In a world of rising inflation and other global challenges, retailers are working hard to survive and bring operating costs down any way they can. As such, we are seeing more retailers starting to process and handle their cash income in-house. By dealing with their own cash received, from counting to end-of-the-day reconciliation and banking in, retailers are under the false impression that it incurs no expenses and therefore saves costs. However, in reality, this method can often be more expensive (and risky) than outsourcing the service. To understand the reasons behind this, in this blog, we will look at why retailers should outsource their cash handling and cash management.
Unfortunately, in any cash-driven business, the risk of staff mishandling money during cash processing is always present. This includes both human error and outright theft. Even with internal controls in place, such as prompt recording of receipts, keeping cash locked away, making timely deposits, ensuring the person collecting and recording receipts is not the same person as the one making deposits, and generally keeping transfers of cash from one person to another to a minimum, you can never eradicate completely the risk of funds going missing.
Moving cash from your premises to make a deposit is always the riskiest part of cash processing due to the threat of theft. This is especially relevant for small or medium-sized retailers as they have less security, making them an easy target for thieves. Having in-house staff move money not only exposes them to potential violent action but can also expose the business to legal liability. Retailers should also be aware that cash being transited by in-house staff is often not covered by insurance should that money be stolen.
It takes manpower to perform cash management whether it is performed in-house or not. Those valuable hours spent processing cash and then queuing at the bank are a big hidden cost of in-house cash processing, not to mention the time and effort needed to hire, verify (including performing background checks), train and manage staff involved in cash handling.
By outsourcing cash handling to a company such as Guardforce Hong Kong, retailers can mitigate the hidden costs and risks associated with in-house cash processing while enjoying the following benefits:
Given the above reasons, the benefits of outsourcing cash processing and cash management services are clear. Guardforce is a leader in the industry and has been serving Hong Kong for 45 years. For more details on the company and its services, visit their website here.
