diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 32530b4..361bc3e 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -4,9 +4,8 @@
 # Define Python and pip executables inside virtual environment
 PYTHON := venv/bin/python
 PIP := venv/bin/pip
-
-# Celery worker command
 CELERY := venv/bin/celery
+FLASK := venv/bin/flask
 
 # Default target that runs the application
 all: run
@@ -100,15 +99,15 @@ venv:
 
 # Run the application in debug mode
 run: venv
-	venv/bin/flask --app scipaperloader --debug run
+	$(FLASK) --app scipaperloader --debug run
 
 # Format code using Black and isort
-format:
+format: venv
 	venv/bin/black .
 	venv/bin/isort .
 
 # Check if code meets formatting standards
-format-check:
+format-check: venv
 	venv/bin/black --check .
 	venv/bin/isort --check .
 
@@ -116,15 +115,15 @@ format-check:
 reformat: format lint
 
 # Check code for style issues using flake8
-lint:
+lint: venv
 	venv/bin/flake8 .
 
 # Run static type checking with mypy
-mypy:
+mypy: venv
 	venv/bin/mypy scipaperloader
 
 # Run the test suite
-test:
+test: venv
 	venv/bin/pytest
 
 # Build distribution package after running checks
@@ -134,24 +133,61 @@ dist: format-check lint mypy test
 # Set up complete development environment
 dev: clean venv
 
-# Start Celery worker for processing tasks
-celery: venv
+# Start Celery worker - PURGE FIRST
+celery: venv redis
+	@echo "Purging Celery task queue before starting worker..."
+	# Purge the queue forcefully. Ignore errors if queue is empty/unreachable initially.
+	@-$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery purge -f
+	@echo "Starting Celery worker..."
 	$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery worker --loglevel=info
-    
+
 # Monitor Celery tasks with flower web interface
 celery-flower: venv
 	$(PIP) install flower
 	$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery flower --port=5555
 
 # Run Celery beat scheduler for periodic tasks
-celery-beat: venv
-	$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery beat --loglevel=info
+celery-beat: venv redis
+	@echo "Starting Celery beat scheduler..."
+	# Ensure celerybeat-schedule file is removed for clean start if needed
+	@-rm -f celerybeat-schedule.db
+	$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery beat --loglevel=info --scheduler django_celery_beat.schedulers:DatabaseScheduler
 
 # Check if Redis is running, start if needed
 redis:
-	@redis-cli ping > /dev/null 2>&1 || (echo "Starting Redis server..." && redis-server --daemonize yes)
+	@if ! redis-cli ping > /dev/null 2>&1; then \
+		echo "Starting Redis server..."; \
+		redis-server --daemonize yes; \
+		sleep 1; \
+	else \
+		echo "Redis is already running."; \
+	fi
 
 # Run complete application stack (Flask app + Celery worker + Redis + Beat scheduler)
 run-all: redis
 	@echo "Starting Flask, Celery worker and Beat scheduler..."
-	@$(MAKE) -j3 run celery celery-beat
+	# Run them in parallel. Ctrl+C will send SIGINT to make, which propagates.
+	# Use trap to attempt cleanup, but primary cleanup is purge on next start.
+	@trap '$(MAKE) stop-all;' INT TERM; \
+	$(MAKE) -j3 run celery celery-beat & wait
+
+# Stop running Celery worker and beat gracefully
+stop-celery:
+	@echo "Attempting graceful shutdown of Celery worker and beat..."
+	@-pkill -TERM -f "celery -A celery_worker:celery worker" || echo "Worker not found or already stopped."
+	@-pkill -TERM -f "celery -A celery_worker:celery beat" || echo "Beat not found or already stopped."
+	@sleep 1 # Give processes a moment to terminate
+	@echo "Purging remaining tasks from Celery queue..."
+	@-$(CELERY) -A celery_worker:celery purge -f || echo "Purge failed or queue empty."
+
+# Stop Flask development server
+stop-flask:
+	@echo "Attempting shutdown of Flask development server..."
+	@-pkill -TERM -f "flask --app scipaperloader --debug run" || echo "Flask server not found or already stopped."
+
+# Stop all components potentially started by run-all
+stop-all: stop-celery stop-flask
+	@echo "All components stopped."
+
+# Default target
+all: run