Weekly Prime Cost Review Agent

Prime cost, food plus labor, decides whether a franchise location makes money, yet most owners only see it in the monthly profit and loss statement, too late to act. Each week this agent reads sales, food purchases, opening and closing inventory counts and payroll. Before calculating, it checks that purchases tie to invoices and labor ties to payroll, and fixes the data if they do not. It calculates prime cost as a percent of sales and compares it with the owner's target and the franchisor benchmark. When prime cost is more than one point over target, it finds the drivers, such as overtime, waste or a supplier price rise, and drafts actions. A large catering order is shown separately so it does not hide a problem. The owner approves any action. Edge case: a missing inventory count blocks the report until it is entered.