The demand for college graduates with data analytics skills has exploded, while the tools and techniques are continuing to evolve and change at a rapid pace. This case illustrates how data analytics can be performed, using a variety of tools including Excel, Power BI, and Tableau. As you analyze this case, you will be learning how to use EXCEL to drill down into a company's sales and cost data to gain a deeper understanding of the company's sales and costs and how this information can be used for planning and decision-making. MASTER BUDGET FACTS AND FIGURES: You have just been hired as a management trainee by Pierre's Fashions, a nationwide distributor of a designer's Caps. The company has exclusive distribution of the Caps, and sales have grown so rapidly over the last few years that it has become necessary to add new members to the management team. You have been given responsibility for all planning and budgeting. Your first assignment is to prepare a master budget for the next 12 months starting April 1, 2022. You are anxious to make a favorable impression on the president and have assembled the information below. The company desires a minimum ending cash balance each month of $15,000. The Caps are sold to retailers for $7.00 each (70% of total sales, all on account) and $12.00 each to the individual customers in the mall stores (30% of total sales, all in cash). Recent and forecasted sales in units are as follows: Months Units Months Units October 2021 Actual 20,000 March 2022 Actual 60,000 November 2021 Actual 24,000 April 2022 Budgeted 40,000 December 2021 Actual 28,000 May 2022 Budgeted 36,000 January 2022 Actual 35,000 June 2022 Budgeted 50,000 February 2022 Actual 45,000 July 2022 Budgeted 60,000 The large buildup in sales before and during March is due to the summer seasons. The company is planning to open a new store in a shopping mall during August 2022 and expects to increase its' sales by 10% every month from August to November 2022 and then decline by 10% during December and January 2023 and afterward the sales will be unchanged. Ending inventories are supposed to equal 60% of the next month's sales in units. The company purchases the Caps from a factory in Montreal which costs the company $4.00 each (all on account). The Opening of the new store will cost the company $65,000 in advertising during July 2022. Furniture and Fixtures will cost s20,000 during July. The rent for the new store will be $3,000 a month starting July 2022. A new Sales Manager will be hired at a monthly salary of S5,000 per month and he will start in July 2022. Additional costs of running the new store will be $3,500 per month. To cover all the extra costs due to the new store the owner decided to provide an interest-free loan of $80,000 to the company during July 2022 with a condition that the company will repay the loan as much as possible by the end of the fiscal year-end of June 2023 only if there sufficient cash balance after the bank loan is repaid. Purchases are paid for 40% in the month of purchase and the remaining 60% in the following month. All credit sales to the retailers are due within 30 days. The company has found that only 60% of a month's sales are collected by the following month, and the remaining 40% is collected in the second month following the sale. Bad debts have been negligible. The company's monthly operating expenses are given below: Variable cost: Sales Commission (retail only) $1.00 per Cap sold Fixed Costs: Wages and Salaries $82,000 Utilitios 8,000 Insurance 4,200 Depreciation 2,500 Office rent 6,000 Miscellaneous expenses 4,000 All operating expenses are paid during the month in cash. The company pays a salary of $5,000 each month to the owner Pierre O'Brien, payable on the 1st week of next month. The company's balance sheet on March 31, 2022, is given below: ASSETS Cash $ 16,000 Accounts Receivable ($88,200 February sales; $294,000 from March Sales.... 382,200 Inventory (24,000 units) 96,000 Fixed Assets net of Depreciation 172,700 Total Assets $ 666,900 === = ====- == LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS EQUITY Accounts Payable $ 115,200 Salaries Payable. 5,000 Capital Stock 400,000 Retained Eamings 146,700 Total Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity $ 666,900 ==E= === The company has an agreement with the Prime bank that allows the company to borrow in increments of $1,000 at the beginning of each month, up to a total line of credit balance of S80,000. The interest rate on these loans is 1% per month, and for simplicity, we will assume that interest is not compounded. At the end of every month, the company would pay the bank all of the accumulated interest on the loan and pay back as much of the loan as possible (in increments of $1,000), while still retaining at least S15,000 in cash balance. Interest on the loan is paid only the time of repayment of the loan and on the outstanding amount. Required: Prepare a master budget for the 12 months ending March 31, 2023. Include the following detailed budgets: 1. a. A Sales Budget, by month and in total. [10 Marks] b. A Schedule expected cash collections from sales, by month and in total. [15 marks] C. A Merchandise Purchases budget in units and dollars. Show the budget by month and in total. [10 Marks] d. A Schedule of Expected Cash Disbursements for merchandise purchases, by month and in 2. A Cash Budget. Show the budget by month. [30 Marks] 3. A Budgeted Income Statement for the year ending March 31, 2023. [10 Marks] 4. A Budgeted Balance Sheet as of March 31, 2023. [10 Marks] 5. Because sales have increased after the opening of the new store, do you think that the company made a wise decision by opening the store. The owner could have invested the $80,000 interest-free Loan elsewhere earning a 6% interest annually. Explain your answer supported by numbers/calculations. [5 Marks] Note: Please make sure that you round off all the sales in units and other amounts. Because of this round-off, your Budgeted Balance Sheet may have a difference of around $5 to $20 between Total Assets and Total Liabilities. You may ignore this difference or add to any account to balance.