How do I check a fast food franchise’s sales records before buying?

A quick-service restaurant produces more records than most small businesses, which is helpful. The same sale appears in the till, in the report to the franchisor and in the bank. Your job is to see whether those three agree. Ask for them together, covering the same periods, and ask the seller to walk you through anything that does not line up.

Start with the point-of-sale reports

Ask for reports by day, by daypart and by channel: counter, drive-thru, delivery apps and any online ordering. The pattern tells you more than the total. Look for slow days, seasonal swings and whether a single channel carries the unit. Ask how refunds, voids and discounts are handled, and who is allowed to make them.

Reconcile with the franchisor and the bank

Ask whether the owner reports sales to the franchisor, since those reports set the royalty and advertising contributions. Ask for those reports and the payment records, and compare them with the till. Then match the deposits in the bank statements to the daily sales. A gap is not proof of a problem, but it is a question the seller should be able to answer plainly.

Add delivery payouts and cost reports

Delivery platforms pay out net of their own fees, so gross orders and money received differ. Ask for the payout statements as well as the order reports. Then read the food cost and labour reports, and ask to see the waste log, the inventory counts and the posted schedules. Ask your accountant which figures are recurring and which are one-off, and how to read them.

• POS reports by day, daypart and channel
• Sales reports sent to the franchisor, with royalty and ad-fund payments
• Bank statements matched to daily deposits
• Delivery-app payout statements
• Food cost, waste and labour reports

To judge the system around the unit, see this answer on whether a food franchise is profitable.