Analysis of financial statement footnotes of BIST retail sector companies for the years 2017-2021 in terms of TFRS 15 requirements

One of the most important factors in determining the financial performance of businesses is revenue. For this reason, it is extremely important to measure the revenue obtained as a result of the ordinary activities of the enterprises in a realistic way and to include them in the financial statements in a timely manner. TFRS 15 Revenue from Customer Contracts standard was published in the Official Gazette and entered into force by the Public Oversight Accounting and Auditing Standards Authority (KGK), which is authorized to publish accounting and auditing standards in Turkey, for the accounting periods starting after 01/01/2018. With the entry into force of this standard, TAS 18 Revenue and TAS 11 Construction Contracts standards have been abolished. TFRS 15 brought significant changes in the recognition of revenue and these changes are expected to affect the financial statements of many sectors. The retail industry is one of these industries due to its product variety and unique applications. Because the retail sector has an important place in the global economy and is an ever-advancing sector, changes in business models increase the diversity in reporting issues related to the retail sector. TFRS 15 also addresses the special conditions of sales and special incentives in the retail sector. In this context, there are provisions on sector-specific cash incentives, shelving fees, discounts, and refunds, customer loyalty programs, free or discounted products or services, guarantees given to products sold, and returns. The aim of this study; is to reveal the similarities and differences by examining the accounting rules of TFRS 15 and TAS 18 regarding retail sector-specific issues and to determine to what extent the explanations to be made in the footnotes of the financial statements of the retail sector businesses traded in the BIST index are included by the TFRS 15 provisions. In the research within the scope of the study, the financial statements of the retail companies operating in the BIST index and the independent audit reports published in 2017-2021 were subjected to content analysis. As a result of the research, it has been seen that general explanations regarding TFRS 15 are included based on the independent audit reports and financial reports of BIST retail sector companies, but the information that needs to be explained in line with the 'Items to be Disclosed in the Footnotes' is not included or given in detail. In addition, it has been determined that the changes in the independent audit companies from which the companies receive services do not cause a significant change in the revenue reporting.