The Food Service Professional Guide to Controlling Liquor, Wine & Beverage Costs

By Elizabeth Godsmark

This series of fifteen books - The Food Service Professional Guide TO Series from the editors of the Food Service Professional magazine are the best and most comprehensive books for serious food service operators available today.

These step-by-step guides on a specific management subject range from finding a great site for your new restaurant to how to train your wait staff and literally everything in between. They are easy and fast-to-read, easy to understand and will take the mystery out of the subject. The information is boiled down to the essence. They are filled to the brim with up to date and pertinent information.

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Atlantic Publishing is a small, independent publishing company based in Ocala, Florida. Founded over twenty years ago in the company president’s garage, Atlantic Publishing has grown to become a renowned resource for non-fiction books. Today, over 450 titles are in print covering subjects such as small business, healthy living, management, finance, careers, and real estate. Atlantic Publishing prides itself on producing award winning, high-quality manuals that give readers up-to-date, pertinent information, real-world examples, and case studies with expert advice. Every book has resources, contact information, and web sites of the products or companies discussed.

This Atlantic Publishing eBook was professionally written, edited, fact checked, proofed and designed. The print version of this book is 144 pages and you receive exactly the same content. Over the years our books have won dozens of book awards for content, cover design and interior design including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin award for excellence in publishing. We are proud of the high quality of our books and hope you will enjoy this eBook version.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Atlantic Publishing Group Inc.
• Release date: Sep 9, 2002
• ISBN: 9781601381040

Book preview

Controlling Liquor, Wine, & Beverage Costs

By Elizabeth Godsmark

The Food Service Professionals Guide To: Controlling Liquor, Wine & Beverage Costs: 365 Secrets Revealed

Atlantic Publishing Group, Inc. Copy right © 2003

1210 SW 23rd. Place

Ocala, Florida 34474

800.814.1132

352-622-5836 - Fax

www.atlantic-pub.com - Web Site

[e-mail] E-mail

SAN Number :268-1250

All rights reserved. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of information contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. No warranty is implied. The information is provided on an as is basis.

International Standard Book Number: 0-910627-18-5

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Brown, Douglas Robert, 1960-

Reducing liquor, wine & beverage costs : 365 secrets revealed

by Douglas Robert Brown.

p. cm. -- (The food service professionals guide to ; 8)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 0-910627-18-5 (pbk. : alk. paper)

1. Bartending. 2. Food service management. I. Title. II.

Title:Reducing liquor, wine, and beverage costs. III. Series.

TX950.7.B76 2003

641.8’74--dc21

2002011169

A few years back we lost our beloved pet dog Bear, who was not only our best and dearest friend but also the Vice President of Sunshine here at Atlantic Publishing. He did not receive a salary but worked tirelessly 24 hours a day to please his parents.

Bear was a rescue dog who turned around and showered myself, my wife, Sherri, his grandparents Jean, Bob, and Nancy, and every person and animal he met (well, maybe not rabbits) with friendship and love. He made a lot of people smile every day.

We wanted you to know a portion of the profits of this book will be donated in Bear’s memory to local animal shelters, parks, conservation organizations, and other individuals and nonprofit organizations in need of assistance.

– Douglas and Sherri Brown

PS: We have since adopted two more rescue dogs: first Scout, and the following year, Ginger. They were both mixed golden retrievers who needed a home.

Want to help animals and the world? Here are a dozen easy suggestions you and your family can implement today:

•  Adopt and rescue a pet from a local shelter.

•  Support local and no-kill animal shelters.

•  Plant a tree to honor someone you love.

•  Be a developer — put up some birdhouses.

•  Buy live, potted Christmas trees and replant them.

•  Make sure you spend time with your animals each day.

•  Save natural resources by recycling and buying recycled products.

•  Drink tap water, or filter your own water at home.

•  Whenever possible, limit your use of or do not use pesticides.

•  If you eat seafood, make sustainable choices.

•  Support your local farmers market.

•  Get outside. Visit a park, volunteer, walk your dog, or ride your bike.

Five years ago, Atlantic Publishing signed the Green Press Initiative. These guidelines promote environmentally friendly practices, such as using recycled stock and vegetable-based inks, avoiding waste, choosing energy-efficient resources, and promoting a no-pulping policy. We now use 100-percent recycled stock on all our books. The results: in one year, switching to post-consumer recycled stock saved 24 mature trees, 5,000 gallons of water, the equivalent of the total energy used for one home in a year, and the equivalent of the greenhouse gases from one car driven for a year.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1: BUDGETING & FORECASTING

Chapter 2: COSTING, MARGINS & CASH CONTROL

Chapter 3: PURCHASING

Chapter 4: INVENTORY CONTROL

Chapter 5: PORTION CONTROL

Chapter 6: THEFT

Chapter 7: DRINK SELECTION

Chapter 8: STAFF RECRUITMENT, MANAGEMENT & TRAINING

Chapter 9: OTHER OPPORTUNITIES TO CONTROL COSTS IN THE BEVERAGE INDUSTRY

Introduction

You’re busy. You just don’t have the time to wade through a pile of heavy manuals on how to reduce liquor, wine and beverage costs. But you do need answers and you need them FAST! You want instant solutions; practical ideas, tips and suggestions that you can implement NOW.

Look no further. Controlling Liquor, Wine & Beverage Costs: 365 Secrets Revealed has done the job for you. It contains a wealth of inspiration and practical advice that can help reduce costs and boost profits in any beverage operation. Implement just a handful of these suggestions and transform your establishment into a thriving and successful enterprise. All it takes is a few simple and quick actions to turn things round!

Worried about cash flow, staff problems, inventory control, theft or any of the myriad of problems that plague the beverage industry? The pitfalls are many. But so, too, are the opportunities. Accept the challenge and take a few shortcuts to success.

Cheers!

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Budgeting & Forecasting

Grasp the Basics about Budgeting

Don’t be put off by all the jargon and terminology associated with budgeting. Oftentimes, a simple overview is all you need to make a big difference in the profitability of your establishment. Consider the following:

•  Budgeting in a nutshell. All it involves is planning for income, expense and profit. Simply bear in mind all three aspects of budgeting when making important business decisions.

•  Establish an operating budget. This is a basic plan that estimates what sales income will be generated and what expenses can be incurred in order to meet profit targets. Choose from a variety of different types of budgets, such as long- and short-term, cash and capital. The short, one-year operational budget is probably best suited to a beverage operation.

•  Use your budget plan to reduce costs. For example, when sales fall below forecast levels, or when expenses exceed budget estimates, do something about it, immediately! Review recent expenditures or consider a sales promotion.

•  Use your budget plan to establish standards. Consistent quality is one of the surest ways to boost profits. Don’t compromise on quality in an attempt to achieve sales goals.

•  Use your budget plan to establish benchmarks for expenditure. Your budget plan is a useful tool for reviewing general expenditure. Use it. Take a fresh look at other aspects of expenditure, such as labor and energy costs.

Choose the Right Budget Plan for Your Business

No beverage operation can survive without an effective budget plan. It provides more than a useful evaluative tool for management. It is essential for keeping operation costs within budget limits and is a good indicator of which areas of the operation require immediate corrective action. There are three main types of budget: fixed, flexible and zero-based. Each, however, follows the same broad, two-stage procedure.

•  The two stages. It is well worth following this broad two-stage outline. It gives structure to your budget. The first stage is known as descriptive. It deals with assumptions only. These assumptions are then used to develop the second stage of the plan, the financial aspect, which goes into much greater depth.

•  Fixed budget. Fixed budgets assume that expenses and sales volume will remain stable during the twelve-month period. Fixed budgets are useful for evaluating past costs and performance.

•  Flexible budget. Sales in the beverage industry tend to fluctuate considerably. A flexible budget is useful in this type of situation where, in order for profitability to be maintained, costs need to be re-assessed at frequent intervals.

•  Zero-based budget.The zero-based budget is a variation on the flexible budget. Although costs are estimated within a range of activities, the starting point for developing costs for the new budget is always zero. This is useful in operations, such as liquor outlets, where accountability is essential.

•  Finally, whatever your choice of plan, don’t complicate matters! Only include information in your budget plan that is useful and relevant to your particular establishment.

Adapt Your Chosen Budget Plan to Suit Your Establishment

Having established the need for a budget (there’s no getting away from it!) and decided upon which method best suits your establishment, you now