Service
Cash flow, budgets & forecasting
Profitable businesses still run out of cash. This service exists so yours never learns that the hard way.
Profit and cash are different things. A business can show a profitable quarter while the bank account can't cover Friday's payroll, because profit lives on paper and cash lives on a calendar. Understanding how money moves through your business, and when, is what keeps the doors open.
Dave builds that visibility from your real numbers. A budget that reflects how your business spends. A forecast that shows what the next months look like if trends hold. Cash flow tracking that turns 'can we afford this?' from a guess into a lookup.
A local bakery came to him doing well on every metric they watched: strong foot traffic, growing wholesale, more money coming in than going out. They just kept having less cash. The books were clean; nobody was reading them with the owner. The wholesale accounts were on 30 and 60 day terms while ingredients got paid for immediately, so growth pushed cash further out of reach. Tightening terms to 14 days and automating the invoice reminders ended the crunches.
This is where his 25 years of ownership earn their keep. He has managed cash through slow winters at the pub and staffing bets in catering season, and he has been on the wrong end of a 5-figure repair that showed up overnight. When he flags that a decision squeezes your cash in 6 weeks, it comes from having lived it.
This fits when
- The bank balance surprises you, in either direction
- You're deciding on a hire, a lease, or equipment
- Your business is seasonal and the slow months hurt
- You have goals and want the numbers to track your progress
What this includes
- A budget built from how your business really spends
- Rolling forecasts, updated as months close
- Cash flow tracking with the timing made visible
- Scenario answers: 'what happens if we hire in March?'
- Goal tracking: are the books moving toward what you want?
- Straight talk when the numbers say wait
Questions about cash flow, budgets & forecasting
What's the difference between a budget and a forecast?
A budget is the plan: what you intend to earn and spend. A forecast is the projection: what the numbers say will happen if current trends continue. You steer with both, and Dave keeps them honest with your actuals.
Do I need this, or is monthly bookkeeping enough?
Start with clean monthly books; forecasting built on messy numbers is fiction. Once the books are steady, add this when decisions get bigger: hiring, expansion, seasonality, or any stretch where cash timing matters.
How does goal tracking work?
You tell Dave what you want the business to do: revenue, owner pay, a second location. He maps the goal to numbers in the books and reports against it, so every month tells you whether you're moving toward it or away.
Keep reading
Stop avoiding your books.
Book a free consultation. Dave will look at where your books stand, tell you what they need in plain language, and you will know if it's a fit. If you're embarrassed about the state of things, don't be. He's seen worse.