Six weeks of bread, no payment
The cafe has had bread every morning, and the owner has been meaning to ring about the last few invoices. When the call finally happens, the cafe owner is apologetic, promises to pay on Friday, and does not. By the time anyone thinks about stopping deliveries, the debt is larger than the cafe's monthly order.
Nobody in the bakery was ignoring it. The office sends invoices, the night shift bakes what is ordered, the driver delivers. No one person sees the whole picture until it is already a problem.
Why bakery debts build up quietly
Bread is delivered daily and invoiced weekly or monthly, so credit is extended every morning without anyone deciding to extend it. Small cafes and shops often have tight cash flow and pay whoever chases hardest. A bakery owner, up at night and baking, rarely has time to chase at all.
- Reminders are sent only when someone has time.
- There is no agreed point at which deliveries pause.
- The night shift and drivers do not know an account is overdue.
- Small debts across many cafes add up unnoticed.
- Chasing feels awkward with customers you see every day.
What the drift costs
Cash tied up in bread already eaten. Bad debts when a cafe closes owing weeks of invoices, which happens more often than anyone would like. Owner time spent on awkward calls. And the uncomfortable feeling of baking for customers who may not pay.
Account chasing we build
- Invoices and payments are read from Xero, QuickBooks or Sage, so the overdue position for each account is always current.
- Reminder emails and texts go out on a schedule you set, polite first, firmer later, with a link to pay by card or bank transfer through a provider such as Stripe or GoCardless if you use one.
- An overdue view shows each account, how much, how old, and the last contact, sorted so the ones that matter most are at the top.
- You set your own rules for when an account goes on hold, and the system suggests it. You decide.
- When an account is on hold, it is flagged on the order screen and the night's bake list, and on the driver's drop list, so nobody bakes or delivers to it by accident.
- When payment arrives, the hold lifts on your approval and the customer is told deliveries resume.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Invoice due | Friendly reminder with a pay link |
| A week overdue | Second reminder, owner notified |
| Your hold threshold | Hold suggested for your approval |
| On hold | Flag on orders, bake list and driver's list |
| Paid | Hold lifted on approval, customer told |
What changes
Reminders go out without anyone having to find time. The owner looks at one list once a week instead of worrying at 3am. A hold, when you decide on one, actually stops the bread, because the night shift and drivers can see it. And customers get clear, consistent messages instead of an awkward call after six weeks.
Drivers are spared the awkward part. They are not asked to collect money or explain a hold at the door; the customer has already been told by message, and the driver's list simply shows that drop as paused.
Most cafes pay when reminded politely and given an easy way to do it. The system simply makes sure the reminder happens.
When a new customer asks for credit terms, the history of how accounts like theirs have paid is there to inform the answer. You might ask for weekly payment by direct debit from a new cafe and give monthly terms to a hotel that has paid on time for years.
Is this your situation?
- Some cafes owe several weeks of invoices.
- Reminders are sent only when someone remembers.
- Drivers keep delivering to accounts that are overdue.
- You have lost money when a customer closed.
- Chasing is done by the owner between bakes.