I am SOOO glad that last week is over with! A few months ago, I tried to get into a local bridal show and was told that they were full. The organizer offered to put me on a waiting list and said that I should check back with her in mid-August. So, mid-August, I called her back and there were still no openings. So, I resign myself to the fact that I will just have to try to get into the next show in January. Then, THURSDAY EVENING the organizer calls and says that there was a last minute drop-out and did I want the spot? OMG! I'll say it was last minute! Since I appear to have absolutely NO common sense left in my brain, I said yes. She gave me the table at half the price, at this will guarantee that I am in the January show, so how could I refuse??

So, I kick into overdrive and get busy making samples, a dummy cake, etc. Luckily I already had brochures and business cards. I iced my dummy cake with spackling, then it rained all weekend so it never actually dried all the way. (NOTE TO SELF #1: Make dummy cakes WAY ahead of time next time!) I recruited my Mom to help me bake, and my oldest niece to babysit the day of the show. DH came with me to the show to help hand out samples, etc. (NOTE TO SELF #2: Buy DH nice steak dinner for being so helpful!!)

Sunday came and despite huge bags under my eyes from lack of sleep and hayfever combined, I got myself to the show! At first I felt so intimidated! I told DH I felt like a chiwawa trying to play with the big dogs. One of the other cake vendors had this huge lit up display, a revolving cake to serve at least 300 people, and another one had 4 different fondant dummies, all decorated to the nines. My little dummy cake was looking pretty meek! If DH had not been there to encourage me, I'm not sure I would've stayed. Then the brides started coming in, and I got busy talking to people and handing out samples, and I started to feel better. Then I started noticing that people were handing me their plates from one of the other 'big' cake places, with only 1 bite missing, and were asking me to throw them away because they didn't like the frosting or cake or both! I would watch them as they were walking away, tasting my cake and there were lots of smiles, and eyes rolling (picture Rachael Ray tasting something). I handed out over 300 samples, so I was glad I spent so much time working on that. (NOTE TO SELF #3: Next time bring more specialty flavors and leave the white cake at home.) I made my white caramel cake and white cake as samples. I completely ran out of the white caramel cake.

I definitely need to step up my display, and add more wedding pictures to my photos. As far as the show went, I'm pretty sure it was a success. Time will tell for sure, but I know I could not have even touched that much exposure in any other advertising medium, so it was money well spent. I am absolutely exhausted, but just had to share my little venture with you all. The various threads here about bridal shows were a huge help, since I have not been to a bridal show in 8 years, and really didn't know what to expect. THANK YOU!!! (Wow, you made it to the end! LOL)

PS: I'll post a couple of pics of my display on this thread a little later. Right now I'm going to go take a nap!

Congratulations! What a great opportunity....and they liked your cake the best!! Nay-nay-nay-nay-nay

LOL!! Taste matters!

Ok, Im exhausted just reading what you did! I have to say, those other cakes may have been wired for electricity but that didn't make them taste any better. I would rather have a nice looking cake that tastes like heaven than a huge, fancy thing that leaves the room in garbage bags. WAY TO GO!! Of course, I am writing this while staring at a table covered with naked cake dummies that have to be done by Sunday AM. What was I thinking? GET OFF THE COMPUTER!!!

congratulations on everything you accomplished! I would love to get into any kind of fair or contest but I just dont know where to begin .. I have only decorated cakes for a short time .. well I guess not that short just under two years .. but I really want to get out there and get involved.. you should be very proud of yourself!

wow! Good for you! I am not sure I could have handled the stress of such short notice, but you took the reins and really pulled it off.

I have found more and more brides really wanting a flavorful cake.

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard someone look at a gorgeous cake and ask, " yeh, but how does it taste?!"

Sounds like you ended up with a great success! Bravo!

okay, so i had to take a deep breath after reading that-wow

oh congrats--wow wow wow-- & yummmmmmy

sometimes big isn't always better --i just know that you'll be getting the calls

COngratulations! How exciting! I would love to do a bridal show - I'm not really ready but I loved going to them and some of the cakes tasted soo bad - I'd love to be able to put mine out there Good for you for doing it last minute too!

Wow - you did a great job of getting it all together in order to show up for this !! Good work !!! I'm new at this so haven't done anything like bridal shows yet but can't wait to do it, and your suggestions are great !!!

Can you tell me what kind of samples you took? Did you make the cake and cut it up into small slices ready to go? Oh, I'd love the recipe for the white caramel cake, too, if you don't mind. I LOVE CARAMEL and ooooh, with white cake !!!!

Have you tried Zyrtec-D for allergies? I have miserable hayfever and used to get allergy shots - but when I couldn't stand doing them anymore I went back to the allergy doc and he gave me the Zyrtec. It's working great and I only take one in the morning (they recommend one in the a.m. and one at night but I get too dried out doing that). I've had no problems with sneezing, headaches, stuffy nose since taking the Zyrtec-D.

Great job on the show !!!

OMG!!! I would have been freaking out and God bless your DH for helping and encouraging you. It sounds like your cakes were a hit and what a compliment to see the smiles on people's faces. Good for you for going and I'm sure in January you will be an even bigger hit. I'm just hoping to make a wedding cake someday.


Melvira, my husband and I are celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on the 15th as well!

Hope you have had a good rest! Your effort will pay off in the near future, I'm sure! And may your experience serve as an example to all the newbies in the trade.Congrats to you and DH! That's the way to go up the ladder of success.

Congratulations!!! What a great bunch of work in a small amount of time!!! Sooo happy for you!

Congratulations!! That's Awesome!!!

I personally prefer to sometimes go with the smaller business person/group that gives you more of the personal touch and attention than the bigger I know everything kind of thing....Am I making sense..???

you should be so proud of yourself ....keep us posted...

Keep on baking....

can you share with me your white caramel cake ....??? it sounds delicious!!! My bday is coming up and would love to try it.....

cindy

I would also LOVE to see the white caramel cake if you are interested in sharing it. I always need new ideas to keep it interesting. You get tired of the same old all the time!

Congratulations Diesel!! (It seems like so much longer as we lived together for 6 years before we got married!)

Nice work pulling that off. Sometimes we work the best under pressure. I would love to have the recipe too. Taste is important and it sounds like you were a hit.

Thank you all so much! There is no way I ever would have dreamed of doing this bridal show had I not had the knowledge and sharing available here at CC! I'll try to answer some of your questions:

For samples, I baked (4) 11x15 cakes, each only 1" tall. I lightly iced them in BC, then slightly froze them (just enough to get them firm so they would cut nicely, about an hour in the freezer). I cut each cake into 1"x1" pieces and put them in small bathroom sized dixie cups. (They happened to have cups with gold stripes, which match my business logo. Otherwise I would have bought the little plastic 2 oz. containers.) I covered each cup with Press-n-Seal wrap to keep them fresh and moist. With such small pieces of cake, you want to make sure to keep icing to a minimum so they can still tasted the cake. I handed them out with little tester/tasting spoons and a napkin. This worked out really well, and I will go through the trouble to do it this way again next time.

My white caramel cake recipe is so easy, I'm embarassed to tell you all! LOL Take your favorite white cake recipe and add 2 tablespoons of Coffeemate Vanilla Caramel non-dairy powdered creamer. That's it! People go berzerk over it though! The extra flavor that you get from just that is amazing.

Things I want to do next time:
* More pictures
* Have forms for a prize drawing at my table
* Make an easel sign or banner to put behind me
* Bring more 'alternative' flavors and leave the white cake at home
* Have 3 dummy cakes
* Make myself a nice apron with my logo on it to wear
* Have some sort of freeby (besides the samples) to hand out

Here's a pic of my table set-up:

That's wonderful! Good for you!
Thanks for sharing

Wow all that in such a short time, congratulations, your table looks nice as well. You really pulled if off well. I hope you have a lot of free time , because from the sound of it, you'll get loads of orders.

I am giving you a good pat on the back. Putting that together on such short notice is tough, but gained valuable knowledge and experience with this venture. I remember the first time I went to a sugar art show, I was completely stunned at some of the displays. You did a great job, and glad they liked your cake. I hope you get some orders for all your work.

Wow, sounds like you did great Thanks for sharing with us, I'd like to do a Bridal show. How much time would you estimate that it took you to prepare everything cakes/displays/planning ect.? Hope you get lots of orders from all of that hard work, sounds like you had fun!

Hats off to you You pulled it off. Don't you love short notices My thought as I was reading your first post was I hope she had a sign up drawing. Get those names. Did your show supply you with the names of the brides who registered for big drawings. Our shows do and also let you donate items or services given away on stage during the fashion show. Good advertising. But one thing I have learned KISS keep it simple sister. Those brides are in a rush to see everything. Sometimes less is more. Have a good display but offer good cake or products. I haven't done a bridal show with my cakes yet but did it for another business I was in. What brides are looking for are ideas and freebies. Even if you offer discounts on orders as a prize they will book with you if your cakes taste and look good to get that discount. Good luck in Jan

oh my gosh!!!! YOU GO GIRL!!

I loved reading your post...
I was going to do the big bridal show in jan. with lots of time to prepare. then decided that I just couldn't afford to pay the $1,500 it cost, so I found another bridal show that was willing to make me a deal because it would be my first show, and it cost 1/2 the amount. But the show is Oct. 15th! I was stressing out....not as much now after reading your post though. my biggest stress factor is that I haven't really decided for sure what my prices are...that is giving me the biggest headache.

I am intrested in knowing if you'll be getting a list of the brides that attended, and what you might do with that list...are you going to send out post cards? you should.

thank you so much for your post!!! please keep us informed of the cake orders you get from this.

one more question, did you happen to ask if the brides would like to schedual a tasting? that way you have an appointment and contact info... is this something you would do at your next bridal show?

thanks!

melody

Melodyscakes, I say GO FOR IT! Yes, I will be getting a list of all of the brides who registered, complete with addresses and wedding date.

I am working on putting together a small information packet to send out once I get the addresses. I want it to be really elegant looking and seem very personal, like I made it just for each bride. I think I will also include a coupon for a XX%off of a bridal shower cake order too. I haven't decided exactly what discount to give yet though.

I let as many brides as would stand there to listen know that I offer private tastings. My deal is that they can choose 3 flavors of cake and 3 flavors of filling that they can mix and match together to find what they like best. The cost is $25, and if they book their cake order at that time the cost is credited to their order. (I serve 4" unfilled cakes, lightly iced in BC and the fillings in dishes w/spoons.)

momsandraven, do you have a liscensed kitchen?? I have thought about bridal shows, but I'm not sure if I should have a liscense before I do this? BTW, your table looked fabulous!

momsandraven, I am in complete ahhhhhhhh at your post & the length you went to to pull this event off. You did a perfect job!!

What i love about this site it two things: People with a DEEP passion & sharing. You did not have to share your "secret" for your cake. But you did. Kudos to you!!! Sweet & simple it is & I love it.

Being on this website give me chills cause its so wonderful. Literly!!

Thank you so much for sharing!!!

Monica


edited cause I can not spell...lol

Ohhhh, you did AWsome!!! It looks like your table was just fine, especially on short notice! Funny about the tasting from other designers!

I had a similar story recently but with a different result--I missed the bridal show because I didn't hear about it until 2 days prior, and it would have required at least 1000 servings (to 1500 )...so I briefly and madly considered doing nonstop baking and midnight brochure printing, but DH wisely restrained me to wait until the January one. I was SO mad at missing this smaller one, though, because there was NO ONE there with CAKES!! Can't believe I missed it!! I'm doing the January one for sure and waiting on info in the mail from the helpful lady who I talked to. I'm nervous and excited about it, and I like your idea about leaving the white cake at home...hmm..!

You go, girl, for pulling it off!!

Dolcesunshine20, yes I bake in a licensed kitchen. A local sandwich shop owner lets me bake at her place when she is closed. I love your signature line, and firmly believe in it! I have to tell you a little story... a while back I was trying to decide if going in to baking cakes was really a way to use my God-given gifts to serve people. I was so up in the air. I prayed and asked for success if this was part of God's will for me. Within 2 weeks, I had 5 orders. That doesn't sound like much, but before that I averaged only 1 cake every other weekend- maybe! So 5 cakes was a huge deal! Since then, I have put my faith in Him and am just following his lead! It has been an amazing thing to experience.

Monica0271, thanks for your kind comments. I am happy to share here, as so many people have shared with me! I agree that there are many very generous people here on CC.

Homecook- sorry to hear that you missed out, but I think that DH was wise in his advice. This was a relatively small show compared to what you are talking about, and I can guarantee you that it took every ounce of my energy to come up with what I did. 3 or 4 times more samples & people would have been way too much for 2 days notice. Now, the key is to start planning a killer table for January! Don't put it off, you know what November & December is like, you'll have no time for planning it then!

Wow! Good for you for pulling that off! I would have died!!! I am always amazed when I hear that high-end bakers' cakes are dry, but this seems to be a common complaint. I'm sure you blew them out of the water!

Your table looks great! What a nice job you did on such short notice!

I am really looking for help on getting a place at a bridal show. I don't have a clue as to how to get started. In one of your posts you said to get started now for a show in January (???) Do most summer brides start going to shows in January? Should I buy a couple of bridal magazines to see how to get started in a bridal show?

Thanks!
Suzanne

I've done bridal shows for my non-cake bridal business. And in general, the January show is THE big one. Christmas through New Year's is the most popular time to get engaged. And all those newly engaged brides are very excited and jump at the chance to go to a bridal fair. In my experience, the brides at fairs are *very* newly engaged and very early in their planning process. that didn't work so well for my business (brides typically want to choose their dress before deciding on accessories ) but it will work nicely for cakes.

I'm not sure if I've ever seen anything in a bridal mag that will show you how best to set up for a show, Suzanne. But look into subscribing to Vows, a magazine for the bridal industry. A lot of their articles are for dress shops, but they also have a lot of good general information, too. And the standard bridal magazines are great for getting an idea of current trends and what the brides will want to see.

I know I said it in a prior thread, but it bears repeating. I've never paid full price for a booth. The first time I came in at the last minute and got a mondo booth for $500. Then, as a repeat customer, I was offered the same deal for the January show. There's a lot of room for negotiation at those shows, so don't be afraid to drive a hard bargain.

Also, it's great to hand out business cards--but the brides are picking up oodles of stuff. A wee business card can easily get lost in the huge bag o brochures the bride picks up. So I like to hand out not only my card, but a flyer with a coupon as well. It gives the bride an incentive to keep the information. Pictures are always a plus. Definitely have a website listed on your info.

Momsandraven--GREAT work on such short notice. Your booth looked wonderful, not lacking at all. It's always nice to add more, but I'd be very proud of what you accomplished, especially on such short notice.