Keeping the cash flowing in an Indie Studio
summary
Argues that the key is a simple weekly cash-flow forecast (minimum 12 weeks) built in a plain spreadsheet with an assumptions/sensitivity section; shows examples (£1,000,000 at £200k/month = five months runway; a studio turning over ~£25k/week can be sunk by a ~£2k weekly shortfall) and explains VAT/tax timing (UK 20% VAT) and R&D/tax-credits lag. Recommends bootstrapping first, prioritizing payroll, using milestone-funded publishing or work‑for‑hire, and emailing stephen@leapfrog.digital for a demo cashflow spreadsheet model.
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chapters (33)
- 0:00Start
- 6:50Work for Hire
- 9:51Equity and Debt Funding
- 10:47Equity Investment
- 13:10Grants and Tax Benefits
- 17:02What Does It Take To Get off the Ground and Clear the Runway
- 17:42Cash Flow Example
- 19:34Payroll and Rentals
- 20:25Timing of Payments
- 21:10Sales Tax
- 22:05Key Aspects of a Cash Flow
- 23:32Avoid a False Sense of Accuracy
- 26:32How You Can Improve On on Your Cash Flow
- 28:59Communication
- 31:57Improve Your Cash Flow
- 32:43The Lean Startup
- 33:40Taxes
- 34:42Bad Debt
- 36:39Your Business Is Funding Friendly
- 37:33Realistic Sales Expectations
- 38:02How Do You Control Cash
- 39:08What Happens When Things Go Wrong
- 42:08Staff Costs
- 44:25Over Trading
- 46:48Conclusions
- 47:23Communicate at all Stages
- 48:06Are There any Resources Out There To Learn How To Do Business Plans
- 48:39Business Plans
- 50:26How You Got into the Industry
- 52:22What Is the Best Choice between Investors and Publishers and Why
- 53:33What Is the Most Common Mistake You See Small Indie Devs Making
- 56:26Best Practices for Getting Off that Treadmill
- 58:01Thinking Ahead
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