Navigating Profitability: A Cost Volume Profit Analysis in the Portuguese Inflatable Products Industry

Companies in the industrial sector continue to face significant challenges in identifying specific solutions that support the formulation of strategies for the continuous improvement of cost management practices. This study focuses on the year 2020, marked by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and aims to explore how Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) analysis can be effectively applied to support managerial decision-making within a company specializing in the production of inflatables. The theoretical foundation of the research is grounded in management accounting, with an emphasis on CVP analysis as a tool for strategic planning and control. The methodological approach adopted is a qualitative case study, applied to a real-world manufacturing company. Financial and operational data – including costs, pricing structures, and production volumes – were obtained from internal records and documents. Quantitative data were processed and analyzed using Microsoft Excel, while qualitative insights were interpreted in alignment with the central research question. The results reveal how the company under study conducts expense planning and cost control and demonstrate the practical usefulness of CVP analysis in guiding strategic decisions, particularly during a period of economic instability and uncertainty. In practical terms, the CVP analysis enabled managers to identify easily correctable mistakes and discover new opportunities for operational improvement. The study also contributes to theoretical discussions by affirming the continued relevance and applicability of CVP analysis, even during an atypical and turbulent economic period.