Seasonality & growth
How bluprnts varies a sale across the year and grows it year on year — seasonality profiles, and compound or step increases to price and volume.
Two things stop a sale running flat forever: seasonality, which varies it within a year, and annual growth, which moves it between years. Both are set on the individual sale, so different products and channels can behave differently.
Seasonality#
Apply seasonality turns on a per-month profile for a sale, redistributing its volume across the year instead of spreading it evenly.
It changes when the volume lands, not the shape of the business — but for a cash flow forecast that distinction is the whole point. A Christmas-weighted retailer and a flat one can have identical annual revenue and completely different cash positions in September.
Where it shows up: the cash flow statement and the lowest cash point, more than the annual profit and loss.
Annual growth#
Two independent increases per sale, each with its own rate and type:
| Setting | Grows | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Annual price inflation | The price | 5% |
| Annual sales increase | The volume | 5% |
Both are off until you switch them on.
Compound vs step#
| Type | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| Compound | Each year's increase builds on the last — 5% on the already-grown figure |
| Step | The same increase each year, applied against the original |
Compound is the realistic default for prices tracking inflation. Step is the more conservative choice for volume, and worth using when you're describing a target rather than a trend.
Compounding is the setting most likely to flatter a five-year forecast: 5% compound volume growth alongside 5% compound price inflation is roughly 27% more revenue by year five than the same rates applied as steps. Investors read year-five figures with this in mind, so know which you used.
Where to set them#
Both live in a sale's advanced options — see Add or edit a sale and Sale fields.
Testing sensitivity#
The sale volume and sale price levers on a scenario move everything at once, across every sale, which is the quicker way to ask "what if growth doesn't arrive?" without editing each sale. See Edit a scenario's assumptions.
Related#
- Sale fields — every field.
- Cash flow statement — where seasonality shows.
- Dates & period rules — how periods work.