Indian River Consulting Group has started publishing its distributor Pandemic Revenue Index (PRI). The goal, IRCG notes, is to give distributors a weekly quantified view into how other distributors in the industry are faring with respect to revenue declines as the global COVID-19 pandemic progresses.

The PRI is being placed in the public domain to maximize impact. The distributors in Indian River Consulting Group’s sample group have agreed to share data until the crisis passes.

For the work week starting March 16, 2020, sales for the represented distributors were down 5.56% from the prior-year period, compared with an increase in sales of 3.01% year-over-year for the work week running March 9-13, 2020.

The PRI offers distributors a window into how their business plans are performing year over year. The chart shows the percent change in sales in 2020 compared with the same week in 2019, helping to reveal how revenue declines may have driven by uncontrollable forces, such as the current COVID-19 global disruption.

IRCG Founder Mike Marks said many business owners are caught off-guard when they suddenly run out of cash. “We’re aiming to provide insight into how distributors can better monitor their cash flow,” he said. “For many, survival is knowing their Days To Die (DTD) and having a quick sense of market changes, so they can take action to preserve their capital. The PRI provides that market insight.”

The PRI data chart will be updated weekly. It is approved for external publishing with proper attribution. Find the PRI chart and more resources at ircg.com/stress-testing.