Searching through old emails for purchase prices and recipes costs hospitality entrepreneurs an average of 2-3 hours per week. You scroll through hundreds of messages, open attachments, and often you still can't find what you're looking for. That's time you don't have in a busy kitchen.
The email problem in the kitchen
Every hospitality entrepreneur recognizes this: you know you have an email somewhere with the new price list from your meat supplier. Or that recipe your chef sent last month. But where?
💡 Example:
Restaurant The Golden Spoon is looking for the price of entrecote:
- Email from supplier A: 15 minutes searching
- Old price list in attachment: 10 minutes to download and open
- Wrong month, searching for new email: 20 minutes
Total time wasted: 45 minutes for one ingredient
What does this really cost you?
The time you waste searching costs you money. Not just your own time, but also your chef's time while they wait for the cost price to calculate a new dish.
⚠️ Watch out:
Many entrepreneurs use old prices because they can't find the new email. This means they calculate with outdated cost prices and lose money per dish.
The real costs of email chaos
It's not just about search time. It's about:
- Wrong cost prices: You use old prices because you can't find the new ones
- Missed opportunities: Suppliers send discounts that you overlook
- Duplicate work: You ask for prices again because you've lost the email
- Stress: Constantly searching for information you need
💡 Example:
Pizzeria Mario uses old mozzarella prices for a month:
- Old price: €8.50/kg (in calculation)
- New price: €9.20/kg (actually paid)
- Difference: €0.70/kg
- At 50kg/month: €35 loss
Per year: €420 loss on one ingredient
Why emails don't work for price management
Email is designed for communication, not for storing business information. That's why things go wrong:
- No structure: Everything mixed up in your inbox
- No search function: Gmail doesn't search attachments well
- No overview: You can't see which prices are current
- No backup: Email gone = information gone
The solution: one central place
Successful restaurants keep their important information in one place. Not scattered across hundreds of emails, but organized and always findable.
💡 Example:
Restaurant The Coat of Arms uses KitchenNmbrs for all their prices:
- All suppliers in one place
- Prices always up to date
- Immediately see which recipes are affected
- New cost price calculated automatically
Search time: from 45 minutes to 30 seconds
What you save with a system
A good price management system saves you not just time, but also money:
- Time: From hours of searching to seconds of finding
- Accuracy: Always the right, current prices
- Overview: See the impact of price changes immediately
- Peace of mind: Know where your information is
With an app like KitchenNmbrs, you have all your ingredients, prices, and suppliers in one place. Update a price, and you immediately see the new cost price of all your dishes.
How do you organize your price information? (step by step)
Collect all current price lists
Go through your emails from the last 3 months and collect all current price lists from your suppliers. Print them out or save them in one folder on your computer.
Create one overview of all ingredients
Put all ingredients you use in one list with the current purchase price, supplier, and date of last update. This becomes your master list.
Update immediately with every price change
Every time you receive an email with new prices, update your central list right away. This way you always work with current figures and never have to search again.
✨ Pro tip
Make it a rule: every new price list that comes in gets processed immediately. Don't save it for later, because then you'll lose it again.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
Was this article helpful?
Frequently asked questions
How often do you get new price lists from suppliers?
Most suppliers send a new price list 1-2 times per year, but with strong price fluctuations (such as fish or vegetables) this can be monthly.
What if you lose an email with prices?
Call your supplier and ask for the current price list. Most will send it right back. Make sure you save it in a central location right away.
Can't you just take screenshots of prices?
Screenshots are better than nothing, but you can't calculate with them. You still have to manually enter the prices in your cost price calculations.
How do you know if your prices are still current?
Note the date you received each price. Check at least every 3 months to make sure you're still using the right prices.
What if different suppliers have different prices?
Note for each ingredient which supplier you use and at what price. This way you can easily compare and potentially switch suppliers.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
Discover what KitchenNmbrs can do for you
From recipe calculation to allergen registration, from inventory management to menu engineering. One platform for complete control of your kitchen. Try it free for 14 days.
Start free trial →