How much bread to buy

Source A: A simpler bread counter — an original bakery consultation notice

Our bakery currently sells large loaves cut to the amount each customer requests. We are considering replacing this service with smaller whole loaves in three standard sizes. The change would apply to bread sold at the counter; our recipes would remain the same. We would display each size and its price clearly so customers could decide before reaching the till.

Cutting individual portions takes time during the busy morning period. One customer may ask for a small piece, another for half and another for the remaining end. Staff must clarify the request, cut, weigh and explain the price before moving to the next person. Standard loaves could make service more predictable and let staff spend more time answering questions about the bread itself.

The current arrangement also leaves awkward pieces. A large cut surface may be less attractive to the next customer even when the bread is still perfectly suitable to eat. Planning three smaller sizes would let us bake towards known products instead of guessing how many partial loaves will be requested. We cannot yet say that this would reduce unsold bread overall. Demand for each size would need to be learned.

We know that some customers value buying an exact amount. Our smallest proposed loaf is intended for people who need less, but we have not settled its weight. Please tell us what you usually buy and how long it lasts. We want a workable range, not three labels which conceal almost identical quantities. If customers support the change, we would explain the new sizes before introducing them and review sales during the first weeks rather than assume that a simpler counter automatically serves everyone better.

Source B: A portion which fits my household — an original customer response

I buy bread for one person. Some weeks I need a small amount before going away; on others I share a meal and need more. The present service lets me choose around those ordinary changes. A standard small loaf might be useful, but only if its actual size and price match the way people buy. The word small does not tell me how many meals I am agreeing to arrange around it.

I accept that cutting and weighing take time. I have stood in the same queue as everybody else. Yet the conversation sometimes helps a customer discover which bread suits them or how much they need. A faster transaction is not automatically a better one if it removes the reason someone visits a bakery rather than takes the nearest loaf from a shelf.

The issue of leftover pieces deserves attention. Could staff offer the remaining portion at a clear weight and price rather than leave the next person to ask? Some customers may welcome an available end. Others may not. Information would not sell every piece, but it might change a difficulty which the proposal currently treats as an unavoidable consequence of cutting.

Please test the sizes with actual customers before removing the service. Show us examples, ask about the amount we use and explain the price by weight as well as per loaf. You could also compare busy periods with quieter ones rather than assume the same arrangement is needed all day. I do not expect unlimited individual choices. I would like a change which makes the counter manageable without making a small household buy the bakery's idea of a convenient quantity.

Write a letter to the bakery responding to its proposal to replace bread cut to order with three standard loaf sizes.

Use your own words and base your response on both sources. In your response:

• evaluate the bakery’s reasons and the customer’s concerns
• recommend how the bakery should decide on a practical arrangement

Write about 250 to 350 words. Up to 10 marks are available for reading and up to 25 marks for writing.