A Problem for the Future

Sure enough, after further rummaging around, Jade found some receipts on a shelf in the kitchen. She had found them under several items, so it seemed that she had placed them there, out of the way, when she was in a hurry, and someone had placed those items on top of the receipts without noticing them.

'I can be so forgetful some times. Why do I feel so together one moment and so hopeless the next?'

When Jade returned to the office, she finished with the books and was glad to see that the numbers finally added up.

'That's a relief. There's nothing missing or anything of the sort. Considering that we did not have a proper window for a while, and quite a number of people were coming in and out of the shop, I'm pleased that nothing "went missing".'

However, Jade's satisfaction only lasted a moment before she looked at the numbers again. 'Wait, this is no time to relax—the cafe is barely in the black, only making a slight profit.'

Although they owned the business, Jade and Bernie still took a wage out of the cafe. So, the cafe had three members of staff, rent, stock, and other miscellaneous costs to pay for. Following that, money had to be put into improving and promoting the business. Only after all that was paid for would Bernie and Jade see any money, but currently, they were not seeing any.

'Hmm… I know our margins are low, but I feel charging more for a simple coffee would be extortionate! I should discuss this with Bernie. After all, he did come up with that new promotion idea—maybe he'll have a solution for this.

'Who knows, maybe the sets promotion will be hit? Then all my worrying will have been for nothing.'

While Jade thought that consciously, deep down, she knew that if they wanted to make the business a viable source of income for the two of them, they would have to increase the profit stream somewhere. After all, a waitress' income was not high—Jade had bet her future on the cafe when she bought it out.

…

After explaining the situation, a frown emerged on Bernie's forehead too.

"I understand. For now, this is 'good enough', but for the cafe to still be here in five, ten, or even twenty years, we'll need to boost sales."

"Exactly." Jade nodded at Bernie's concise analysis.

Ting ding!

Someone had entered the store, but Jade did not even hear them. Instead, she was focused on the conversation with Bernie.

"While promotions like the one you suggested will certainly help, I think we should try to diversify, add more to the business."

"That makes sense, but we're a cafe," Bernie said, "what else can we offer?"

Jade's head dropped. "That's the problem... I haven't thought that far yet."

"Don't worry too much about it for now. I'm sure it will all dovetail." Bernie smiled reassuringly. "If we keep working hard and doing what we can, it will work out."