How to manage your bakery inventory: complete 2026 guide
A bakery that throws out 30 kg of expired flour per month loses the equivalent of two months' rent over a year. Inventory management is not accounting jargon — it's what separates a profitable bakery from one that closes its doors.
Why a bakery's stock is unique
Unlike a regular shop, a bakery juggles three totally different stock categories: raw ingredients (flour, butter, yeast, sugar), intermediate goods (dough, pastry cream), and finished products (baguettes, viennoiserie, cakes). Each category has its own shelf life and rotation pace.
A 25 kg bag of T55 flour lasts 6 months in storage. A 1 kg pack of PDO butter: 3 weeks. Pastry cream: 48 h. A baked croissant: 24 h. If you manage them all the same way, you lose money on every shelf.
The 5 ingredients to track first
In 90% of bakeries, 5 products account for 80% of raw-material spend:
- →Flour T45 / T55 / T65 — 25 kg bag, ~€22. Average usage: 8-15 kg/day. Recommended minimum: 3 days of stock.
- →Laminating butter 84% — 1 kg pack, ~€9. For croissants and laminated pastries. Highly perishable — do not overstock.
- →Fresh yeast — 500 g block, ~€2.50. Shelf life: 10-15 days refrigerated. Minimum: 2 days of production.
- →Eggs — tray of 30, ~€5. Heavily used in pastry (creams, egg wash). Cold storage required.
- →Sugar — 25 kg bag, ~€25. Average usage: 3-6 kg/day. Long shelf life.
The FIFO method: First In, First Out
FIFO means "first in, first out". It's the golden rule in a bakery: the oldest stock must be used first. Practically, when your supplier delivers, place the new pallets behind the old ones, never in front.
Set up colour-coded stickers by delivery week (green = this week, yellow = last week, red = use first). In two minutes you can see at a glance what needs to leave the shelf first.
How to set the right reorder thresholds
The reorder threshold is the quantity below which you must reorder. Simple formula:
Threshold = (average daily usage) × (supplier lead time in days) × 1.5 safety margin
Example: you use 12 kg of T55 flour per day, your supplier delivers in 2 days. Threshold = 12 × 2 × 1.5 = 36 kg. As soon as you drop below 36 kg of flour, reorder.
Automate with software like StockAlert
Everything above can be done on a notebook — but it takes 30 min a day, and human error is inevitable. Software like StockAlert handles all of it automatically:
- →You enter your products once (with their minimum threshold)
- →When you sell, stock is decremented automatically (via the built-in checkout)
- →As soon as a threshold is breached, a sound + push notification hits your phone
- →You can send the order to your supplier in 1 click via WhatsApp or Email
- →Recipes tell you how many croissants you can still produce with the stock on hand
Conclusion: 3 quick wins
Apply these principles starting next week and you can:
- →Cut waste (trashed / expired goods) by 30 to 50%
- →Save 5 to 10 hours of management every week
- →Avoid stockouts that drive customers away (no bread on Saturday morning = lost customer)
Try StockAlert free for 14 days, no credit card — you'll see the difference from the very first automatic order sent to your supplier.