i recently lost my full time job, and have decided to go full bore making cakes/pastries for myself from home, instead of making money doing it for other people... however.. i am finding everyone left right and centre is "MAKING CAKES".. be it birthday cakes or wedding cakes it seems like everyone on the block "can make cakes" it frustrates me.. i've been doing it for a good 5 years for other companies.. so i liek to think i have a good knowledge, expirence, and creativity.. a know.. but if everyone is doing cakes, while will people buy from me???
how can i reach out and offer something different that everyone else here isn't??
can anyone else relate to me when i say this?? i'm getting a little discouraged.

i know i charge a bit more, but i'm getting my ingredients imported from europe.. why should anyone want to pay more ??

anyways thansk for listening to me vent.

I guess you have to find your knitch. Find something noone else is offering and do it well. It could be 3D, exotic flavors, or anything else. Just do it and do it well. If you bake it they will come

If you really want to do it for your full-time job get your business legal/licensed and then you can advertise, do trade/bridal shows, drop samples off the florists, bridal shops, even church secretaries to spread the word. You can be the European Cake Designer (sounds exotic and true since you import your items!)

Is anyone doing cookie bouquets in your area? That may be a niche market for you also. What about gourmet chocolates? When cake requests slowed down for me, I got into chocolates and now I have a lot of business with that.

Also, have you considered the internet? cookie baskets? Just some ideas. I agree with dodibug..look into getting licensed first then you can really branch out, especially if the other bakers in your area are not licensed!

-Rezzy

You have exactly the right question: Why should they buy from you? If "everyone" is doing cakes, then what can you offer that no one else is offering?

When I got started many many years ago, I lived in a small town with one official bakery and a couple of grocery bakeries. I got SO depressed when I found out the official bakery was pricing wedding cakes lower than me. So I whined and felt sorry for myself for about 20 minutes and then tried to come up with "why should they buy from me?" ..... exactly what you're going thru!

What I came up with was free delivery and cake set-up. That may sound pretty standard now, but 25 years ago it was a BIG extra that I was providing! In addition, I began doing the "I'll even stay and cut-n-serve your wedding cake for you!" Now NO bakery in town did that! There were a couple of other cake decorators who stayed to serve the cakes also, but I believe they charged extra for that.

I began giving my now-almost-a-trademark referral credit. Why should they buy from me? Because their friend, who gave her my name, will earn 5% referral credit.

So .... the local bakery, who was undercutting my price .... could not offer free delivery, didn't set up the cakes, didn't stay and serve the cakes and didn't give anyone an incentive to pass my name around.

I offer these things that I did as examples to get you thinking of what you can look around and see what your customers are asking for that you can provide.

With ingredients imported from Europe, you may have your spin right there! "Not your ordinary bakery cake. High quality, imported ingredients that make YOUR cake special!"

It's not "why should they buy from me". It's "Here's why you should buy from me!"

Indy, now that's good advice