PHP spreadsheet data source

HI Experts,

I am building a simple order form for a client and they are scared off by the prospect of a MySQL DB.  Not sure why but they want to store a price list in an excel spreadsheet and upload it to the site.

Uploading isn't a problem, but is it a straight forward process to parse values from an xls or csv file into an array or session varialbe?  Any pitfalls to be aware of?

Thanks,

HNM