Ever eaten steak in Vietnam?

A few weeks ago I was over in Asia for the Atlas/Alfa Network event. Lots of meetings, networking…and of course a few nights out on the town. One of the evenings we decided to head out to a nice steak house. A bit different to the other cuisine in Ho Chi Minh but we fancied a bit of luxury. And luxury was what we got. There was a big group of us, about 13 or 14, but they found us a table and made us feel welcome. 

Drinks were ordered, wine was flowing, and we were sat there waiting for our food when I noticed something… Behind a glass wall near the back of the restaurant, I could see what looked like rows of meat – big cuts, all lit up like a museum exhibit. I must’ve been staring, because the manager clocked me and came over. “I see you’re admiring my walk-in fridge,” he said. “Would you like a tour inside?” Well, you don’t have to ask me twice.

He took me through – and I’m not joking, it was like a vault. Must’ve been 15ft by 10. Stacked floor to ceiling with steaks. Ribeyes, tomahawks, sirloins, all lined up like they were waiting for their turn on MasterChef. I turned to him and said, “That’s some fridge. Any idea how much you’ve got tied up in here?” Without missing a beat, he goes, “Around $150,000 worth.”

Now, let that sink in… $150k. In steak. Sat in a fridge.

Now don’t get me wrong – the meat was super high-quality, and I’m sure it moves quick. But that’s still a lot of cash to have tied up in stock. But here’s what really stuck with me… Not the sheer volume of steak. Not the amount of cash… but the fact that he knew exactly what he had straight off the bat.  Down to the dollar. No guessing. No ballpark figures. Just total clarity on his numbers.

And it reminded me… In business, cash is everything.  Doesn’t matter if you’re running a restaurant or a freight company, if your money’s tied up and you don’t know where, you’ve got a problem. Plenty of business owners pay this lip service. They’ll say the quote “Cash is King” but if you start to ask hard questions they don’t have the answers.  They don’t really track it accurately. Stock builds up, invoices go unpaid, and before you know it, your cashflow’s gone walkabout.

So here’s a question for you…Do you know where your cash is tied up right now? If I asked you for a number could you give me an accurate figure? How much could you liquidate and how fast? If you can’t answer those questions it might be worth a look in your own version of the fridge…