Budgeting small business

By Rabiul Biplop

As sales have not been growing for a long time, a convenience store owner on Partington Avenue, Windsor is finding it difficult to run his business.

Abdul Kader has been running his business for about three years.

“I started my business with about $20,000 and it was the first time I am in this type of business,” said Kader. “In the beginning the business was pretty slow. I bought the store from someone else but as time goes by, people were coming to buy stuff from the store, especially the students, as the store is close to the University of Windsor.”

Kader said his daily sales are about $400 to $600, while monthly sales are around $13,000 to $16,000, which has not grown for a long time. He said he is the only one working for the business and cannot hire anyone. Kader said he is finding it difficult to do everything on his own and if he becomes sick then no one is there to open the store.

His turnover from the business is very low but he said utility bills and rent are about $1,500. When Kader adds up his salary, there is not much left at the end of the month.

“It is difficult to sustain in this business and people tend to go to big stores where they can get most of the stuff in one place,” said Kader. “And that is the reason why small stores are getting closed these days.”

Tax consultant Monsur Elahi said he does the tax and accounts for Kader’s business which is helping Kader a little bit.

Matthew Demers is a financial advisor at Scotiabank in Ambassador Plaza.

“We assess the different clients on the basis of their business plan, their current status of the business, how long they are in the business, what kind of business and many more when giving a loan to a business or advising the owner,” said Demers. “If someone has long term accounts with the bank then it helps for us to asses them more easily than someone who is totally new and a beginner in the business.”