Corporate and bulk orders: pricing and terms

A corporate order is a company buying a lot from you at once: end-of-year gift boxes, treats for a meeting, catering for an internal event. To price it, start from what one unit earns you in your normal channel and work out how far you can come down using what you actually save (app commission, bags, single deliveries), without dropping below that contribution. Then secure three things before you accept: a lead time that lets you produce without rushing, a deposit that covers ingredients, and clarity on invoicing and payment terms.

What companies expect

A corporate client buys differently from a person. They will usually ask for:

• Volume pricing. They know the order is large and expect a discount.
• An invoice. With their company details, and often a purchase order number.
• An exact date. The gifts go out on the day of the event, not the day after.
• A sample. Whoever signs off wants to taste the product and see the packaging first.
• Branded packaging. A sticker or card with their logo, ribbon in their colour.
• Payment terms. Some companies pay a set number of days after receiving the invoice. Ask how many before you quote.

None of these is a problem if you know about it before giving a price. All of them are a problem if you find out afterwards.

How much discount you can give

The usual mistake is knocking off a percentage "because it is a big order". The discount has to come from something concrete. Look at what this order saves you compared with your normal sales:

• Commissions you do not pay. If you normally sell through a delivery app, that commission disappears. The guide to selling on delivery apps explains how it weighs on your price.
• Bags and single packaging. One large delivery instead of a hundred bags.
• Deliveries. One or two trips instead of many.
• Bigger batches. Making 120 of the same thing usually takes fewer hours per unit than making 20 at a time.

Then add what the order costs you on top: logo stickers, ribbon, cards, delivery to the office.

That gives you the price floor:

minimum price = variable cost of the order per unit + the contribution per unit your normal channel earns

Above that floor, you negotiate. Below it, you earn less than you would selling the same product to your regular customers.

Worked example: 120 boxes of brownies for a conference

All prices here are before any sales tax.

Your normal sales: you sell boxes of 6 brownies on a delivery app at $18.00. Say the app charges a 25% commission.

• Commission: 18.00 × 0.25 = $4.50
• Bag: $0.30
• Variable cost of the box (ingredients and box): $5.40
• Contribution per box: 18.00 − 4.50 − 0.30 − 5.40 = $7.80

The order: a company wants 120 boxes with its logo sticker and ribbon, delivered to its office. It asks for 30% off.

The price that earns the same as the app: 6.30 + 7.80 = $14.10 a box. That is 18.00 − 14.10 = $3.90 below your app price, a discount of 3.90 ÷ 18.00 = 21.7%.

At the 30% they asked for: 18.00 × 0.70 = $12.60 a box.

• Contribution per box: 12.60 − 6.30 = $6.30
• Contribution for the order: 120 × 6.30 = $756.00
• At $14.10 it would be: 120 × 7.80 = $936.00

Accepting 30% costs you $180.00 compared with offering about 22%. You might still take it, if those kitchen hours would otherwise be empty that week. But you decide knowing the number.

The invoice at $14.10: 120 × 14.10 = $1,692.00, plus sales tax if it applies to you.

Your cash: before delivery you spend 120 × (5.40 + 0.60) = $720.00 on ingredients, boxes, stickers and ribbon. If the company pays 30 days after the invoice, that is $720.00 of your money tied up for more than a month. A deposit of 50%, $846.00, covers that shopping with room to spare.

Lead time and capacity

Brownies keep only a few days, so you will bake close to the delivery date. If you can bake 60 extra boxes a day on top of your normal orders, you need 120 ÷ 60 = 2 days. Before those two days, add:

• The sample and sign-off.
• Printing time for the logo stickers.
• Buying ingredients in bulk, perhaps at a cash and carry.
• A buffer for anything that goes wrong.

Build the calendar backwards from the delivery date and give the company a date by which they must confirm. If they confirm late, the price or the quantity changes.

Invoices, deposits and payment terms

Ask before you quote:

• What the invoice needs to show and who it is addressed to. Check your local tax rules or ask an accountant about whether you need to add sales tax.
• How many days they take to pay after receiving the invoice, and whether they need a purchase order.
• Whether they accept a deposit. A reasonable deposit covers at least ingredients and packaging.

If the company pays nothing up front and pays on terms, you are giving them credit. The guide to selling on credit and payment terms explains how to work out what waiting costs you and how to build it into the price.

What to put in writing

In the quote, or an email the company confirms:

• Product, quantity, packaging and price per unit, before and after any tax.
• Delivery date, time and address.
• Deposit, balance and payment terms.
• Deadline to confirm and to change quantities.
• What happens if they cancel after you have bought ingredients.

Corporate orders can repeat: weekly snacks for an office work almost like a subscription. To see how this channel fits with the rest, read the guide to choosing your sales channels.

Do it with the calculator

Put your recipe into the food cost calculator with the margin you want; it gives you the cost per unit and the price including channel commission. Use it to find your normal channel's contribution, then build the order price from the floor above.