The handbook · Build the place
Suppliers and purchasing
Purchasing is the big cost you can affect every week. A few hours here gives more than many campaigns.
Summary
The big wholesalers in Sweden are Martin och Servera, Menigo, Svensk Cater and Axfood Snabbgross. Many restaurants use one main supplier for basics and add a local specialist for meat, fish or ethnic goods. Ask for a price agreement on your twenty most bought items and compare per kilo, not per package.
Numbers to plan with
- 20 items
- account for eighty percent of the purchasing. Watch them.
- 2 to 3
- deliveries a week is enough for many smaller kitchens
- 10 to 30 days
- of credit you get once you have shown that you pay on time
- 5 to 10 %
- is what you can save just by comparing and negotiating
Who delivers what
No supplier is best at everything. A large wholesaler has the range and drops it all at once. A local butcher can have better meat at a better price, but you often have to collect it yourself.
Many end up with a mix: one main supplier that covers the bulk, plus one or two specialists.
| Type | Suits | Things to consider |
|---|---|---|
| Large wholesaler | Basics, dry goods, frozen, packaging | Range and delivery to the door, but the list price is rarely your price |
| Cash and carry | Quick top ups | You collect it yourself, good when something runs out on a Friday |
| Local butcher or fishmonger | Meat and fish with better quality | Often cheaper and fresher, but you have to drive there yourself |
| Ethnic wholesaler | Spices, rice, special goods, halal | Best price on the goods they know best, check the best before dates |
| Brewery and drinks supplier | Soft drinks, beer, coffee | Often lend out a fridge and a machine free of charge in exchange for a contract |
How to get better prices
The price you get is rarely the price in the catalogue. Wholesalers work with agreed prices, and the one who asks gets better terms than the one who does not.
Make a list of your twenty most bought items. Send it to two suppliers and ask for a price on exactly those articles. The difference usually surprises.
- Always compare price per kilo or per litre, never per case
- Ask for the supplier's own brand goods. Often the same quality, but lower price.
- Group deliveries into fewer days. Many charge per trip below a certain order value.
- Do not change main supplier over fifty öre. Change when the difference is real and lasting.
- Check the invoice against the delivery note every week. A wrong price sneaks in more often than you think.
Stock, counting and waste
Every kilo in the freezer is money standing still. A small kitchen needs less stock than many think when deliveries come twice a week.
Count the twenty most important items every week, same day and time. It takes twenty minutes and shows quickly if something disappears.
- First in, first out. New goods behind the old ones, always.
- Date label everything that is opened or prepared in the kitchen
- Count waste in kronor, not in kilos. It makes it clearer for the staff.
- A full freezer room is not safety, it is tied up capital and forgotten goods
Common questions
Do I need a contract with a wholesaler to buy from them?
No, you can buy without a contract, but then you pay the list price. Apply for a customer account as soon as you have a company registration number, preferably before you open. Then you have time to get prices and credit before you need them.
Can I shop at Ica or Willys for the restaurant?
Yes, it is allowed, and many do it when something runs out. But it is expensive as a routine and you rarely get receipts that suit the bookkeeping as well. Use it as an emergency fix, not as a system.
Do I need halal certified goods?
It depends on your guests. Many wholesalers have halal certified meat in their range. If you say the meat is halal you must be able to show the certificate, otherwise it damages trust more than it helps.
How much stock should I keep?
Think in days, not in kilos. Fresh goods two to three days, frozen and dry one to two weeks. More than that ties up money that would do better work in the bank account.