Nonprofit Blog

Summary

Restaurants sales continued to lag in 2016 as uncertainty around the U.S. economic and regulatory environments persisted. Overall, restaurant same-store sales were flat last year. This broader stagnation comes as restaurants report lower traffic counts, in part as a result of market saturation, increased menu prices and declining grocery costs. Restaurants also face challenges associated with evolving consumer preferences and market composition, as smaller chains, independents and chef‑driven concepts expand rapidly.

Every business has its good days and its bad days. A distressed company usually shows signs of trouble which are reoccurring and not industry specific. If you recognize the warning signs below in your business or one that you know, acting promptly to identify and implement the right solution can help get the company back on the road to recovery.   

10 Warning Signs: 

1. Income statement related: 

• Losses or lack of profitability
• Collecting A/R 
• Steady rise in A/R on collecting outstanding debt and obligations
• Bad debt increasing

Contractors by their nature and occupation have a need to be in control. Nearly every project includes a struggle to maintain control of costs, safety and quality.

The United States is facing consequences from decades of deferred maintenance and underinvestment in infrastructure. At the same time, available public fund levels for such projects are low and resistance to increased taxation is high.

In the construction industry, most of the day-to-day action takes place in the field. So it’s only natural that contractors are eager to find mobile apps for smartphones and tablets that can help them work better. In fact, Smith & Howard's recent survey of Georgia construction companies shows that 91% of respondents are using iPads or tablets.  

After 10 years in the field, a remodeling contractor had worked on quite a few jobs. Some had been set up as fixed-price contracts and others had been performed on a cost-plus basis. Looking to improve his company’s financial performance, he asked his CPA to review the pros and cons of both formats and to recommend the best approach.

A small business’s ability to track inventory and minimize errors, omissions and fraud depends on the existence of a robust inventory reporting and tracking system. Some small businesses continue to rely on a manual inventory system. Others have begun to computerize their inventory tracking process as the costs of doing so have decreased. While the underlying inventory process may vary, tracking inventory includes the following general elements:

Businesses with low credit scores are unlikely to obtain access to affordable financing. This may seem like a matter of common sense to bankers, but applicants with low credit scores are often surprised when they’re turned down — or offered less favorable terms than expected. Before prospective borrowers submit loan applications, remind them about the importance of establishing and maintaining the highest business credit score possible.

Would you like someone to tell you when there’s substantial doubt that a borrower will be able to continue normal operations over the next year? Fortunately, the going concern assumption underlies all financial reporting done under U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). And, it’s something CPAs evaluate during financial statement audits. Here are a few items they look for during that assessment.