How to Track Your Cash Flow & Profitability

We’re going deeper into one of the most important areas: your finances. Because here’s the truth. A brand can have great products, strong marketing, and high sales and still go broke.

Why? Because cash flow is not the same as profit.

💡 Cash Flow vs Profit – The Simple Difference

Think of cash flow as the water in your tank right now. Think of profit as how much water you collected minus what leaked out over time.

You can have profit on paper, but if your cash is stuck in inventory, unpaid invoices, or slow-moving stock, you can’t pay rent or salaries.

How often should we track it? At least every week.

Money moves fast in business. If you only look at your bank account once a month, you’ll always be reacting instead of planning. Weekly tracking gives you early warnings so you can fix problems before they become crises.

Okay. But what to track every week?

Here’s a simple weekly financial dashboard for a clothing brand:

1. Weekly Sales Revenue

• Formula: Total sales for the week (from Shopify, POS, or marketplace reports).

• Example: 320 T-shirts × ₹999 = ₹3,19,680 revenue.

2. Cash Inflows

• All money received this week (online payments, COD settlements, wholesale payments).

• Track separately for: Online store, Marketplace, Offline sales, Wholesale/B2B orders.

3. Cash Outflows

• All money you paid out this week:

• Raw materials (fabric, trims)

• CMT (Cut, Make, Trim) charges

• Salaries

• Marketing spend

• Shipping costs

• Rent, utilities, misc expenses

4. Net Cash Flow

• Formula: Cash Inflows – Cash Outflows

• Positive = you’re adding to your bank balance

• Negative = you’re burning through reserves

5. Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)

• Update per week based on units sold × production cost per unit.

• Example: 320 units × ₹400 = ₹1,28,000 COGS.

6. Gross Profit

• Formula: Revenue – COGS

• Example: ₹3,19,680 – ₹1,28,000 = ₹1,91,680 gross profit.

7. Operating Expenses

• Non-production costs: marketing, salaries, rent, tools, software.

8. Net Profit

• Formula: Gross Profit – Operating Expenses – Taxes.

• This is your real take-home number for the week.

9. Accounts Receivable

• Any pending payments from B2B clients or marketplaces.

• Keep a “Follow-Up List”, so no one delays your cash.

10. Accounts Payable

• Money you owe to vendors, fabric suppliers, or service providers.

Tools to Track Weekly Finances

• Google Sheets or Excel: Create a weekly tracker (simple, customizable).

• Zoho Books / QuickBooks / Tally: Great for automated accounting.

• Shopify Reports: For real-time sales and revenue data.

• Google Data Studio: For visual dashboards, if you want at-a-glance insights.

Why Weekly Tracking Works:

• You’ll know exactly when your marketing spend is paying off.

• You’ll spot slow-moving inventory before it clogs your cash.

• You’ll avoid surprises like “Where did all my money go?”

• You’ll make decisions based on facts, not feelings.

📌 Pro Tip: Always keep 3 months of expenses as a cash reserve. This gives you breathing room in slow seasons or unexpected downturns.