Software & playbooks for Indian SMEs: restaurants, retail, manufacturing & more.https://blog.petpooja.com/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/kirana-store-items-list/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/kirana-store-items-list/What items should a kirana store stock? This kirana store items list covers 110 products in 12 categories, from atta and dal to soap, diapers and agarbatti. Start with the staples families buy every week, then add packaged foods and household goods. What you stock first depends on your street, your budget and how many […]Tue, 03 Nov 2026 20:08:24 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/small-business-ideas-india/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/small-business-ideas-india/What small business can you start in India? This list gives you 22 shop and service businesses. By our estimate, nine open for under ₹5 lakh and five need ₹10 lakh to ₹20 lakh. Most are shops or simple services that small Indian business owners can run themselves. Which idea suits you comes down to […]Fri, 30 Oct 2026 12:45:30 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-business-plan/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-business-plan/How do you create a restaurant business plan? You build it in 9 steps, starting with your concept and ending with how much money you need. Each step answers a question you, or anyone funding you, will ask. A strong plan is not a long one. It is one where the costs come from real […]Fri, 30 Oct 2026 12:35:41 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/tea-stall-business-plan/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/tea-stall-business-plan/How do you create a tea stall business plan? You build it in 6 steps, from choosing your stall and spot to working out how many cups you must sell to cover your costs. For a small stall, the plan does not need to be long. What decides whether the plan works is the cost […]Thu, 29 Oct 2026 13:05:41 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-insights-reports/chef-salary-in-india/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-insights-reports/chef-salary-in-india/Most chef salary figures in India come from job-board listings or self-reported surveys. Both have the same problem: they capture what people say they earn, or what employers advertise, rather than what actually gets paid. So we skipped both and went to the one place where the number has to be real: payroll. The figures […]Tue, 27 Oct 2026 19:30:30 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/e-invoice-software-small-indian-businesses/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/e-invoice-software-small-indian-businesses/What is the best e-invoice software for a small business in India? For most shops, it is the one that makes your GST bill and gets its Invoice Reference Number (IRN) in the same step. The IRN comes from a government-authorised site called the Invoice Registration Portal (IRP), along with a QR code. Which one […]Mon, 26 Oct 2026 19:14:06 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-banner-design-ideas/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-banner-design-ideas/Looking for restaurant banner design ideas? Eight designs cover what most Indian outlets need, and each one does a different job. They are the hero dish, price, festival, thali or combo, new dish, grand opening, scan-to-order and time-slot banners. Which one you need depends on what you want people to do: walk in now, try […]Fri, 23 Oct 2026 20:15:31 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/gst-billing-software-small-business/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/gst-billing-software-small-business/What is the best GST billing software for a small Indian business? It is the one that prints a valid bill every time and carries the right product codes for your turnover. It should also hand your sales data to your accountant without retyping. What decides the right pick for you is your turnover and […]Fri, 23 Oct 2026 19:47:30 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/qsr-vs-casual-dining/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/qsr-vs-casual-dining/QSR vs casual dining: which should you open? A quick service restaurant (QSR) sells a short menu fast, mostly at a counter, and usually costs less to build. A casual dining restaurant sells a sit-down meal with table service, and is built to earn more from each table. What decides it for you is your […]Thu, 22 Oct 2026 19:06:31 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/pub-vs-bar-vs-club-vs-lounge/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/pub-vs-bar-vs-club-vs-lounge/Pub vs bar vs club vs lounge: what is the difference? It is mostly what you sell besides the drink. A bar sells drinks at a counter, and a pub adds food and a long, easy evening. A club adds dancing or a members-only door, and a lounge sells comfort at a higher price. In […]Thu, 22 Oct 2026 18:59:25 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-uttarayan/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-uttarayan/How do you increase restaurant sales during Uttarayan, Gujarat’s kite festival and its name for Makar Sankranti? Sell to the terrace, not the dining room, and take undhiyu pre-orders by the kilo. Sell combos and party food packs for kite flying. Win bulk orders from housing societies. The timing matters because people start looking early. […]Wed, 21 Oct 2026 17:08:17 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-lohri/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-lohri/How do you increase restaurant sales during Lohri, the Punjabi winter festival of the bonfire? Book the parties early, starting with first Lohri parties held for a new baby or a new bride. Host a bonfire night with a set menu, and sell gajak and rewari, the sesame and jaggery sweets of the season. What […]Wed, 21 Oct 2026 16:59:54 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-discount-festive-offers/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-discount-festive-offers/How does GST on discount work for Indian retailers? If the discount is shown on the bill at the time of sale, you charge GST only on the price after the discount. A discount given later is harder. It only lowers your GST if it was agreed at or before the sale and is linked […]Fri, 16 Oct 2026 17:15:59 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-pongal/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/increase-restaurant-sales-during-pongal/How do you increase restaurant sales during Pongal? Give guests a festive reason to come in. Sell a Pongal meal built around Sakkarai Pongal, take pre-orders for family packs, and book tables for the last day. Price each one to add to the bill, not to cut it. This is not a Tamil Nadu sale […]Thu, 15 Oct 2026 18:16:27 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-diwali-gifts-retailers-cant-claim-back/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-diwali-gifts-retailers-cant-claim-back/What is the GST on Diwali gifts for small Indian business owners? Usually there is no GST on the gift itself when you hand it over. The catch is on the buying side: you usually cannot claim back the GST you paid on the gift. For an Indian retailer, three things decide your case: who […]Thu, 15 Oct 2026 12:21:27 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-punjab-rules-cost/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-punjab-rules-cost/How do you get a liquor licence in Punjab? For a restaurant, you apply to the state excise department for a hard bar licence in Forms L-4 and L-5. A hard bar can serve spirits as well as beer. In 2026-27 that costs ₹7 lakh a year in six named cities and ₹4 lakh a […]Wed, 14 Oct 2026 14:25:30 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/pharmacy-billing-software-what-chemist-bill-carry/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/pharmacy-billing-software-what-chemist-bill-carry/What should pharmacy billing software do? It has to print the cash memo the law asks for. That means your name, address and drug licence number, a serial number, and each medicine and its quantity. It should also track batch and expiry, which the rule asks for on some prescription sales, and charge the right […]Wed, 14 Oct 2026 13:40:33 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/steps-to-close-books-before-chopda-pujan/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/steps-to-close-books-before-chopda-pujan/When are Labh Pancham and Chopda Pujan in 2026? Chopda Pujan falls on Diwali, Sunday 8 November 2026. Labh Pancham falls on Saturday 14 November, the fifth day of the Gujarati New Year. That is the day many traders reopen and write the first entry in their new books. What the new books need is […]Tue, 13 Oct 2026 15:57:50 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/fssai-hygiene-rating-restaurant/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/fssai-hygiene-rating-restaurant/How do you get an FSSAI hygiene rating for your restaurant? You book an audit with an agency that FSSAI recognises. Its auditor checks your kitchen against 47 questions. If you pass every critical one that applies to you, you get 1 to 5 smileys, valid for two years. Before you book, you need a […]Tue, 13 Oct 2026 12:36:58 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-name-ideas-by-cuisine-outlet-trend/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/restaurant-name-ideas-by-cuisine-outlet-trend/Looking for restaurant name ideas for 2026-27? The 100 below are grouped by outlet type, cuisine and trend, and each one comes with a short reason it works. A good name hints at your food or your feel, is easy to say and spell, and is not already someone else’s trademark. What makes a name […]Mon, 12 Oct 2026 17:12:18 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/udyam-registration-restaurant/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/udyam-registration-restaurant/How do you get Udyam registration for your restaurant? You register for free on the government’s Udyam portal, using the owner’s Aadhaar and the business PAN. You add your GST number (GSTIN) if you have one, and you pick the code that matches your outlet. You get a permanent certificate online when you submit. Udyam […]Mon, 12 Oct 2026 16:54:16 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/dry-day-list-restaurants-bars/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/dry-day-list-restaurants-bars/What is on the dry day list for 2026? It depends on your state. Each state sets its own days when liquor cannot be sold or served. Every state with a fixed list closes on Gandhi Jayanti, 2 October. Many also close on Republic Day, Independence Day and a few festival days. Your licence matters […]Sun, 11 Oct 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/navratri-thali-near-me-restaurants/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/navratri-thali-near-me-restaurants/How does a restaurant show up when a guest searches “navratri thali near me”? Google picks the results partly on how well your Google Business Profile matches the search. So start with a vrat dish on your profile, named the way guests search. Correct festive hours and good reviews help too. Guests search this way […]Sat, 10 Oct 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-sweets-and-festive-food-full-list/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/gst-on-sweets-and-festive-food-full-list/What is the GST on sweets and festive food in 2026? For almost everything, it is 5%. That covers mithai from every state, such as kaju katli, Mysore pak and ghewar, plus namkeen, dry fruits, chocolates and ice cream. Sweetened fizzy drinks are the big exception, at 40%. A few festive staples carry no GST […]Fri, 09 Oct 2026 17:30:41 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/ways-to-increase-retail-sales-festive-season/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/ways-to-increase-retail-sales-festive-season/How do you increase retail sales this festive season? You get ready before the rush, not during it. That means having your stock, counters and prices set before the first busy weekend between Navratri and Diwali. The reason is timing. Retailers tell us festive buying bunches up on a handful of heavy days. On those […]Fri, 09 Oct 2026 16:51:54 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/navratri-special-menu-ideas-for-restaurants/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/navratri-special-menu-ideas-for-restaurants/What should a Navratri special menu for restaurants include? It needs a short vrat (fasting) section, made from the ingredients fasting guests eat and cooked with no onion or garlic. It also needs a kitchen that keeps those dishes apart from the rest of the menu. Whether it sells comes down to two things. Fasting […]Fri, 09 Oct 2026 16:42:12 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/operations-workflows/ways-to-manage-festive-rush-restaurants/https://blog.petpooja.com/operations-workflows/ways-to-manage-festive-rush-restaurants/How do you manage the festive rush in a restaurant? You plan for it before it arrives. Five things keep a full restaurant moving. You need a queue you can see, faster ordering and one screen for every order. You also need prep based on last year’s peak, and one job per person at the […]Wed, 07 Oct 2026 20:13:36 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/diwali-offers-ways-to-increase-restaurant-sales/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/diwali-offers-ways-to-increase-restaurant-sales/How do you increase restaurant sales with Diwali offers? Use offers that add to the bill rather than take money off it. Five offers do this well: a festive combo, a free sweet on bigger bills, a pre-booked set menu, gift vouchers and offers sent only to your regulars. The first four add value instead […]Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:05:55 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/diwali-menu-ideas-for-restaurants/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/diwali-menu-ideas-for-restaurants/What are the best Diwali menu ideas for restaurants? Not a new menu, but a few festive changes to the one you already have. Add a short Diwali specials section and a thali or combo. Put sweets in front of every guest. Then make the menu easy to see and order from in a rush. […]Tue, 06 Oct 2026 19:56:00 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-tamil-nadu-rules-cost/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-tamil-nadu-rules-cost/How do you get a liquor licence in Tamil Nadu? For a food business, you apply to the Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise in Chennai. The District Collector checks your premises and approves the file, and then the Commissioner grants the licence. The catch is who can apply. Tamil Nadu has no standalone bar licence […]Tue, 06 Oct 2026 12:38:43 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-west-bengal-rules-cost/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-west-bengal-rules-cost/How do you get a liquor licence in West Bengal? For a restaurant bar, you apply to the Collector of your district. The Collector checks the site and your eligibility, and the state government gives the final approval. The cost depends on where you are. A new bar first runs on a temporary licence, at […]Mon, 05 Oct 2026 12:27:39 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-goa/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-goa/How do you get a liquor licence in Goa? You apply in Form E-28 through the Excise Inspector of your taluka. The Commissioner of Excise grants it once your documents and premises pass inspection. The yearly fee in the official schedule is small. Its printed rate starts at ₹6,000 for a bar in an inland […]Thu, 01 Oct 2026 17:43:27 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-uttar-pradesh/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-uttar-pradesh/How do you get a liquor licence in Uttar Pradesh? For a restaurant bar, you apply through your district excise office, and a District Bar Committee has 20 working days to decide. The yearly fee is ₹5 lakh to ₹15 lakh. Where your premises sits decides that fee. Lucknow city, Noida and Ghaziabad pay the […]Wed, 30 Sep 2026 19:14:27 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-karnataka/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-karnataka/How do you get a liquor licence in Karnataka? For a new shop or bar, you first win the licence at the state’s online auction, then apply to open it on the excise department’s website. Bidding starts between ₹70 lakh and ₹1.5 crore, and the licence runs for five years. What you pay depends on […]Wed, 30 Sep 2026 19:07:57 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/build-consumption-report-columns-and-steps/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/build-consumption-report-columns-and-steps/A consumption report is a list of what you actually used in a period, item by item. Six columns carry it: the item, its unit, opening stock, what you received, closing stock, and the consumption those four produce. Purchases and consumption are different numbers. You start a month with stock already on the floor, so […]Tue, 29 Sep 2026 19:16:56 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-haryana-cost-rules-steps/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-haryana-cost-rules-steps/A liquor licence in Haryana costs a restaurant between ₹23 lakh and ₹45 lakh, and the figure depends on the district. Gurugram is the dearest. Most other districts are half the price. The number that catches people out is not the fee. It is the period. This fee does not buy you a year. It […]Tue, 29 Sep 2026 12:41:53 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-madhya-pradesh/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-madhya-pradesh/A liquor licence in Madhya Pradesh has a published price, so long as what you want is a bar. A restaurant bar costs between ₹10 lakh and ₹15.5 lakh a year, and the figure depends only on which city you are in. That makes it simpler than most states. A hotel bar runs to ₹20 […]Tue, 29 Sep 2026 12:32:40 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-telangana-rules-cost/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-telangana-rules-cost/A liquor licence in Telangana is not cheap. A wine shop pays a shop excise tax of ₹50 lakh to ₹1.1 crore every year, and the figure depends on how many people live in the area. But that is not the whole bill. The licence is granted for two years at a time, so you […]Mon, 28 Sep 2026 12:58:02 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-rajasthan-rules-cost/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/liquor-licence-rajasthan-rules-cost/A liquor licence in Rajasthan is priced differently from most states. A retail shop does not pay a flat fee or a fee set by population. It pays 5% of its annual guarantee amount, a figure the excise department fixes against each shop. That one rule shapes everything else. The guarantee is fixed per shop […]Fri, 25 Sep 2026 20:23:06 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/franchise-conclave-jaipur-plan/https://blog.petpooja.com/industry-business-guides/franchise-conclave-jaipur-plan/The short plan for Franchise Conclave Jaipur, on 3 and 4 October 2026, is this. Use Saturday to walk every category once. Use Sunday to go back to the four or five brands worth a second conversation. Keep the 2 o’clock slot on either day in mind, because that is the one fixed item on […]Thu, 24 Sep 2026 19:26:23 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/why-jaipur-indias-next-food-business-opportunity/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/why-jaipur-indias-next-food-business-opportunity/Jaipur gives a food brand something most cities cannot: metro-scale footfall on a tier-2 cost base. The state economy behind it is projected to grow 16.7% in nominal terms this year. Rajasthan also draws 17.9 crore domestic visitors a year, and Jaipur sits at the head of that circuit. What decides whether that works for […]Thu, 24 Sep 2026 19:15:36 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/inventory-control-methods-how-to-choose/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/inventory-control-methods-how-to-choose/Inventory control is the job of deciding how much of each item to hold and when to buy more. It is the narrow half of inventory management, which also covers forecasts, suppliers and storage. Five methods do most of the work, and every guide you will read lists all five. Almost none of them tells […]Wed, 23 Sep 2026 12:28:19 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/inventory-turnover-ratio-formula/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/inventory-turnover-ratio-formula/The inventory turnover ratio is your Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) divided by your average inventory for the same period. It tells you how many times you sold and replaced your stock. What makes the answer vary is not the maths. It is what you are storing. A hardware shop and a kitchen can run […]Mon, 21 Sep 2026 18:42:56 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/cycle-counting-stock-without-closing/https://blog.petpooja.com/procurement-cost-control/cycle-counting-stock-without-closing/Cycle counting means checking a small slice of your stock on a rota, so the whole list gets counted over a few weeks. You never shut the shop to do it. The alternative is the annual stock take. One long day, everything counted at once, and eleven months of gaps nobody spotted. This post covers […]Mon, 21 Sep 2026 11:56:32 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/franchise-conclave-jaipur/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/franchise-conclave-jaipur/Franchise Conclave Jaipur runs on 3 and 4 October 2026 at the Rajasthan International Centre, Jhalana Doongri, on JLN Marg. Doors open at 10:00 AM on both days. It is Rajasthan’s first dedicated food and beverage franchise forum. Every stall on the floor is an F&B brand. Every visitor registered as a franchise seeker rather […]Fri, 18 Sep 2026 20:14:32 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/should-food-and-beverages-brand-exhibit-franchise-expo-jaipur/https://blog.petpooja.com/growth-scaling/should-food-and-beverages-brand-exhibit-franchise-expo-jaipur/A stall at Franchise Conclave Jaipur is worth it when your brand is ready to sign partners and the floor is filled with people who came to buy one. It is not worth it when either half of that is missing. Most brands get the first half right and never check the second. They book […]Fri, 18 Sep 2026 18:27:25 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/depreciation-journal-entries-examples/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/depreciation-journal-entries-examples/A depreciation journal entry debits an expense and credits accumulated depreciation. The asset itself is never touched after the day you buy it. That one habit is what most entries get wrong. Credit the asset directly and your balance sheet stops showing what the machine cost you. The six examples below cover both methods. They […]Wed, 16 Sep 2026 23:41:51 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/accounts-receivable-paid-faster/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/accounts-receivable-paid-faster/Accounts receivable is the money customers already owe you for goods you have handed over. The eight changes below shorten the gap between delivering and banking it. Most of them cost nothing. Two of them are legal rights that Indian suppliers hold and rarely use. One of those carries interest at three times the RBI […]Wed, 16 Sep 2026 19:17:49 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/operations-workflows/menu-card-size-print-formats/https://blog.petpooja.com/operations-workflows/menu-card-size-print-formats/Menu card size in India follows the A-series, and A4 at 210 by 297 mm is where most restaurants land. No FSSAI rule sets the size, so the honest answer is that it depends on two things. The first is the table. The second is how much you are required to print. That is not […]Tue, 15 Sep 2026 20:13:29 GMThttps://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/new-gst-rates-on-food/https://blog.petpooja.com/finance-compliance/new-gst-rates-on-food/The new GST rates on food came into force on 22 September 2025. Almost every item moved in the same direction. Ultra-High Temperature (UHT) milk, the long-life kind in tetra packs, pre-packaged paneer and every Indian bread now sit at nil. Butter, cheese, namkeen, pasta, sauces, biscuits, chocolate and ice cream all sit at 5%. […]Tue, 15 Sep 2026 19:19:32 GMT