Planned featurePlanned
A bakery loyalty program that knows what each reward costs
A bakery loyalty program is planned in Farinu, not live yet: it will count each customer's orders and tell you when a reward is due, priced at what the reward costs you, not what it sells for. The key fact first: a free loaf after nine paid ones is a 10% discount on that customer's spend, but it only costs you the ingredients, packaging and time in one loaf. Today you can already keep your customers and their orders in Farinu and know that cost to the cent.
Why a bakery loyalty card is cheaper than it looks
Most loyalty cards for bakeries are stamp cards: buy a number of items, get one free. Bakers often worry the free item eats the profit. It helps to price the reward at its cost, because that is what leaves your kitchen.
Here is a worked example with made-up but realistic numbers. A sourdough loaf sells for $8.00 and costs $3.20 to make once you count flour, starter, the bag, your time and the oven. The card gives the 10th loaf free.
| Over 10 loaves | Without the card | With the card |
|---|---|---|
| Money in | $80.00 | $72.00 |
| Cost of 10 loaves | $32.00 | $32.00 |
| Profit | $48.00 | $40.00 |
| Profit per loaf | $4.80 | $4.00 |
What you can do in Farinu today
The loyalty part is planned, but the pieces it will stand on are live. Recipe costing gives you the real cost of each product, so you can decide which reward you can afford before you print a single card.
Customers and custom orders keep every order tied to a customer, with their WhatsApp number, deposits and balance payments. The sales log and the monthly P&L show whether your regulars are growing your month.
- Cost every recipe, including packaging, sub-recipes, labour, machines and overhead, free for up to 10 recipes.
- Set a target markup or price for each recipe, then check a reward still leaves you a margin you accept.
- Keep customers with their WhatsApp number and every custom order they place, up to 50 orders a month on the free plan and unlimited on Team.
- Use a paper stamp card for now, and note the reward on the order when a customer redeems it.
What the bakery loyalty program will do
The plan is to count orders and spend per customer from the orders you already record, so there is no second list to keep. You set the rule, such as every 10th loaf free or a reward after a set amount spent, and Farinu shows who is close to one.
Because Farinu already costs your recipes, each reward will be shown at its cost and its effect on your margin, not only its price. When a reward is due, the idea is a ready WhatsApp message you send yourself, the same way balance reminders work today.
This describes what we intend to build. Details may change before it ships, and we will say so on this page when it does.
Bakery CRM without the CRM
A small bakery does not need a sales pipeline. It needs to remember who orders the birthday cake every March, who still owes a balance, and who has bought ten loaves this season. That is what a bakery CRM means at this size, and it lives inside your orders in Farinu.
On the Team plan, helpers can take orders and see customers without ever seeing your costs, so the reward math stays with the owner.
Questions
- Does Farinu have a loyalty program now?
- No. It is planned. Today Farinu keeps your customers and their orders and costs your recipes, which is what the loyalty feature will build on.
- How do I know what a free item really costs me?
- Cost the recipe in Farinu. The cost includes ingredients, packaging, labour, machines and overhead, and that is what a free item costs you, not its price.
- What reward should a bakery loyalty card give?
- Pick a product with a good margin and a low cost, and check the effective discount. Ten-for-nine is 10% off; five-for-four is 20%, which is much more.
- How will I hear when it ships?
- This page will say so when the loyalty feature is available. Meanwhile, a free account lets you cost your recipes.
Related pages
Know your regulars and what they earn you
Create a free account and cost your recipes now. This page will say when loyalty rewards arrive in Farinu.