Janitorial Supply Store Break-Even Analysis: $334K Monthly Sales

Fixed costs $23.5K/mo Lease, payroll, overhead

Contribution margin 80.1% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $29.3K/mo Cover fixed cost base

Break-even timing Month 25 Model payback point

Break-even calculator

Test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs to see where this store breaks even.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue sets the dollars available to cover fixed costs after direct costs. $ Low sales High sales Variable expenses These are direct costs that rise with sales, like inventory, freight, and fees. $ Low costs High costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $26,800 $33,000 revenue - $6,200 variable expenses

Margin ratio

81%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly cost base that contribution margin has to cover. $ Lean overhead Big overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which janitorial supply store expenses are fixed and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even only works if each expense lands in the right bucket. Put rent and base staffing in fixed costs, and let inventory, freight, card fees, and packaging rise with sales.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Commercial Lease, $4,500/month	Fixed	Include the full monthly rent in fixed overhead before solving for required gross profit.	Treating rent as a percent of sales, which understates early break-even pressure.
Base Payroll, $196K/year	Fixed	Carry core store staffing as fixed monthly overhead for the planning range.	Moving base staff into variable expense and making break-even look too easy.
Business Insurance, $350/month	Fixed	Add the monthly premium to fixed overhead because it does not move with each order.	Leaving small fixed bills out, then wondering why cash misses the model.
POS & Inventory Software, $250/month	Fixed	Include the subscription as fixed overhead from Month 1 through Month 60.	Buried software inside card fees, which mixes fixed and variable math.
Wholesale Cost of Inventory, 14.9% of sales in the first year	Variable	Subtract it from each sales dollar when calculating contribution margin.	Using purchase timing instead of sales-linked inventory cost for break-even.
Inbound Freight & Handling, 2.0% of sales	Variable	Treat freight as sales-linked because higher unit volume needs more replenishment.	Putting freight in fixed overhead and overstating margin on large orders.
Payment Processing Fees, 1.8% of sales in the first year	Variable	Deduct card fees from revenue before comparing contribution to fixed overhead.	Ignoring processing fees because the charge looks small per transaction.
Utilities, $700/month base	Semi-variable	Keep the base bill in overhead, then add usage when warehouse activity or delivery volume rises.	Treating the full bill as fixed when storage, lighting, and equipment use scale up.

How does break-even change from a smaller showroom to a base storefront and then a full retail plus delivery setup?

Scenario table

As the store adds payroll and space, break-even climbs from about $28K a month to $34K a month. The margin improves only a little, so repeat orders have to cover rent and staffing.

Planning assumptions only; actual break-even can move with traffic, mix, and payroll.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Smaller showroom lean case	$28K	$6K	$22K	80.1%	$0	Repeat orders must cover payroll and rent.
Base storefront case	$31K	$6K	$25K	80.7%	$0	Steady repeat demand is the main break-even cushion.
Retail plus delivery full case	$34K	$6K	$28K	81.4%	$0	Deeper repeat traffic is needed to hold the line.

What breaks the break-even plan for a janitorial supply store?

Stress test

The break-even plan gets tight fast if sales miss the target, fixed costs rise, or wholesale and freight push margins down. At about $334,000 in monthly break-even revenue against $267,000 of fixed costs, there isn’t much room for early slippage.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$334,000	$0 cushion	No cushion if sales soften.
Revenue shortfall	Monthly sales run 10% below plan.	$334,000	$33,400 gap	A 10% miss creates a monthly hole.
Fixed costs up	Lease and payroll rise by $1,000 per month.	$335,248	$1,248 gap	Fixed overhead pushes break-even higher.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise by 0.1 point.	$334,334	$334 gap	Wholesale or freight creep eats margin fast.
Combined pressure	Sales fall 10%, fixed costs add $1,000, and variable expenses rise 0.1 point.	$335,582	$35,000 gap	That mix turns a thin plan into a cash drain.

What should you verify before you sign the lease for this janitorial supply store?

Founder checklist

Only sign the lease if Year 1 demand, margins, and cash can cover the opening load. This model needs a $162K launch build, about $26.7K of monthly fixed cost, and a $438K cash trough before payback, so the break-even test has to pass first.

1Weekly demand22 buyers/week

Year 1 traffic is 275 weekly visitors at 8% conversion, so verify that walk-ins can turn into enough buyers before you lock the space.

2Fixed load$26.7K/mo

Check that rent, payroll, and overhead can sit inside this monthly burn, because the store must fund fixed costs before it scales.

3Gross margin80.1% CM

Year 1 variable costs take 19.9% of sales, so wholesale terms and fee control have to stay tight or break-even moves out.

4Staffing ramp4.5 FTE

Year 1 staffing totals 4.5 full-time equivalents, so verify daily coverage before you add the bigger Year 2 and Year 3 team.

5Cash runway$438K

Keep this reserve through Month 24, because the model's lowest cash point lands there before the business starts paying back.

6Launch stock$162K

Secure wholesale terms before you buy the first $30K of stock, because the launch bill totals $162K across build-out, fixtures, POS, inventory, and the van.