Keeping the cash flowing

Keeping the Cash Flowing

IT’S TOUGH OUT THERE in retailing You read the papers, you walk through the shopping malls, and retailers are closing up or being bought out. It’s been a long time since retailing was so tough. Having personally gone through the extreme highs and the lows in retail, I can now comment on why I feel a lot of retailers are going through hard times.

Whether you are a start-up, small business or a multi-national, cash flow is imperative to business survival. Retailers have gone through a stop-start love affair with cash flow management, by putting out fires when they arise, rather than implementing some simple management tools.

To understand how to manage cash flow, you must fully understand what its components are:

Pay accounts slower — Your suppliers that you have good relationships with should give you some leeway with time frames to pay your accounts. Sometimes we chase the discount that is given for early payments on accounts, but should ask ourselves if that discount will make a major impact to the bottom line.

Remember — don’t mistake profit (the money that you make after you have paid for everything) with cash flow (the money that pays the running and growth of the business).

Reduce inventory — Retailers are generally very good at doing this. But rather than slashing prices, have a look at some other alternatives such as: setting open-to-buy budgets; standardising layouts across stores that maximise sales in core departments; reviewing/implementing a replenishment program; concession arrangements with suppliers; and returning stock that has not sold and replacing it with faster moving lines.

Collect accounts receivable — Because most retailers don’t have large accounts outstanding, this really applies to those who have a corporate section of their business. If you are a retailer that has account systems in place, look at ways to reduce the terms of the account from 30 days down to 14 days, or take deposits.

Reduce costs of goods — Internally this would be your processing in which you receive, store, and distribute stock. When dealing with suppliers, organise strong trading terms, which gives you more margin in the backend for rebates, co-op advertising and return-to-supplier programs.

Increase prices — «You’re insane, you can’t increase prices, we’ll get murdered out there.» Yes, retail is competitive, and the majors have pushed everyone into discounting mode to increase sales. But without freaking you out, have a look at the stock on the floor, and determine which items you have that experience high levels of competition (and keep these prices competitive), and review the items which have little or no competition (and increase the prices of these products).

Stopping the leaks

In understanding what makes up cash flow, retailers should put in strategies to ensure that they maximise their cash position at all times. Here are some simple strategies that can be implemented in your retail business.

Measure stock turns — This is the cost of sales times the cost of goods in stock for a 12-month period. So if you had $1 million of total inventory for the year, and sold $1 million at cost, you would have one stock turn a year. The benchmark is to have four stock turns a year, to maintain a healthy cash flow.

Measure wages as a percentage of sales — Setting a benchmark on wages as a percentage of sales is a very basic, but important, strategy. Remember to factor in all of the add-on costs that are associated to wages such as commissions, payroll tax, superannuation, workers compensation, etc. Also when deciding on your wages percentage target, look at what you can afford within your margins, and also adequate floor coverage, so in order not to miss any sales opportunities.

Measure marketing expense as a percentage of sales — It is amazing how many businesses burn cash on useless or over-marketing expenditure. Some of the budgets are plucked out of the air, with no real understanding of how it impacts cash flow. Then when times get tough, retailers rein in advertising, which compounds on the loss of sales. Set yourself a marketing expenditure budget based on a percentage of sales, so that you don’t overspend, or lose traction when business slows down.

Evaluate your rent expenditure — Evaluate your location strategy on a regular basis, if you can rent cheaper premises without hurting the business, then move. We know how hard it is negotiating rents with a major shopping centre, which is why we focus on location strategy rather than negotiating a cheaper rent.

How to get understood with trikot

How To Get Understood With Trikot?

Because of the fact that you are this well-cultured person, I welcome you and invite you to read carefully my new topic, which will suit you deeply. Winter clothes are different from any other clothes, which may be specified for summer or spring. In winter, all of us are suffered deeply from cold, snow, and rain as well. If you are a person who would like to wear heavy clothes in winter, you can try these lovely trikot products. Trikot can be manufactured from natural wool or even those heavy threads of similar product. The final products are so lovely and must be considered as well.

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If you desire to get your own trikot, feel free to search online, whereas you may find professional websites with lovely models, according to your request. You can select the type ofManchester United Trikot, or even your favored Deutschland Trikot.

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If it doesn’t make you happy then why are you doing it

If It Doesn’t Make You Happy Then Why Are You Doing It?

I’m sure that you have often heard people complaining about their life and about all the things they have to do that they don’t like doing. Perhaps you have even been guilty of this yourself on occasions. Let’s have a look at how you can change those unwanted patterns for good.

Life is full of choices and possibilities. It is impossible to do everything and so we have to have some system for deciding what we do and what we don’t do. This seems like common sense but in reality most people don’t have any system for choosing.

If you don’t have a system for choosing what to do or what not to do then you will end up as the victim of someone else’s system. You have lost control of your life and you have lost control of your potential for happiness.

Notice that in any group of people, whether it is a family, a social group, a workplace, or some form of club or organization, you always find that a few people do most of the work and some people contribute nothing at all, and get away with it.

If you are one of the contributors you may feel that the others are being unfair or lazy. The reality is that you are allowing yourself to be a victim and you can choose to no longer do that.

Here is a 5 step process for regaining control over your quality of life and your own happiness.

Step 1: Establish a Basis for Choosing

If you are going to develop a system then you need to establish a basis on which to evaluate your choices. The basis you use will go a long way toward determining whether you make good choices or bad choices. For example if you choose on the basis of guilt or a sense of responsibility then you are choosing for reasons that don’t necessarily enhance your life and so your choices are unlikely to contribute to your sense of happiness.

A healthy basis for choice making is whether or not the option that you choose will enhance your life and make you happier. If it will then choose it and if it won’t then don’t choose it.

Step 2: Increase Your Options

Even though the world abounds with possibility most people end up making choices between a very limited set of options. Often this set does not include any options that you really want to do. The problem is not that you don’t have good options; the problem is that you are limiting the possible options and by doing that you are not including your good options.

Make a habit of looking outside the box. Make a habit of asking yourself what other possibilities exist. If you take the time to brainstorm options you will be surprised just how many possibilities there really are. Keep brainstorming until your options include a number of possibilities that you like.

Step 5: Make a conscious choice

Once you have established your basis for choosing and brainstormed for more possibilities it is time to actually make a decision and choose. This is where you have to draw on your strength of character and stick to your criteria for choosing.

Resist the temptation to say «yes» to something you don’t want to do just to keep the peace. You are not keeping the peace by doing that. You are severely damaging your own inner peace. When you want to say no then say no. It may take some practice but saying no is the way to get that practice.

Your responsibility is to yourself and your own happiness. That means that in the case of choosing what you do and what you don’t do, your responsibility is to consciously make your choice according to the criteria that you set in step 1.

Step 4: Evaluate the Outcome of Your Choice

No matter what you do in life you should always evaluate your outcome to see what you can learn about the system that you are using. In this case you are evaluating your outcomes to see if they are meeting the objective you set in step 1.

Step 5: Improve Your Choice Making System

If your choices aren’t producing the outcomes that you want then maybe you need to modify the way you are making those choices. Over time you will develop the criteria that work best for you.

A word of warning though. Never sacrifice your long term happiness for the promise of short term peace of mind. The price for that short term peace of mind may be that you fail to achieve true happiness and self fulfillment in your life.

Is your property manager working for you

Is Your Property Manager Working For You? 5 Tips To Getting What You Pay For

With vacancy rates on the rise, it’s more important than ever to keep your units rented. Hiring the right property management company can go a long way towards doing so. But how can you be sure you’ve hired the right person? Following are 5 tips to help you make sure you’re on the right track.

1. Make Your Expectations Clear

One of the biggest mistakes that people make is rushing the process of hiring a property management company. Often they are so desperate to fill the position that they’ll interview only a few candidates before hiring someone. Taking a little extra time to hire the right property management company the first time will save you time and money in the long run.

The good news is that San Diego has a large pool of people to choose from. The first thing you want to look for in a potential property management company is enthusiasm. Remember that they will be the ones selling potential renters on your units. If they can’t even sell you on themselves, it’s unlikely that they’ll do an effective job for your rental units.

A good question to ask during the interview is, What do you like most about San Diego? If they answer with a generic response they are not the right candidate. Hire someone who exudes enthusiasm and who is passionate about the area. They should be familiar with and well informed on the attractions, such as Balboa Park, the numerous sporting options or Seaport Village. The key is to find someone who can speak with confidence and enthusiasm in regards to not just your rental units, but the area in general.

Once you have someone in mind that you think would make the right property management company, be sure to check their references and ask around and see if others in the field have any experience with them. Speaking not only to their previous employers but also with tenants that they worked with previously can be a big help.

When you’ve hired the right property management company, it’s important that you don’t simply hand them the management agreement with any addendums and assume that they’ll read them. Go over each issue individually to ensure that your new property management company understands the specifics of your rental agreement.

2. Stay Involved

While it’s true that you’ve hired a property management company to ease the burden of the day to day issues that spring up, this doesn’t mean that you can simply spend your days in Seaport Village, enjoying the San Diego sun or taking long drives through the mountains. You’ll need to strike a comfortable balance wherein you’ll check up on your properties, and your property management company, from time to time — without going overboard.

A good idea is to stop by your properties at least once a month. You’ll first want to do a drive by to check on the condition of the exterior of the property. Make sure your property looks great from the outside by creating an attractive curb appeal- this will help the property rent faster- the right kind of tenants take pride in where they live and these are types of tenants you want.

You should also take pictures of the interior and exterior of your units when you hire your property management company. This will give you proof of the condition your units were in when you hired them. In addition, have your property management company do a walk through every six months to make sure that there aren’t needed repairs that your tenants aren’t reporting.

3. Be Forward Thinking

It is the job of your property management company to take care of your advertising, but it’s your job to guide the way in which they do so. San Diego is not the type of city where you can simply place an ad in a newspaper once a month and hope someone spots it. Rather, you make sure your property manager is aware of the incredible promotional opportunities which exist on the Internet- if you see online channels your not using, get in touch with your manager and tell them about it.

Give your property management company an example of the type of ads you’d like written and follow up on them. Calling and posing as a potential renter can give you the best view of how your property management company handles these calls.

Check the books regularly. Focus on all the expenses that your property management company is incurring- keep on eye on each line item and expenditure so your property manager thinks twice before spending your money. The more often you check into these things, the less likely your property management company will be to abuse your trust.

4. Don’t Fear Change

San Diego is one of the most sought after locations to live in for many reasons. One of those reasons is that it is on the cusp of new technology and is a trend setting city. This means that you and your property management company must stay on the cutting edge if you are to find new renters and retain them.

One of the best ways to avoid having your San Diego apartment or home sit vacant for weeks or months at a time is to start showing them before your tenants move out. In order to do this, you must be sure that your property management company is keeping an open dialogue with your tenants. This will give you the best opportunity to know when you have tenants that will be vacating and to act pro actively.

You also need to be sure that you’re keeping an eye on the San Diego economy. While you do want to get a fair rate for your rental units, if you know that one of your long term tenants has been laid off or forced to take a pay cut, this is not the time for your property management company to raise their rents. Conversely, an increase in the San Diego Economy means that you should be ready to increase rental rates when the time comes not charging market rates is the worst mistake you can make as it devalues the perception of your property.

Lease increase need to be handled delicately- make sure you’re justified as if you’re not, your tenant will simply move to another location. However, if you instruct your property management company to do so in a fair way, you can relieve some of the tension. Keep your rental raises in line with other San Diego rentals. Tenants who understand that they may pay the same rent elsewhere are less likely to move-m oving is a huge headache and has many costs associated. It’s also a good idea to offer them incentive to stay, such as a bonus for signing a longer lease.

5. Appreciate Your Property Management company

Everyone likes to feel noticed and appreciated for their hard work, and your property management company is no exception. Something as little as a hand written Thank You can go a long way. As a management company, you should be quick to let your property management company know when their performance could be improved and quick to let them know when they’ve done an excellent job as well.

How to improve structural steel shop drawings process

How to Improve Structural Steel Shop Drawings Process?

Structural steel system design involve people from various disciplines – right from architect, structural engineer to steel detailer, fabricator and erection team. Each participant hold different point of view regarding the use of shop drawings and share different liabilities in the whole process. The shop drawings review process usually involves examination of participants who perform various actions.

The Fabricator closely observes each action associated with steelwork in order to decide further proceedings with the shop drawings. The Architect or EOR may approve, ask for revision and resubmission or completely reject shop drawings after having them reviewed.

Major challenges while preparing precision shop drawings are:

• Incomplete contract documents
• Structural members are missing in plan or elevation
• Specific details pertaining to the project is not furnished
• Design drawings and Specifications are in disagreement
• Structural drawings are not matched with mechanical or architectural drawings
• Structural dimensions do not close in the drawings
• Sequencing or connection requirements are not defined
• Non-compliance with industry codes for production of drawings

Recommendations to enhance structural shop drawing process

• Complete contract documents are required
• Engineers and architects should be aware of specific regional and industry standards (such as AISC, CISC, BS codes, etc.) for buildings and bridges
• Specifications must be supplied with the bid drawings
• Bid drawings must be matched with the design drawings
• The EOR must comply and use the AISC Code whenever appropriate
• Complete details should be provided in the structural drawings
• The position and magnitude of uncommon loads should be supplied to joist provider
• Connections should be rendered flexible. Such as shear tabs vs. single angles, welded vs. bolted, etc

For any queries related to Structural shop drawings or shop drawings review email us at info@structuralcaddservices.com

Visit us at http://www.structuralcaddservices.com/shop-drawings.php for more information.