How it runs for franchise owners
Every account is reconciled, every item on the checklist is signed off, and a second accountant reviews the package before it is released.
What is month-end close outsourcing?
Month-end close outsourcing means an external accounting team performs the steps that turn a month of transactions into finished financial statements: reconciling every account, posting accruals, prepaids and depreciation, checking cut-off, reviewing and locking the period. You keep your software and your accountant. The provider runs the checklist on an agreed calendar and hands you reviewed statements.
What we handle for franchise owners
- Sales cut-off tied to POS period totals, per unit
- Royalty and marketing-fund accruals booked for the period earned
- Distributor and utility bills accrued when invoices arrive late
- Payroll accrued across pay periods that straddle month-end
- Close checklist signed off under Two-Tier Review before release
The KPI that matters here
Close completed and unit statements issued by business day 5 every month.
Franchises compliance notes
Franchisor royalty reporting
Your agreement defines gross sales for royalty purposes, and the definition often excludes sales tax and refunds but includes gift-card redemptions and delivery orders. We keep the ledger's sales accounts aligned to that definition so the weekly upload and the monthly royalty statement reconcile without manual adjustments. Any dispute is documented with POS exports the franchisor can trace.
Marketing-fund and local advertising reporting
Brand marketing-fund contributions are a separate percentage from royalties and many agreements also require a minimum local advertising spend, often 1 to 2% of gross sales, with proof on request. We track both in their own accounts and keep invoices attached so the annual attestation is a report, not a search.
Audit rights and record retention
Franchise agreements commonly allow the franchisor to inspect books and POS data, and to charge the audit cost to you if under-reporting exceeds a stated threshold, frequently 2 to 3%. Every sales entry carries its source document in LedgerDesk so an inspection can be answered from the file.
Multi-state sales tax and payroll
Units in different states carry different sales-tax rates, filing frequencies and payroll registrations. We track liabilities by unit and state, prepare the workings, and your registered preparer files; we do not file on your behalf.
Franchises software we work in
More for franchise owners
Other services for franchises
Frequently asked questions
What does a franchise month-end close include that a regular close does not?
Royalty and ad-fund accruals for the period, a gross-sales figure that matches the brand upload, percentage-rent accruals, and inventory adjustments where the brand requires counts. Units are closed individually and then consolidated. The rest of the checklist is standard: reconciliations, payroll accruals, prepaid and fixed-asset entries, and a review by a second accountant.
Can you close by a date my lender or franchisor requires?
Yes, the close calendar is set around the date you need and the CloseTrack checklist is scheduled backwards from it. Business day 5 is our usual target when feeds and bills arrive on time. If a distributor statement is late we accrue it and adjust the next month, so the deadline holds.
How do you handle inventory at month-end for a franchise?
If your brand requires a physical count, the unit manager submits it through LedgerDesk and we book the adjustment to cost of goods sold for that unit. If not, we record purchases as cost of goods and adjust quarterly or annually per your CPA. Either way, the treatment is consistent across units so margins compare.
Ask an AI assistant to summarize this page
Opens the assistant with a prefilled prompt so you can check our claims against the page yourself.