"I'm on a budget" WHATEVER!!!! - Page 8

It's better to give a refund for a bad cake than give away a good cake for nothing.




This is the battle all cake decorators who charge for their time are fighting though....we know we take a loss if we charge anything less than X amount $ for the cake, but so many people think for X amount they better get something way above and beyond. Where I live $500 is barely middle of the road as far as pricing goes, and this is for bakeries nowhere near the fame level as Charm City.

A simple cake is just canned icing spread on an undoctored cake mix made in a pyrex casserole dish. A tiered cake with smoothed homemade icing, handmade decorations, and scratch (or doctored) cake using special supports to keep it up takes skill that one has practiced over time. It may not be fancy, but it's not simple.

It's with the first few cakes you sell where you set up your rep. If you give away simple cakes in the beginning, then you will have a huge uphill battle to climb later on down the road when you suddenly want $5 a serving for your "simple, cheap cakes" just so you can break even.

I speak from experience, trust me! The #1 fatal flaw of a cake decorator starting out selling them is charging cost or giving them away to start out. Even if it's only $1 a serving, charge -something- for your time. Otherwise all you have done is open the door to letting friends and family expect lots for nothing and telling potential customers the same thing too

Thanks! I REALLY appreciate all of you guys' help! I will DEF take your advice. I mean, she can't be mad if her last price was $650, and I charge her $300, right?

Well, she can... but only if she's a Bridezilla who would take advantage of your friendship. And, if she does, let her get it for $650 and save yourself the headache of dealing with it.

lol. I'm actually really looking forward to doing this cake. It will be the first tiered cake I've done. So I'm excited for the challenge.

EVERY person who orders from me talks about how they have such a small budget for the cake. Then don't get a cake. It's not like I'm selling car insurance or something that you NEED to have. If you can't afford a cake, you don't get a cake. It's a LUXURY item, people. Do people go to BMW and talk about how they just don't have the money for a car like this but they HAVE to have a BMW, and can't they sell it for the same price as a 1992 Honda Accord? You know, because they NEED...no no, they DESERVE a luxury car.
Ugh, it just irks me.
Thanks for all the stories, ladies, it's helping me grow a backbone!

I just love this thread! It really opened my eyes because I have the same issues - friends who want a big cake fornext to no cost and raise their eyebrows when you tell them the cost - even with a discount! I've noticed I'm also growing a backbone

funny i got a call this morning she says, " i want a fariy barbie cake, she needs to be on top of another cake that is decorated green on top like a garden, with a candy pebble path and it needs to have pink roses.

i quoted her $60 and she says " oh my i'll have to talk to grandma since she is paying". haven't heard back from her. what did she think it would cost for 2 cakes and plenty of decorations, not to mention the candy rocks that i would have to order
sheech


hey i also got a call from a man saying, "i'll pay you big bucks for this. if i give you a large amount of sperm could you inject it into a cupcake?" i hung up on him. anyone else get this?

hey i also got a call from a man saying, "i'll pay you big bucks for this. if i give you a large amount of sperm could you inject it into a cupcake?" i hung up on him. anyone else get this?



You must be kidding me. Oh WOW, I would've been speechless

That's disgusting...What a weirdo!!!It takes all kinds!!

That is disgusting!!!
A few weeks ago my dd and set up a booth with our cupcakes and candies[we are in the process of getting our bakery open] I had a couple of my dummy cakes there, one of which was my doll cake
http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1164187
and this lady was asking me what my prices were going to be, so I told her I would charge around $45.00 for this one. She looked shocked and said "Oh you will have some competition from WM at that price!!!" UHHH!!! I don't think so. I told her that WM doesn't make cakes like that. Have you seen their doll cakes?
Cake Muggles!!!!!!

I paid somewhere between $150 and $200 for my wedding cake that fed 20. I also had individual cakes for the children (who had a separate pizza party away from our formal dinner) for about $7.50 each. They were made by a local bakery that is considered to be one of the top 10 French bakeries in the world. It was a beautiful cake, and more importantly TASTED outstanding. It had NO fondant, no flowers. Very simple.

I had a very limited budget for my wedding. We wanted to be able to pay for it with cash. Not start our marriage with debt.

I also, like so many brides, have very expensive taste.

How did I reconcile this? I had an amazing wedding at a very upscale venue with wonderful food...but...I limited the guest list to immediate family.

The bonus? My husband and I got to enjoy our wedding, sit with and talk to our guests, and EVERYBODY there was someone we actually wanted to share the day with.

I'd barely call myself a hobby baker. Just started doing it for fun, b/c I love cakes, love even more a nice looking, well tasting cake. Took a couple classes, in the midst, a friend calls and says I heard (through MIL) you're doing cakes now...uh, I wouldn't exactly call it that, but I'm playing around, having fun. Friend: Will you do the groom's cake for my wedding? The place where the reception is, there cakes taste TERRIBLE, I begged a local baker to take on the wedding cake but I need a groom's cake. If it's to much, just let me know. Me: I'll think about it.

Note: Wedding, almost 4 hours away in area of VA with mountains....and DD is the flower girl, so travel, already have a part in the wedding to plan and deal with.

DH: Oh you can do this, it'll be great!

So fine, I plan to do the cake. 10 in. bottom square, 8 in. round top, yellow cake. all covered in chocolate BC, nothing fancy, a KU jayhawk, made out of fondant on top.


MIL throws on me, you should do this as a your gift to them....fabulous except, well, I have no pans bigger than 8 in, and no squares, have to buy the fonadant, practice recipes, buy the pans, forget actually baking and putting the cake together, deliverying the cake (4 hours, in teh mountains!) and then hustling to the weddingto get my child ready! Talk about expensive, MIL doesn'trealize some would have easily charges $150 for this cake. I think it cost me more than that to make it!b/c I'm just starting out!

oh, then MIL tells me, you could do the cake for the golf tourny next year (charity tourny they put on), sure, I could! (again, 3 hour travel to our hometown, with 2 kids in tow??) MIL: Don't forget it's gotta compete with the $50 sheet cake I can get from Sam's....it's just a bunch of men, they don't care what it looks like. ME: Hm, yeah, I can't compete with that! "thinking, men must not care what it tastes like either!". She says, you could do it as a donation....how's that so, I'm not even an actual baker, with a way to do it as a write off and DH already pays $100 to play in the tourney, I think that's our donation! Sheesh! I love my MIL but she doesn't get it.

Funny thing though, with the wedding/grooms cake, she kept telling me how awesome the cake looked, how it looked better than the wedding cake and how several people commented that it tasted better than the wedding cake. But she can get it from Sams....right on.

LaylaC....Same here...when hubby and I got married we had 55 people at an upscale Golf course..I paid alot of money for a sit down prime rib dinner and open bar ..We spent alot on flowers,ice scultures etc and my dress was beautiful...The jist of this is I had all the fancy things I wanted but kept the guest list down so we could pay cash also....We went from table to table and sat with out guests for a while and talked,laughed etc..It was wonderful!! I wouldn't have traded it for a huge wedding what so ever....

wow seems like everyone has this problem....

last year for the 4th of july i did a grooms cake..mind you she called me four days before the wedding..she says i need a grooms cake and i love your cakes and want to get robert (groom) a cake just for him....and i go what is it that youd like? he goes id love it if you could make a fedex truck.( works at fedex) i go for how many people? she goes well this cake doesnt have to feed many people because my cake will probably do so.. and also i have another grooms cake for him and they were both sponsored (?) so his doesnt have to be big its a small gift from me to him. and i go alright let me price it and i will get back to you.

i do as i say and she agrees to pay that amount. the day of the wedding i took the cake and there was NO other grooms cake , and her cake was an 8 a 12 and a 14 inch round..for about 200 plus guests...not stacked together just the cakes put next to each other. she sees the fedex cake and she goes crazy.. everyone was commenting on it and i was very proud..i did a small cake because thats what she asked for. she comes to me and tells me (i have the money for the cake in my purse and its downstairs so when i go and get my things i will give it to you) and i go ok thank you enjoy your wedding for now.

time goes by and nothing..i waited all night nothing ( i was a guest at her wedding as well) and then the weddings done and over with. NADA. we go back to her place.. she sees me there and becomes completely oblivious to it. she goes on her honeymoon and i dont hear a word form her till two weeks later.

it just so happened our friend had a dinner and she came, i opened the door and she doesnt say a word about the cake, all night nothing..till she turns to me and says " Michelle thank you so much for the cake, robert loved it i may have to treat you to dinner maybe"

i was livid, i go " there was a specific amount for the cake we had agreed on" she goes " he really loved it we may go to dinner sometime" and that was all she said about it.. NEVER paid..even with hints thrown out at her by everyone and myself, and confronting her. SHE NEVER paid.

some people just...dont have common sense or something.. some think they can pay later as well.. and when this happens i always tell them to go get a cake from walmart and see if theyll allow them a payment plan...it sounds rude but when i go to the store i dont pay half for my groceries and tell them ill pay the rest later!