efficiency AND growing sales, you are surely on your way to operational profitability, business profitability and paying down your debt!

Lastly, for those of you implementing Profit First in Your Food Business, Each quarter take 99% of the funds in your Profit Account and use it to pay down your debt. That last 1% is for you! No matter what it amounts to, enjoy it!

When your debt is paid off, the profit account goes from being a debt-busting tool to a the source of your quarterly dividend.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

The goal of profit first is NOT to cut costs simply for the sake of profits - the goal is to build a financially sustainable business.

cutting costs abruptly can negatively affect your product quality, customer service, and employee attitudes.

By implementing Profit First in your food business, you can reduce costs in a way that will positively impact your business, and in this video I’m sharing the steps for doing so.

Discover how to become a Financially Sustainable and Profitable Good Food Business!

I’m here to support you - so join us in the Profitable Food Business Community to share your questions.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Profit First Certified Food Business Financial Consultant and Coach with over 8 years of food industry experience. She received her MBA from Rollins College, and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

Can I Still Use Credit Cards, Loans and Investment if I implement Profit First?

Yes! IF you are someone who loves credit card points and wants to pay operating costs with your card and pay it off every month, do it!

If you’ve built a financially efficient business and can see exactly where and how investment or loan money will help you grow top and bottom line numbers do it!

Again, Profit First is a framework and a cash management strategy.  When you Know Your Numbers and are informed about the financial decisions that you are making, you can do whatever you think is right for you and your business.

What I don’t recommend is seeking a loan, line of credit or funding for a business that is NOT set up for financial sustainability - where you don’t know the exact impact and outcomes of utilizing those funds or how you’ll pay them back.  

Discover how to become a Financially Sustainable and Profitable Good Food Business!

I’m here to support you - so join us in the Profitable Food Business Community to share your questions.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Profit First Certified Food Business Financial Consultant and Coach with over 8 years of food industry experience. She received her MBA from Rollins College, and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

Should I grow first, THEN focus on Financial Sustainability and Profitability?

The simple answer is NO.

You’ve got to build a financially sustainable business from the INSIDE, and once that’s done growing sales WILL produce more profits -- but if you haven’t yet done that work, MORE SALES can equal BIGGER Losses. 

I saw this happen in my own food business, and it’s often the catalyst for people reaching out to me for Consulting + Coaching Services.  

The most extreme example I’ve seen first hand was a business that did a Facebook Promotion and her online sales soared to over $50,000 in a single month.  That same month she experienced over $30,000 in LOSSES because her business was not structured to support those sales and she hadn’t done the work to understand what shipping offer and discount level would work for her business.  

I see less extreme versions of this all of the time, where businesses are slowly and steadily growing revenue, but their profits are stagnant, or declining — I share a few examples in the Profit Assessment Online Course.

I want business owners to stop believing that losing money is “how it is” when you’re a young business and that more sales will solve the problem.

Taking the steps to understand your financials, set the right goals for your business, and implementing Profit First strategies, if it’s a good fit for your business, will help you become financially efficient and ensure that as your sales grow your profits do too. 

Discover how to become a Financially Sustainable and Profitable Good Food Business!

I’m here to support you - so join us in the Profitable Food Business Community to share your questions.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Profit First Certified Food Business Financial Consultant and Coach with over 8 years of food industry experience. She received her MBA from Rollins College, and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

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Focusing on profits within your food business is vital and not just because you’re a business, but because you’re a Good Food Business.

I know that some of you reading this might be thinking, or saying out loud, “We’re a mission-driven business, we’re not focused on Profit!”

I hear you, I felt the same way when I owned my food business.  But here’s the deal, if you want to achieve the mission of your business long-term you have GOT to be financially sustainable and profitable. 

Profits are the funds that you’ll use to invest in growth, efficiencies and other improvements. Maybe you’ll use profit funds to develop the new product you’ve been dreaming of.  Or perhaps it’s your goal to donate a portion of your profits to a charity.  Maybe you’ll celebrate with that money, or maybe you’ll do what I do and do a little bit of all of it, PLUS take a share for yourself and offer a profit-share with your employees. 

You started a business to do good, create change, earn a living doing something you love... No matter what your WHY is, Financial Sustainability and Profitability ensures that it becomes and remains a reality.

Do not be ashamed of profitability, do not be ashamed of wanting to make money.  If you’re struggling with this, if you’re having strong feelings right now, I recommend you go back and listen to The Good Food CFO Podcast Episode 06 with Caroline Snyder of Verdi Advising, I encourage you to read “We Should all Be Millionaires” by Rachel Rodgers  or “You’re a Badass at Making Money” by Jen Sincero, and listen to The Good Food CFO Podcast Episode 20: Profit First:: Will it Work For Your Good Food Business?

These will all help you along the journey of eliminating the guilt and limiting beliefs you have around money and financial success. 

Doing this work is a great gift to yourself and your community.

Discover how to become a Financially Sustainable and Profitable Good Food Business!

I’m here to support you - so join us in the Profitable Food Business Community to share your questions.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Profit First Certified Food Business Financial Consultant and Coach with over 8 years of food industry experience. She received her MBA from Rollins College, and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

“Setting your prices to achieve Product Profitability does not guarantee that you’ll achieve Business Profitability.”

If there is one critical concept that I want every food + beverage business owner to know, understand and accept this year, it’s the one I’ve written above. 

I’ve talked about it on The Good Food CFO podcast, The Real Food Brands podcast, The Food Biz Wiz podcast and even on a few webinars like the one I did with WeStock.

We’ve been misled on how best to approach our pricing. 

I got it wrong in my food business...

And when businesses get it wrong they can hit or exceed their sales goals but struggle to achieve profitability and they aren’t sure why.  When the cause goes unresolved or the source of the problem is unidentified, losses start to mount and the result can be the closure of the business.

So how do you ensure that you’re pricing your products for BUSINESS profitability? 

Follow my 3 rules for pricing:

1. Don’t calculate your prices using your per unit labor cost

2. You CAN’T successfully price your products in a vacuum

3. You CAN price your product with a simple formula, and your target ingredient cost %

Ready to learn more and get your products priced right? 

Click here to listen to The Good Food CFO podcast. 

Watch the video version of the podcast on YouTube, complete with helpful slides. 

I’m here to support you - so join us in the Profitable Food Business Community to share your questions.

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

In a past video post, I’ve talked about the big AH-HA moments, discoveries + breakthroughs that Food biz owners have when they look at their Food Costs as a % of revenue, rather than as a simple dollar amount. 

It’s a small change in HOW you look at your business that can have a BIG impact. 

If that has you wondering...

• Why is my Food Cost PERCENTAGE so important? 

• What Food Cost % should I be aiming for? 

• HOW do I lower my food costs? 

You’re not alone!
Here are the answers to these very common questions.

1. Why is Your Food Cost percentage So important? 

Your Food Cost percentage tells you how much of every revenue dollar gets spent on making and selling your product.  

It should be steady month to month and NOT change based on how much or how little you produce and sell.  

It is a KEY factor in building a financially sustainable and profitable food business. 

2. What Food Cost % Should You Be Aiming for? 

As always, there is no one-size-fits-all answer.  

Finding the Food Cost % that will help you price your products right and create long-term financial sustainability + profitability takes an hour or so to iron out and requires looking at your whole business. I’ll touch on that more on that in a future blog post, BUT here are the basics:

Your Food Cost % + Labor Cost % + Operating Cost % MUST consistently total less than 100% to have a profitable business.  

If it totals 100% or more, even if it only happens some of the time…  You need to set and achieve new, lower cost targets to bring that total down.

What do You need to lower your Food Cost % to, to be profitable or improve profitability?  Start there! 

3. How Do You Lower Your Food Costs? 

The first step is to identify the cause(s) of your high food costs:

• Do you have products that are priced too low?

• Ingredient costs that are too high?

• Is there over-purchasing / inefficient ordering happening in your biz?

Once you’ve identified this, you can get to work fixing it and start seeing financial shifts. 

Remember, your sales are never the cause of high food costs, it’s your job to get and keep your food costs under control.

Not sure what your food cost percentage is? Need some helping understanding the numbers of our business?

Download the free Profitability Roadmap!

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

I love time-saving apps and tools. 
I am in full support of efficient systems. 
But...

If what you are doing now isn’t creating a profitable outcome…
Doing it more efficiently is only going to get you the same outcome faster.

YES, Implementing tools + systems are a BIG part of how I help business owners achieve their profit goals.
But it’s the FINANCIAL STRATEGY that matters the most. 

Without a clear set of goals + a strategy for reaching them
tools can ONLY help you be more efficient, not more profitable. 

In this video I’m sharing:

• The 2 things you MUST do before shopping for tools, apps or software

• My ‘Before You Buy’ Checklist

If you’re thinking about making a software purchase be sure to watch. 
If you recently made a purchase and are having buyer's remorse, there is value in this information for you too! 

Looking for low-cost helpful tools to build your profitable food business?

Checkout our Financial Success Toolkit and be sure to visit the Tools + Resources page for more of our favorites!

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

Did you know that in January 2020 I transitioned from project-based work to 12-month programs? 

The decision came after working with several clients in 2018 and REALLY wanting to stay connected to them, to their progress and their business outcomes.  I had a hunch that long-term working relationships could produce better results (and that I’d like that type of work better too). In 2019 I continued my project work, and started beta-testing 12-month programs/services. 

The longer programs allowed for consistent check-ins, accountability and support that produced better financial and business outcomes for my clients, and gave them confidence around their numbers and decision making that simply couldn’t come with shorter project-based work.

In December 2019 I made it official and announced the new service. Two business owners signed on right away and worked with me monthly throughout the year. 

Additionally, in late February, our first member began the Financial Success Formula Program. 

Last week I compared the 2019 vs. 2020 financial outcomes for these 3 businesses, and… 

The results are pretty incredible! 

Some facts about the businesses:

1. 1 is a CPG brand utilizing a co-packer, 2 are food producers selling wholesale and direct to consumer

2. They are all young brands with 2019 annual sales between $60,000 - $140,000

3. 1 producer had consistent revenue across both years, the other two businesses had revenue growth of $95k and $172k.

4. ALL businesses had individual profit margin increases of 18% or more! 

The Stats! 

Average Revenue Increase 2019-2020 across all three businesses: $89,120

Average Year over Year Revenue Increase: 86.7%

Average Reduction in Cost of Goods Sold: 10% 
(from 48.64%-38.18%)

Average Profit Dollars earned:
2019: -$1,080.78
2020: $52,582.25

Average Profit Margin:
2019: -3.09%
2020: 23.80%

Average Year over Year Profit Margin Increase: 26.88%

I am looking forward to tallying new data each month as additional members complete their 12-month programs!

An important note:

2020 was not without its hardships, and Sarah Delevan Consulting saw clients and members struggle due to Covid-related restrictions and the harsh effects of the wildfires in Northern California.  A few members of our community closed their doors, moved their families, and paused to sort out IF and when they could return to business and what that business would look like. 

So much of what happened last year was out of their control, and it’s important to me that we acknowledge that as well as celebrate the successes of these three business owners.  

This data provided within this post is based on three business owners that actively worked with us monthly throughout 2020. 

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years of working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program as well as the host of The Good Food CFO Podcast. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.

I get excited when business owners ask “when is the right time to start paying myself?” because it means you’re actually thinking about it!

Many founders launch their food business with the expectation and belief that they will go unpaid for at least a year and that’s just the way it’s supposed to be.

Most go unpaid for much longer and have no plan in place for when, how or how much they’ll pay themselves in the future.
They simply aren’t thinking about paying themselves - even if they want to, the belief that they shouldn't or can’t, prevents them from really looking into it and taking action.

Does that sound like you? (It was 100% me, about 8 years ago)

One of my top priorities as a financial consultant is getting food biz owners paid! because you don’t truly have a financially sustainable or profitable business unless you’re paying yourself a fair wage.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to this, but here are a few options to consider:

1. Pay yourself the same hourly rate as your employees.

   This is the approach I take in my business. It forces me to pay myself for my time each week and ensures that there is money left over in the business each month for reinvestment, growth, etc. I sweeten the deal by setting a monthly profit goal - if we achieve it I pay myself a bonus + my team gets one too!

2. SEE how paying yourself your dream salary will affect your business Financially. You may be surprised to find that you CAN afford your dream salary now!

   If you can’t afford that dream salary just yet, how many more units per month would you need to sell, or what other costs could you cut to make it a reality?
   
   If you can afford 50% or some other portion of your dream salary now start there. Then create a plan to increase sales or reduce costs, and increase your salary when you achieve certain milestones.

3. Record an In-Kind Donation to your business for your unpaid time

   If you can’t pay yourself for your time just yet, or can only pay yourself a little bit (there was a point in my food biz where I paid myself just $100/week), Financial Coach Caroline Snyder of Verdi Advising recommends tracking your unpaid time as an In-Kind donation to your business.
   
   Snyder agrees that it’s OK to not pay yourself so long as you have a plan in place for how and when you will start. And she says that tracking your time as an In-Kind donation (although it doesn’t actually affect your business financials) helps you see the value you’re giving to your business each month.

Do you have a method for paying yourself, or tracking your time that you’d like to share?

Join us in the Profitable Food Business Community and tell us all about it!

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About the Author: Sarah Delevan is a Food Business Financial Coach and Consultant with over 7 years working in the food industry. She received her MBA from Rollins College and In 2017 she founded Sarah Delevan Consulting based in Los Angeles, CA and serving clients across the United States. She is the creator of the Financial Success Formula and the founder of the Profitable Food Business program. To learn more about Sarah and opportunities to grow a more profitable food business Click Here.