Delcor does coffee and event catering around Ghent. Quotes were built in a spreadsheet, usually as a copy of a previous one, and then everything went into the calendar by hand. Now there is one file per event that holds the proposals, produces the branded quote PDF, mails it and fills the calendar itself.
Delcor does coffee and event catering out of Evergem, near Ghent. Sandwich lunches, receptions, coffee breaks, for companies, hospitals and schools in the region. Often several deliveries a day, each with its own time, its own location and its own numbers.
The starting point
Every event starts as an email. The quote was then built in a spreadsheet, usually starting from a copy of a previous one. For the same event there are often several proposals on the table, because the client still has to choose. And once confirmed, everything went into the calendar by hand. One calendar entry per delivery, with the timing, the person who ordered, the location, the quantities and the allergies. That calendar is the real working tool there, it is what everyone looks at.
Nothing wrong with that way of working, it exists because it works. But between every step sat retyping, and retyping is where mistakes live.
What we built
One file per event. It holds the proposals side by side, with lines from their own catalogue of eighty products. The VAT summary calculates live, because a single event happily mixes 6, 12 and 21 percent. The quote comes out as a branded PDF in one click, and mailing happens straight from the file, quote attached. And yes, there is a button to duplicate a previous event. Starting from a copy is simply how this trade works, so it deserves a button instead of a spreadsheet.
The calendar fills itself
When the client confirms, the portal creates a calendar entry per delivery, in the calendar the team already lives in. Timing, orderer, location, quantities, allergies, it is all there, and it moves along when the event changes. If several proposals are still open, the entry honestly says so, so nobody stands ready with the wrong menu. Delcor even sets the layout of those entries themselves, with a live preview of what it will look like.
In their own hands
The team runs the portal themselves. Inviting users, assigning roles, filling in the connections, it all happens in the settings, no developer needed. There is a searchable help page and a printable manual in two languages. And every event carries its status, from option to invoiced, so one look at the overview tells you what still needs doing.
And you?
We see this pattern everywhere, far beyond catering. A spreadsheet that produces quotes, a calendar somebody fills by hand every day, and retyping everyone has come to consider normal. Sound familiar? Let us have a look. The first look is free and without obligation.
