Have you heard business coaches say things like… 

“Cutting out your lattes and brunch isn’t gonna suddenly increase your savings account. Instead, I want you to recognize your ability to earn a whole heck of a lot more.”

It’s true that cutting out lattes won’t suddenly increase your savings… but cutting out those lattes (like getting rid of unnecessary expenses in your business) might be a good idea if you’re struggling with cash flow. 

For the record - I love business coaches, and have one of my own. But as a financial consultant, I want to assure you that understanding + controlling expenses, and striving to earn more revenue, are not mutually exclusive

We've been taught to believe that bigger is better, that selling more is the main objective, and that at a certain point all that revenue WILL result in profits. But it's simply not true.

If your million dollar business has million dollar expenses, hitting that sales goal doesn’t mean anything.

Stories of start-ups with tons of funding and BIG sales numbers that never turned a profit are not uncommon.  Emerging food businesses forced to close their doors despite having amazing products + ravenous fans is the primary reason I do this work! 

As CPA Melissa Houston and I discussed in Episode 2 of The Good Food CFO Podcast…

“A 1% savings in one area of your business

can amount to a lot of dollars on your profit line... 

When you know that, and you can implement a small change that creates that 1% savings, the results can be really, really big.  Making small financial changes can really add up!” 

BIG revenue does not mean business longevity. 
Consistent profitability + financial sustainability does.
And that comes from understanding and controlling your costs now, and as you grow. 

If you’re ready to take the next steps toward understanding your numbers, gaining confidence in your financial decision making, and achieving consistent profitability we have tools + resources to help you do it.

1. The FREE Profitability Roadmap will help ensure that you’ve got a solid financial foundation in place.

2. The Financial Success Formula Program will help you understand your business financials, see the road to profitability, and create the Profit Plan that will help you get there.

And of course, the Profitable Food Business Community is always open! 

---

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 work of building a successful food business isn’t glamorous…

Talking about numbers isn’t sexy... 
Photos of spreadsheets on instagram don’t garner a lot of attention...
The work that I ask business owners to do is not glamorous, but it’s required to build a profitable business.  

I know it’s fun to think about branding + marketing, to interact with your customers, to score a new wholesale account. And all of those things are important for a successful food business!

But the reality is that you can’t achieve your long-term business goals without financial sustainability + profitability. 

I meet food brands all the time that have stellar sales months… matched by BIG losses.  
I don’t want that for you!

---

if we’re going to change our food industry, we’ve got to build sustainable good food businesses. 

WE CAN build financially sustainable businesses By cultivating a mindset of CONSISTENTLY reviewing your data, correctly identifying inconsistencies, and creating strategies to correct them.

---

The more you get acquainted with this mindset, the easier the work becomes, and the less stress you have around the money in your business.
It’s not glamorous, but it’s how you reach your goals. 
Ready to get started? 

Download the free profitability roadmap, join the Free Profitable Food Business Community, and let’s go!

---

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.

You don’t need to recipe cost to build a profitable food business,
but you should…

I know recipe costing takes time... 
that your food costs may be “fine”... 
and that you can be profitable without taking this step. 

Like I said… You don’t NEED to Recipe Cost.  
BUT YOU SHOULD.

The reason is simple: You can ONLY achieve maximum profitability if ALL of your products are priced right.

that means that your products are not just priced for product profitability, but for business profitability. 

Need a reminder on how to price your products for business profitability?

Step 1: Calculate the true ingredient costs to produce your products 
Step 2: Know Your target Food Cost %
Step 3: Bring these two values together to find your perfect price! 

(Step 4: throw away any info you have that tells you to include labor, rent, or ANYTHING else. It doesn’t have to be so complicated!)

True pricing Story...

Early on in my career as a Buyer, we were hitting our target of 30% food costs consistently, and were profitable most months. So my boss didn’t think recipe costing was necessary…

I did it anyway and found that our top-selling items were COSTING US MONEY every time we sold them.  

Getting the products priced right saved us thousands, lowered our overall food cost % and helped us become more profitable.

If you struggle with cash flow or are unsure how to improve your profitability and haven’t done recipe costing, I strongly suggest it. 

There is a lot of confusing, complicated info out there for calculating your product costs.  Trust the above steps and keep it simple.  

You can use a basic spreadsheet, or access the tools I’ve developed specifically for local, seasonal, good food businesses inside the Financial Success Formula program.   Enrollment is always open - click here to learn more! 

---

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.