Customer Numbers Customer numbers help vendors identify customers in their own internal systems.
Use them when you want to match a Mathership customer with an existing customer record in your ERP, accounting, delivery, or order processing system.
What they are A customer number is a vendor-specific reference number assigned to a customer.
It belongs to the relationship between:
Your vendor company
The customer company
This means the same restaurant can have different customer numbers with different vendors.
Example:
Vendor Customer Customer number Beverage Supplier Main Restaurant 4711 Meat Supplier Main Restaurant 10045 Wine Supplier Main Restaurant W-203
When to use them Use customer numbers when you want to:
Identify customers in your internal system
Match Mathership customers with existing customer records
Include customer numbers in order documents
Support accounting or invoicing workflows
Improve order processing
Avoid confusion between customers with similar names
Where they are used Customer numbers can be used in:
Customer management
Customer detail pages
Vendor-customer relationships
Order emails
PDF order attachments
CSV order attachments
Internal vendor workflows
Customer numbers are managed by the vendor. They do not change the customer’s own company profile.
Adding a number A customer number can be added when you create or link a customer.
To add a number:
Go to Vendors
Open your vendor company
Go to Customers
Add or link a customer
Enter the customer number
Save the customer relationship
Required fields depend on whether you create a new customer or link an existing one.
Field Required Example Customer Yes Main Restaurant Customer number Optional 4711
Updating a number You can update a customer number later.
To update a number:
Open Customers
Select the customer
Open Customer Details
Edit the customer number
Save your changes
After saving, the new number is stored on the vendor-customer relationship.
Updating a customer number affects the relationship for future use. It does not rewrite already generated documents or emails.
From invitations Customer numbers can also be added through invitations.
When you invite a customer, you can include a customer number.
If the customer accepts the invitation or follows your vendor company later, Mathership can use that number for the relationship.
Example:
Field Example Vendor Fresh Food Supplier Customer email restaurant@example.com Customer number 4711 Invitation status Pending
When the invitation is activated, the number can be saved on the vendor-customer relationship.
Avoiding duplicates Customer numbers should be unique within your vendor company.
This helps prevent duplicate customer records and confusion during order processing.
Example:
Customer Customer number Main Restaurant 1001 Hotel Kitchen 1002 City Bar 1003
Avoid using the same customer number for multiple customers unless your internal system intentionally allows it.
Existing customers If a customer already has a Mathership account, you can link the existing customer company and assign a customer number.
This is useful when:
The customer already uses Mathership
You already have the customer in your internal system
You want to connect the existing account instead of creating a new one
New customers If the customer does not yet exist in Mathership, you can create a new customer and assign a customer number during setup.
Mathership can then create:
A customer user
A customer company
A vendor-customer relationship
The customer number on that relationship
In order attachments Customer numbers can be included in order-related documents.
This helps your team process incoming orders correctly.
Examples:
Attachment Use of customer number PDF order Shows customer reference information CSV order Helps import or match the order in another system Order email Helps identify the sender/customer
Example: Adding during setup You add a new restaurant customer.
Field Example Customer Main Restaurant Email restaurant@example.com Customer number 4711
After saving, the customer is connected to your vendor company with customer number 4711.
Example: Updating later Your internal system changes the customer reference.
Field Old value New value Customer number 4711 4711-A
After updating, the new number is used for the relationship going forward.
Example: From an invitation You invite a customer and enter their existing customer number.
Field Example Customer email restaurant@example.com Customer number 20345 Invitation status Pending
When the customer activates the invitation, the number can be linked automatically.
Best practices Use your existing system reference Use the same customer number that exists in your ERP, accounting, or delivery software.
Keep references consistent Avoid changing customer numbers unless your internal system also changed.
Check before creating a new customer Before creating a new customer, check whether the customer already exists in Mathership.
This helps avoid duplicates.
Add known numbers during invitations When inviting customers, add the customer number if you already know it.
This makes the connection cleaner once the customer accepts.
Avoid duplicates Duplicate customer numbers can cause confusion in exports, order processing, and internal communication.
Common problems Number is missing This can happen when:
The customer was added without a number
The customer followed you from the catalog
The invitation did not include a customer number
The customer number was not entered yet
You can usually add it later in the customer details.
Number is wrong Open the customer detail page and update the customer number.
Make sure the new number matches your internal system.
Number already exists If the number is already used for another customer, check whether:
The customer was already added
The wrong customer was selected
Your internal system uses duplicate numbers
A duplicate Mathership customer was created
Number does not appear on an old order Older orders or already generated documents may still show the old information.
New orders should use the updated relationship data.
Customer cannot see the number Customer numbers are mainly vendor-side references.
The customer may not see or manage the number directly.
Related pages
Add Customer Add a new customer and optionally assign a customer number.
Link Existing Customer Connect your vendor company to an existing customer account.
Customer Details View and update customer relationship details.
Invite Customers Invite customers and include a customer number in the invitation.
Order Details Review customer information on incoming orders.
CSV and PDF Attachments Understand how order attachments can include customer reference information.
