Profitable on paper. Broke when it mattered.

Three ways to look at your money. Only one gives you a date.

Looks backwardA bookkeeping trackerRecords what already happened. Good for your accountant, no help for next month.

Looks month by monthA monthly budgetCalls March fine, when the middle of March is where you actually broke.

Looks forward, day by dayThe Cash Flow EngineNames the exact date you run short — months before you get there.

Why this exists

We had the sales. We just didn't have the cash to hire one part-timer.

Written by the person who built it A Malaysian F&B owner. Bench Studio is one operator, not an agency — I built this for my own business first, after the month described here.

We had a pop-up coming and needed one part-time staffer for it. We couldn't afford to hire them — not because the business wasn't earning, but because the cash was locked up. We had over-invested in a bulk inventory order, and we were committed to paying three co-founders plus one key staff member at maintained rates.

The pop-up earned less than a normal month but still had to carry all those wages. On paper we were profitable. At the exact moment we needed to move, we felt broke.

That gap — between earning and having cash available — is the whole reason I built this. Not to change the numbers. To stop them arriving as a surprise.

How it works

Three steps. Then it runs itself.

No app to learn, no subscription, no bank connection. It opens in Google Sheets or Excel, and the copy is yours.

STEP 01

Type what you already know

Expected sales, rent, wages, stock orders, the loan repayment. Things you can already name off the top of your head.

STEP 02

It carries every day forward

Up to 366 days. Each day opens with whatever the day before actually left you — which is how cash really works.

STEP 03

It names the day you run short

Not "you'll be tight" — the exact date, how many days sit in the red, and a list of every single one of them.

See it before you buy it

This is the actual file.

Not a mock-up. This is the example forecast that ships inside your copy — a milk tea shop that runs a profit on paper and still goes under zero in month three.

DASHBOARD — Boba Lane

The Cash Flow Engine dashboard showing lowest day, first shortfall date and days in the red

Lowest day −4,727. First shortfall 12 Mar 2026. Thirty-two days in the red. Every one of them listed by date, months before it happens.

Daily forecast rows turning red as cash goes negative — **Every day of the year.** The red rows colour themselves.

Outflows sheet listing costs with frequency and schedule — **Where the truth lives.** Up to 80 costs, each on the day it actually leaves.

Monthly summary showing the lowest single day inside each month — **Month by month** — including the lowest single day inside each month.

Start here sheet with a note from the maker — **Not a blank grid.** It opens with a worked example already inside.

Frequency guide explaining each recurrence rule — **Every recurrence rule** and exactly what to type.

Six sheets shown here.
Eleven in total — every one named below.

No surprises. Every sheet is named and described further down this page.

Inside the file

Eleven sheets, in the order you use them.

START HERE

Why it exists, and where to go first.

HOW TO USE

The five steps in order, and what every cell colour means.

SETUP

Bank balance, overdraft, forecast length, and the two alert levels that decide when the sheet warns you.

INFLOWS

Up to 50 income sources. Ten recurrence rules, so money lands on the day it actually lands.

OUTFLOWS

Up to 80 costs, same rules. Rent on the 1st, payroll every other Friday, insurance once a year.

DAILY ENGINE

The heart of it. Every day for up to a year: opening, in, out, net, closing. Automatic.

MONTHLY SUMMARY

The same forecast by month — with the lowest single day inside each one.

DASHBOARD

Start cash, end cash, lowest day, runway, first shortfall date, days in the red, four live charts.

GUIDE & TIPS

The cash-flow playbook.

FREQUENCY GUIDE

Every recurrence rule and exactly what to type in the schedule column.

Being straight with you

What this doesn't do

I would rather you skip this than buy it expecting something it isn't.

—

It doesn't bring in more money.It is a forecast. It gives you sight of money you already have and money you already expect. Nothing here changes what you earn.

—

It doesn't connect to your bank.You fill in three sheets — SETUP, INFLOWS and OUTFLOWS. The other eight calculate themselves. The typing is deliberate: it is where you notice things.

—

It doesn't replace your accountant.It is a planning tool, not a set of accounts, and not tax advice.

—

It is only as good as your estimates.Guess your sales badly and the forecast will be wrong. It shows the shape of your year, not a promise about it.

What it costs

One payment, next to what you already pay every month.

Cloud accounting software, MalaysiaRM 99 – 280 / month

Desktop accounting licenceRM 1,200 – 3,200 once

Outsourced bookkeeper, sole proprietorRM 300 – 450 / month

Cash Flow EngineRM 69 once

Those tools record what already happened, and most small businesses need one eventually. This does a different job — it shows what is coming. RM 69 once is less than one month of the cheapest paid alternative.
Malaysian prices, September 2026. Sources on request.

Get it

One payment. The file is yours.

Cash Flow Engine

The eleven-sheet daily forecast. Google Sheets and Excel.

RM 69

Quick Start Guide — 11 pages

From opening the file to a finished forecast, one cell at a time. Arrives in the same download.

RM 0Free

The Setup Walkthrough — 11 pages

The judgement calls, the costs everyone forgets, and the ten-minute weekly routine that keeps the forecast true.

RM 0Free

The Squeeze Kit — optional

Lumpy Cost Calendar and Stock Order Planner. A tick box on the payment page — nothing to buy separately.

+ RM 29At checkout

Before you pay

You know exactly what is inside

Six sheets are shown in full above, with real numbers in them. All eleven are named and described on this page. Nothing is decided after you pay.

If something is wrong

Four things we refund

Digital files cannot be returned, so sales are final after download. We do refund if the file will not open and we cannot fix it, if you received the wrong product, if you were charged twice, or if you paid and never got access. Tell us within 14 days.

Who answers

One person. Me.

Bench Studio is one operator, not a support desk. Replies come from the person who built the file.

Or take the whole bench

The Engine tells you what is coming.
The Operator's Kit helps you decide what to do.

Same file, four more sheets, and a year of my time. Compare them side by side.

Cash Flow Engine

RM 69 RM 89

One-time · founding price

✓Cash Flow Engine — 11 sheets
✓Quick Start Guide — 11 pages
✓The Setup Walkthrough — 11 pages
+Squeeze Kit — add at checkout, RM 29
—What-If Compare
—Pricing & Margin
—Break-even
—Payroll Commitment
—12 months of email support

Get the Engine — RM 69

Everything · best value

The Operator's Kit

RM 199 RM 269

One-time · founding price

✓Cash Flow Engine — 11 sheets
✓Quick Start Guide — 11 pages
✓The Setup Walkthrough — 11 pages
✓The Squeeze Kit — both sheets, included
✓What-If Compare — your plan against the change you are considering, both years side by side
✓Pricing & Margin — what each thing you sell leaves you after materials, labour and platform fees
✓Break-even — what you must sell each month, and each open day
✓Payroll Commitment — the months wages eat too much, shown before you stand in them
✓12 months of email support, answered by me

Get the Operator's Kit — RM 199

The Engine and the Squeeze Kit on their own come to RM 98. The four extra sheets and a year of support make up the rest.

Before you buy

Straight answers

Google Sheets or Excel?

Both. Plain formulas only — no macros, no add-ons, nothing to install.

How do I get it?

The download page appears the moment your payment clears. The Engine and the Quick Start Guide are both there.

Why does my statement say MAI STUDIO?

That is the registered Malaysian business behind Bench Studio. It is not an error.

Can I get a refund?

Sales are final after download, because a digital file cannot be returned. We refund in four cases: the file will not open and we cannot fix it; you received the wrong product; you were charged twice; or you paid and never got access. Tell us within 14 days. Lost your copy? Email us — we re-issue it free.

Do I have to start from a blank sheet?

No. It arrives full of a worked example. You type straight over it. The Quick Start Guide shows you the exact cell to click first.

Can I use it for more than one business?

Yes — as many of your own as you like. You may not resell, share or republish the file.

Profitable on paper.
Broke when it mattered.