Today the Australia Bureau of Statistics released the 2006/07 Cafes, Restaurant and Catering Services Survey which showed restaurants employing between 0 and 4 employees have an average net profit of -0.3%.

Restaurant & Catering Australia, the peak national organisation representing the interests of the 40,000 restaurant businesses in Australia suggests that the ABS is spot on!

The average net profit for a restaurant had decreased since the last survey (2003-04) – from 4% net per annum to 3.8%. Businesses employing under 20 people had an average profit of 3.6% and very small businesses an average loss of 0.3%.

The report also finds that in the period since the last report wage costs in restaurants have risen by an average of 10% per annum. This is consistent with the increase in the previous report which was a 10.1% per annum for the previous four year period.

Con Castrisos, President of Restaurant & Catering Australia said that ‘at thirty to forty percent of every dollar earned, this sort of increase in wages has an enormous impact on the bottom line'.

Whilst the report showed that restaurant takings were up 6.1%, costs of food product was up 7.1% and rental up 9.7%. All in all the operating environment for restaurants is not a positive one.

Restaurant & Catering Australia CEO John Hart said that ‘the report shows how difficult the restaurant business really is. Report after report shows that there is no money in this game yet restaurant still keep opening their doors and service great product to hungry Australians'.