A few rainy weekends and projections mean nothing

By Greg Ellison

(Feb. 27, 2020) Anticipating summer weather conditions not quite as good as last year’s amazingly sunny weeks, Ocean Pines Beach Club food contractor the Matt Ortt Companies are anticipating slightly lower profits in 2020.

CEO Ralph DeAngelus said although last year’s performance would put the beach club in a position to net roughly $126,000 in profit in the new fiscal year, the budget that takes effect on May 1 ratchets the figure down to $97,000.

“We took last years’ actuals and budgeted for next year based on what we actually get,” he said.

The profit estimate matches the $97,000 net operating totals for fiscal 2018/2019, when the Matt Ortt Companies were retained to operate the association’s food service.

“That’s how we came up to that number,” he said.

“It has nothing to do with our strategic plan. This is all based upon caution over weather.”

Beach Club net revenues are estimated at $337,000 for the upcoming year, down from a forecast of $382,000 during the current budget cycle, but on par with the $337,407 actuals from 2018-19.

While noting $97,000 is still a strong net to budget, DeAngelus said conservative revenue estimates were adhered to for the next fiscal year based on less favorable weather.

“Last year was perfect and that’s why our numbers were so much better than the year before,” he said. “Not being able to control Mother Nature, we decided to under promise and, hopefully, overdeliver.”

Rain or shine, however, upgrades are planned for food delivery at the beach club this summer.

DeAngelus said besides installing a new service bar near the kitchen, there would be a new wireless handheld point-of-service system that will allow servers to order and deliver more quickly.

“They could take an order by the pool,” he said.

Under the new POS system servers would find drink orders filled and food underway when they return to the kitchen service area.

His outlook for the club’s overall performance is based on realism, considering that last summer’s weather was nearly perfect.

“Next year when everyone’s expecting us to make $97,000 and we actually make around $109,000 or $111,000, they’re going to be all ‘way to go,’” he said. “As opposed to if I budgeted $111,000 and we got rain 14 out of 16 Saturdays and we only made $97,000 they’d be like, ‘what happened?’”