Some people don’t deserve to run a business.

A basic rule of  business is that income has to exceed expenses. If it doesn’t, then you have to figure out why (and determine how to tweak your model to be successful).

Or maybe not.

According to an article in the Washington Post, a local restaurant is asking customers for donations of $50 and $100–to pay its $133,344 tax bill. According to the article, the restaurant is pitching that:

“In order to stay open and provide you with the healthful vegan dining experience you’ve grown to love, we are going to need a little help from our community.”

They have reportedly raised about $3,000, presumably from people who like to champion lost causes. Because before they were shut down by the D.C. Department of Tax and Revenue for nonpayment of taxes, they were almost evicted for nonpayment of rent.

Putting side my aggravation with people who doesn’t pay their taxes, let’s consider one basic fact.

You don’t have a sustainable business model if you can’t pay your bills.

What left me shaking my head on this story is that they just don’t get it. They’re not talking about revenue strategies, ways to build foot traffic, or where and how to cut expenses. They just want to “appease the tax guys and give them what they need to get the doors back open.”

I get it: Running a business is hard work. But “healthful vegan dining experience” is no substitute for a business plan.

Photo by sillygwailo (Flickr).