Frequently Asked Questions

Margini works on Microsoft Excel 2016 or newer (Windows or Mac) and Google Sheets (free, browser-based). Excel gives the best experience — all formatting, dropdowns, and conditional colours display exactly as designed. Google Sheets works well but some visual formatting may look slightly different. You do not need any other software, plugins, or subscriptions.

After purchase, go to your Etsy account → Purchases and Reviews → find your Margini order → click Download files. Save the .xlsx file to your computer or Google Drive. Double-click to open in Excel, or go to drive.google.com, click New → File upload, and select the file to open in Google Sheets.

Always start with the START HERE tab — it is the first tab in every file. Fill in your store name, currency, financial year start, and business type. Everything else reads from this tab, so completing it first ensures your data flows correctly throughout the file.

Press Ctrl + H (Windows) or Cmd + H (Mac) to open Find and Replace. In the Find box type $ and in the Replace box type your currency symbol (e.g. £ or €). Click Replace All. This updates every formatted cell in the file at once. Do this before entering any data.

Yes — you can share it freely within your business. The licence covers single-store use for one business entity. You cannot resell or redistribute the file as a product. Sharing it with your accountant, a business partner, or an employee who works in your store is fine.

The Dashboard reads from DAILY SALES and EXPENSES for the current month. If either tab has no data for the current month, the Dashboard will show zero. Make sure you have entered at least one day of sales and your fixed costs in EXPENSES Section A. Also check that your financial year start date is set correctly on the START HERE tab.

The file has 400 pre-built rows — enough for a full year of daily entries. You should not need to add rows. At year-end, use the YEAR-END ROLLOVER tab to archive your data and start fresh. If you genuinely need more rows mid-year, email us and we will advise.

Product names in the STOCK TRACKER must match the PRODUCTS tab exactly — same spelling, same capitalisation, same spaces. Check both tabs side by side. A common issue is an extra space at the end of a name or a capital letter difference. The easiest fix is to copy the product name directly from the PRODUCTS tab and paste it into the Stock Tracker entry.

Week 1 automatically pulls your actual sales data for the current week from DAILY SALES. Weeks 2–13 project forward using your 8-week trailing revenue average — these are the grey cells and update themselves automatically. The only thing you need to enter manually is your opening bank balance (the amber cell at the top of the CASHFLOW tab). All other grey cells are automatic. Amber cells are for manual inputs like non-sales income or one-off expenses.

Scroll to the bottom of the PRODUCTS tab to find the calculator. Enter: units per case or pack, your purchase price per case, transport cost, import or handling fees, and your target profit margin. The calculator returns your true landed cost per unit and the selling price you need to achieve your target margin. Use this every time you bring in a new product or your supplier changes their prices.

The INSIGHTS & ACTIONS tab generates five plain-English insights automatically from your data: whether you are profitable this month, whether your cash position is above your minimum reserve, which products need reordering, whether any inventory is expiring within 7 days, and whether revenue is tracking ahead of last month. You do not type anything here — read it weekly and act on what it tells you.

This tab is for Square and Shopify users only — skip it entirely if you do not use a POS system. To use it: (1) Select your POS system from the dropdown in Section A. (2) Export your weekly CSV from Square (Reports → Transactions → Export) or Shopify (Analytics → Reports → Export). (3) Paste the CSV into the blue area starting at row 10. (4) Section C flags any new products not in your PRODUCTS tab — add them. (5) Section D shows known products with volumes — copy those rows into STOCK TRACKER with Movement Type: Sale.

No repurchase needed. At year-end: go to the YEAR-END ROLLOVER tab. Your full-year monthly summary populates automatically. Save a copy of the file as your archive (e.g. rename it Margini_2026.xlsx). Then follow the three-step clearing instructions on the tab to reset the data. The whole process takes under 2 minutes and your file is ready for the new year.

This is a known Excel setting — not a problem with the file. Go to File → Options → Formulas → tick Enable iterative calculation → click OK. On Mac: Excel → Preferences → Calculation → tick Enable iterative calculation. This tells Excel to handle formulas that reference themselves, which some of the dashboard calculations require. You only need to do this once.

#REF! usually means a row or column was accidentally deleted. Do not delete any rows or columns — if you need to clear data, delete the cell contents only (press Delete, not backspace on the whole row). #NAME? can appear if the file is opened in an older version of Excel that does not support certain functions. Make sure you are using Excel 2016 or newer. If errors persist, email us with a screenshot and we will fix it.

Click Enable Editing if a yellow bar appears at the top of the screen — this activates all formatting and formulas. If the file still looks unstyled, try closing it and reopening directly in Excel rather than from your browser's download bar. If you are on a Mac, right-click the file → Open With → Microsoft Excel (rather than double-clicking which may open it in Numbers or Preview).

Yes — Google Sheets renders some formatting differently to Excel. The formulas and calculations all work correctly, but some conditional formatting colours and cell border styles may look slightly different. All the core functionality — formulas, dropdowns, DAILY SALES tracking, Dashboard KPIs — works in Google Sheets. For the best experience we recommend Microsoft Excel.

First, try Ctrl + Z (Windows) or Cmd + Z (Mac) to undo — this works even if you have saved, as long as you have not closed the file. If you have closed the file since the deletion, download a fresh copy from Etsy (go to Purchases and Reviews → Download files — re-downloads are free and unlimited) and copy the formula from the fresh file into your working file.

Due to the digital nature of this product, all sales are final once the file has been downloaded. However, if you experience a technical issue with the file — formulas not working, file not opening, or any error we can verify — contact us within 7 days of purchase and we will resolve it at no charge. We take product quality seriously and will always make it right. Email hello@marginifinancial.com with your order number and a description of the issue.

Yes — re-downloads are free and unlimited. Go to your Etsy account → Purchases and Reviews → find your Margini order → click Download files. You can do this as many times as you need. We recommend saving a backup copy to Google Drive or iCloud after your first download.

No subscription. This is a one-time purchase. You own the file. The Year-End Rollover tab lets you reset and reuse it every year without repurchasing. Any future product updates we release will be available at a discounted upgrade price for existing customers, but you are never required to upgrade.

Starter Pack ($14) — if you are new to financial tracking or want a simple daily profit and expense system. 6 tabs, straightforward, 2 minutes a day.

Growth Pack ($29) — if you are established and want to see your 13-week cash flow projection and model financial decisions before making them. 8 tabs including scenario planner.

Complete Bundle ($47) — if you manage inventory, use Square or Shopify, and want the full picture including stock tracking, POS import, and automated plain-English insights. 12 tabs. Try the free profit calculator first — it will give you a sense of where your gaps are.

Email us at hello@marginifinancial.com with how many copies you need and for what context (e.g. a group of shop owners, a community organisation, a training programme). We offer group pricing for orders of 5 or more and are happy to discuss what works for your situation.

The free calculator at marginifinancial.com shows you your true profit margin, the real cost of each product after all your overhead is included, and your suggested selling price. No sign-up required — enter your numbers, get your results instantly. It is a simplified version of the tools in the full Margini files.

The calculator runs entirely in your browser — your numbers are never sent anywhere unless you choose to email yourself a summary. If you click "Email me this summary," your name, email, and results are sent to Margini so we can follow up. We do not share your data with third parties. We do not display ads. Your numbers are yours.

If your margin is below 15%: start with the Starter Pack — daily tracking will immediately show where the money is going. If your margin looks healthy but cash flow feels tight: the Growth Pack's 13-week projection is built for this. If you manage inventory and want the complete picture: the Complete Bundle. Or book a free assessment call and we will tell you exactly where to start.