7 Tips on How to Prepare for HST and Improve Cash Flow Management

HST is bringing along a number of changes in how business systems in British Columbia work. In the following article Mike Michell, the national director of small business at RBC, gives 7 tips on how to manage this change.

Like it or not, the HST must now be charged on most sales in Ontario and BC. The new tax will affect business systems and more importantly, it may impact your cash flow.

On the positive side, businesses in Ontario and BC should get more money back as the provincial portion can now be claimed as an input tax credit. However, if your business previously charged GST only you will want to make sure that you don’t treat the extra tax collected as new revenue. Remember that you will need to have these funds on hand to remit to the government.

To help you manage the change, consider these seven tips on how to prepare for the HST and improve your cash flow management from Mike Michell, the national director of small business at RBC.

1. Manage your projections. With the HST coming into effect, your cash flow projections may change. Some items that were not taxable before may now be taxable and visa versa. Consider how that will affect your business and plan accordingly.

2.     Update your systems. You will need to ensure that all business systems, including point-of-sale terminals, cash registers, computer software, websites, invoices, sales receipts, purchase orders and expense reports are charging the correct amount of tax.

BC Business Brokers Article in Nanaimo Magazine

Historic Building Restored - Re-opens with New Flair

Former race car driver, now a successful Vancouver Island construction developer Tony Van De Mortel, has finished his latest race. Mortel, the visionary and one of the new owners of Crofton Hotel Pub & Restaurant, recently completed a substantial makeover giving the landmark hotel a new image and a new attitude. Existing since 1902, the building has been restored to its original form with a rustic West Coast theme, including a liquor store with cold beer and wine. Commemorating its reopening on March 14, management continues to stride forward with more improvements, resulting in an ever widening contrast between the “old” image and the slant towards a modern, Oceanside eatery offering fresh, home-made food. The new soon-to-be-launched menu makes a substantial shift away from prepared food to a focus on natural ingredients from island suppliers—an asset for the local economy. Frozen premade burgers are replaced with an in-house recipe; store-bought fries are replaced with hand cut fries made from potatoes from nearby farms.

This remarkable transformation began in the midst of the global recession in the spring of 2009 when Sunbelt connected a synergistic buyer with just the right background and skill set to transform this once-thriving standstill business into a tasteful and viable operation. “Now that the reconstruction has been completed,” says Michael Naprawa, Owner of Sunbelt Business Brokers in Nanaimo, “it confirms our calculated hunch that this buyer was indeed a quality fit. The seller was also very pleased that Sunbelt was able to provide him with an effective exit strategy.” Business Brokerage is all about relationships and connections, and working to ensure the right match for each unique client.

If you are contemplating the sale of your business, or may be considering small business ownership, feel free to give the Sunbelt Nanaimo office a call at 1-877-289-0969 or visit the website at www.bcbusinessbroker.ca