Cafés operate on thin margins. Typically 3-9% net profit. When pastries go to waste because the closing team didn't communicate what sold out, or the opening team over-orders because they didn't know about yesterday's slow sales, those margins evaporate.
The information gap
The closing barista knows exactly what sold well, what didn't move, and what had to be tossed. But that knowledge walks out the door with them at 10 PM. The opening team makes ordering decisions based on guesswork, not data.
What to document every shift
- What sold out and when: "Almond croissants gone by 9 AM" tells the opener to order more, or the closing team to prep more.
- What was wasted: "Threw out 8 blueberry muffins". Either reduce the order or try a mid-day discount strategy.
- Milk usage: Which milks ran low? Oat milk demand spiking?
- Seasonal patterns: "Cold brew outselling hot coffee 3:1 this week". Shift your prep accordingly.
- Delivery issues: Late deliveries, wrong items, quality problems.
From notes to insights
Individual shift notes are useful. Patterns across shifts are transformative. When ShiftVoice shows you that almond croissants have sold out before 10 AM every day this week, that's not a shift note. That's a business decision waiting to happen. Learn more about ShiftVoice for cafés.