Suppose you are a retailer with $600,000 annual sales, what would be a normal amount to expect to achieve in annual gross profit? In net profit? Inc. Magazine’s November issue includes a profitability calculator, based on surveys of key financial metrics for 19 different industries by Sageworks, in partnership with Inc Magazine. The retailer mentioned above would have annual gross profit of $192,000 and net profit of $16,200, based on typical gross profit margins and net profit margins for retailers of 32% and 2.7% respectively. For those interested in a survey of private company profitability with even more granular data, and willing to pay for it, try Annual Statement Studies, published by the Risk Management Association.
