Running a cafe or hospitality business means dealing with some of the most complex payroll in the small business world. Casual staff, rotating rosters, penalty rates, split shifts, and wafer-thin margins leave very little room for financial error.
At East Coast BBS, we understand the rhythm of hospitality. We work with cafes, restaurants, and food businesses across the South Coast, and we know what it takes to keep the books clean when every dollar counts and every roster is different. Whether your business is on the main street in Nowra, along the coast in Ulladulla, or anywhere across the Shoalhaven, we are here to take the financial pressure off.
What we do
Payroll under the Hospitality Industry General Award
The Hospitality Industry General Award (HIGA) is detailed and constantly updated. We manage your payroll in full, including casual and part-time entitlements, penalty rates, overtime, split shift allowances, and all the detail that comes with a rotating hospitality roster.
Casual staff management and STP compliance
We handle Single Touch Payroll reporting for your full team, including casual employees, so every pay event is reported to the ATO correctly and on time.
GST treatment of food and beverage
GST on food and beverage is not straightforward. We ensure your BAS correctly reflects the GST treatment of each product category, including GST-free food items, taxable hot food, and mixed supplies.
BAS preparation and lodgement
As registered BAS agents, we prepare and lodge your Business Activity Statements accurately and on time. We receive a four-week extension on lodgements and payments, giving you additional breathing room at quarter end.
Daily and weekly sales reconciliation
We reconcile your point-of-sale records against your bank, keeping your books current and giving you a reliable picture of how the business is performing.
Supplier payment management
We manage your supplier invoices and ensure payments are made on time, maintaining your supplier relationships and keeping your cost-of-goods records accurate.
Cash flow management for seasonal businesses
Many South Coast hospitality businesses experience significant seasonal variation. We help you build a cash flow plan that accounts for the peaks and the quieter periods, so you are never caught short heading into winter.
Who this is for
- Cafes and coffee shops
- Restaurants and takeaway businesses
- Bars and licensed venues
- Accommodation and tourism operators
- Food trucks and event catering businesses
- Hospitality businesses across Nowra, Shoalhaven, Ulladulla, Wollongong, and the South Coast
Why choose East Coast BBS
- Deep familiarity with the Hospitality Industry General Award and its regular updates
- Proactive award monitoring — we flag rate changes before they affect your payroll
- Registered BAS agents with accurate GST treatment across food and beverage categories
- Seasonal cash flow support for businesses that experience significant variation through the year
- We understand thin hospitality margins and work efficiently to keep your bookkeeping costs manageable
- Based in South Nowra, serving hospitality clients across the South Coast and beyond
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you handle payroll under the Hospitality Industry General Award?
Yes. The Hospitality Industry General Award is one of the awards we deal with regularly, and we understand its complexity. We manage the full payroll process for hospitality businesses, including casual and part-time entitlements, penalty rates for evenings, weekends, and public holidays, split shift allowances, and any other loadings that apply to your team. When the award is updated, we stay across the changes so your payroll does not fall behind.
Can you reconcile our point-of-sale system with our accounts?
Yes. We work with hospitality businesses using a range of POS systems and are experienced in reconciling daily sales data against your bank records. Accurate POS reconciliation is the foundation of clean books in hospitality, and we make sure it is done consistently so you always have a reliable picture of where your business stands.
Our business is quite seasonal, how can you help us plan for that?
Seasonal cash flow is one of the most common challenges for South Coast hospitality businesses, particularly those that rely on summer tourism. We can build a cash flow forecast that maps out your income and expenses through the year, identifies the pressure points heading into quieter periods, and helps you make confident decisions about staffing, purchasing, and investment based on what is actually coming rather than what you hope might arrive.
Can you help us work out the GST on food?
It is one of the trickier areas of GST, and yes, we handle it. The GST treatment of food varies depending on whether the item is a basic food, a prepared meal, a hot food product, a cold takeaway item, or a drink, and the rules are not always straightforward. We ensure your BAS correctly reflects the GST treatment across your menu, so you are neither over-reporting nor under-reporting, and you can have confidence your compliance is accurate.
