The Catering Desk — Privacy & Data
Last updated: July 2026. Plain English. Questions: [email protected].
The short version: we collect the least we can, we tell you why, we never sell your data, and you can leave with one click.
What we collect, and why
- Your email address — when you ask for the full calculator breakdown, download the pack, or subscribe to the newsletter. We use it to send you what you asked for and, if you opted in, the newsletter.
- What you told the calculator — the numbers you type (inquiries per month, close rate, hours per proposal, and so on). We use them to compute your estimate. If you tick the benchmark-consent box, we also keep them, tied to your record, to build an anonymized industry benchmark (see below).
- A one-line "what do you run?" answer — so we know whether you're a catering, restaurant, or food-truck operator. It helps us write for the right reader.
- Basic web analytics — via PostHog, a privacy-conscious analytics tool. It records page views and button clicks so we can see whether the site works, not who you are. We don't run third-party ad trackers.
The benchmark dataset — how it's built and consented
If (and only if) you tick the benchmark box, your calculator inputs become one anonymous data point in an industry benchmark we're building. It is opt-in, never the default. When we ever publish benchmark figures, we (a) show them only after the sample is large enough to mean something, (b) always state the sample size, and (c) never attach your name, business, or email to a published number. Early data is small — we say so every time. You can withdraw your data from the benchmark anytime by emailing us.
What we do NOT do
- We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to anyone. Ever.
- We do not share your email with vendors, advertisers, or data brokers.
- We do not use your data to train third-party AI models.
Who we share data with (the tools that run the machine)
To operate at all, your data passes through a few service providers, each doing one job:
- Resend — sends the newsletter and stores the subscriber list.
- Stripe — processes pack payments. Stripe handles your card; we never see it.
- PostHog — anonymous product analytics.
These are processors acting on our behalf, not buyers of your data. Everything else lives in our own database on our own infrastructure.
Email consent and unsubscribing
We only email you marketing if you opted in. Every newsletter has a one-click unsubscribe link and a valid physical postal address in the footer, as the US CAN-SPAM Act requires. Unsubscribe and we stop immediately — well inside the 10-business-day window the law allows.
Your choices
- Unsubscribe anytime (one click in any email).
- Ask what we hold on you, ask us to delete it, or withdraw benchmark consent — email [email protected] and we'll do it.
- The calculator works without giving us an email; you only need one for the saved breakdown.
Data location and retention
Contact records live in our own Postgres database. We keep them while you're a subscriber and for a reasonable window after you leave (for suppression — so we don't accidentally re-email you). Analytics are retained per PostHog's defaults.
Children
This is a business-to-business publication. It isn't directed at anyone under 16, and we don't knowingly collect their data.
Contact
[email protected] · The Catering Desk · thecateringdesk.com