If you needed to purchase a $100 item for a wedding cake, but you would keep the item for future use, how much would you charge for the use if the item?

I am NOT in business, so take this with a grain of salt. I would not charge for it. To me, it is something the baker should have. Kind of like an oven!

I did some cookies for a friend, and she wanted some in a specific shape...I ordered it, but since it is mine and I will reuse it I am not going to take her money for it (although she is the type that will find some way to make me take it...).

hello

I agree, however, if the item is something you will use on the cake or with the cake.. like a decorative stand, or a fountain, then you will want to charge a deposit. This is in case the item is broken or not returned. Then you can charge the full value of the item as a depost & return the money with the item has been returned.

Ciao

That's kind of a sticky situation if you're a home baker. I know when I was doing cakes, a couple of people wanted the character pan cakes. I told them to pick out the cake pan they wanted, they brought it to me, and I told them they could either take it and keep it, or I would buy it from them by deducting 1/2 of the cost of the pan from the cake. Both times the person was willing to sell it back to me for 1/2 the cost. I think they were so happy to get the exact cake they wanted that they didn't mind.
I know that this isn't the same situation, but if you are kind of a small-time baker, it's not very profitable to buy pans or equipment that may never be used again.

If the item is something you would rent then I would charge for the rental of that item. Something like a cake stand or fountain etc.... To keep your costs down you might be able to rent the item yourself and just pass that on to the customer. You of course would be responsible for the item. As far as certain cake pans and things you need to prepare the cake design it is one on those things you just have to make an investment in. It also depends on the size of the cake. I wouldn't invest that much say in a cake for 50 unless you are getting a real good price on it.

What about charging a 1/4 of the price as a usage fee? Eventually, you're going to need to replace it whether it is 1 year or 10 years from now. Might as well get your moneys worth.

I agree with cupcake, you have to call it an investment in your business. When I have to use my fountain that I own, I charge a rental fee of $30. Its all in the cost of the wedding cake. Even if you rented some equipment, say a fountain, when you return it do you get your money back? Before I purchased my own I don't think I received my money back. What piece of equipment are you talking about?

Well if it's a fountain and pillar set, then yea I can see charging a fee. Maybe $5 usage fee.

Well I just rented a plateau and a dummy cake and charged a refundable deposit on top of the rental.
I went to pick up my plateau and dummy and to my suprise the dummy was destroyed can't save any of it I have do it from scratch again. All the prep work gone it took over 1 week to make some of the pieces. The bride won't be recieving her deposit back. Learned a lesson the hard way. Oh the plateau wasn't even cleaned.

A lot of specialty cake stands are very expensive, like the Garden Cake Stand by Wilton...it costs $170.00 plus tax. I have seen a few wedding cake contracts which state that if a bride wants to use a decorator's personal cake stand, she will pay a "replacement cost" deposit which will be returned to her when she returns the cake stand in good condition, less a $25.00 rental fee. I believe that most brides would be happy to rent and return the stand, so they don't have to find and pay for a new one. The "replacement cost" is the amount it would cost to replace the item. In the past 18 months I have purchased a lot of nice cake stands, to use when I start doing wedding cakes soon. I spent a LOT of money to buy nice things. If you place a value on something, other people will value it also, and therefore take care of it, especially if they know they will get their money back. Just my opinion, of course.

I agree with everyone. I would charge a rental fee plus a deposit that is the cost of the item. Once it is returned in the same condition as you rented it then I would refund the deposit but still keep the rental cost.