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Two milk rounds, the same milk, the same price, the same forty customers. One earns a living and the other loses money. The difference is route density, and it explains how a lunch-box network, a courier giant and a retail chain keep their costs low.

A simple question separates a strong business from one that only looks strong: if a rich rival tried to copy it tomorrow, what could the money not purchase? A sweet shop, a cola and a milk cooperative show how to ask it.

Every business pays something to win a new customer. The quiet question is how long that customer stays and what they bring while they are there. A tiffin service and a famous warehouse club show how to see it.

Every household keeps an umbrella for the day it rains. A business keeps spare cash for the same reason. But the best businesses use that cash for something more interesting than staying dry. Here is a simple way to see what spare cash is really for.