Order too little and you run out mid-service; order too much and cash sits on a shelf. Par levels solve both. A par level is simply the minimum quantity of an item you want on hand before you reorder, and setting them for your disposables takes the guesswork out of ordering.
What you need to know
- Weekly usage: how many of each item you go through in a normal week.
- Lead time: how long an order takes to arrive after you place it.
- Safety stock: a buffer for busy weeks and delivery delays.
A simple formula
Par level = (average daily usage x lead time in days) + safety stock. For example, if you use 200 coffee cups a day, your supplier delivers in 3 days, and you want a 2-day buffer, your par level is (200 x 3) + (200 x 2) = 1,000 cups. When stock drops to that level, you reorder.
Tips for getting it right
- Track usage for a few weeks before locking in numbers, and account for busy and slow seasons.
- Set pars for your highest-turnover items first, like cups, lids, and your most-used containers.
- Revisit pars when your menu, volume, or supplier lead time changes.
- Consolidate orders with one supplier to simplify reordering and lower your cost per case.
Make ordering easy
Once your pars are set, restocking is just topping back up to par. Buying wholesale by the case keeps your cost per order predictable; see our guide to buying disposables wholesale.
Order wholesale in Atlantic Canada
Fulji Trading supplies foodservice disposables in bulk across New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. To see wholesale pricing, request a wholesale account.