Am I Charging The Right Prices? Take A Look At My Site Pleas

Decorating By Krista512 Updated 31 Mar 2011 , 6:05pm by Uniqueask

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Krista512 Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 12:42am
post #1 of 45

can some of you please take a look at my site and tell me what you think.

I am not sure what to charge for my cakes as i am not a highly professional baker with my own bakery and years of experience

I have got my price list and cutting guide off of the internet but not sure exactly if i am decently priced.

i have had lots of people say that I am over charging and they are not willing to pay any more than they would get for a grocery store cake.

44 replies
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1clare Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 1:37am
post #2 of 45

Krista. You're in the ballpark as far as I can see. Your prices are very similar to mine. I charge a little more for wedding cakes though. It's very hard to price cakes because each is so different. It really depends on the level of decorating you're doing. Your cakes are very nice, too.

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jason_kraft Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 1:54am
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FYI, it is currently not legal to sell food commercially from your home kitchen in TX, so I recommend not accepting any compensation for your products until you can get a commercial kitchen to bake out of. At the very least you should remove any mention of your home kitchen from your web site.

Once you get a commercial kitchen and have a good understanding of your ingredient costs, labor costs, and overhead it will be easier to put together some realistic pricing.

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cakesdivine Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 2:54am
post #4 of 45

Yes what Jason said. It is a big no-no to do cakes from your home here in TX.

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leily Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 11:48am
post #5 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by krista512

i have had lots of people say that I am over charging and they are not willing to pay any more than they would get for a grocery store cake.




Then these people are not your customers. As a custom baker you can't compete with the grocery store as cakes are their loss leader (meaning they don't make money on it, but it gets you in the door to buy other things)

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TexasSugar Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 2:59pm
post #6 of 45

2.50 for a 2x2x4 piece (party)
1.50 for a 2x2x2 piece (single layer sheet)
3.00 for a 1x2x4 piece (wedding)

As a customer I would be wondering why my smaller wedding cake serving is priced higher than the larger party piece.

Personally, I would get rid of all of the up charges, pick one serving size, and price according to everything.

I've used the anology of a baked potato before. If I went somewhere to buy a baked potato, I would rather the price include everything, rather than getting charged for every little bit of thing involved.

I'd rather see loaded baked potato = $5 instead of...

Plate and Fork: $1
Potato: $2
Sour cream, bacon, chives and cheese: .50 an item.

I want to know when I walk into buy something how much it will be up front, not have to wait for every little thing to be added up.

Oh you want 20 buttercream roses instead of 5? Well that will be a additional $5. And you want a fruit filling instead of buttercream? Okay, that's $1 per serving. On and you want this on a sturdy board? Well Okay, but I have to charge you for that.

To me the only things that should have up charges are gumpaste flowers, hand crafted figures, and scuptled cakes. The rest should be priced into your cake. Instead of pricing the cake with buttercream between the layers, price it with fillings. If they choose buttercream over the filling, then you make a little additional money. If they choose a filling, then they don't have the feeling of oh, I have to shell out more money for this. They feel like they get a bonus, even if they are already paying for it.

As was said above me, if they feel you are too high priced, then they aren't the right customer for you. Your price needs to include all of your cost, labor and a profit. If it doesn't, then you are cheating yourself.

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TexasSugar Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 3:02pm
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Also, 21 times 2.5 is 52.50, not 45. I was trying to figure out why a 21 serving cake was 45 and a 25 serving (square) cake was 60. (Though the math says 62.50.)

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lorieleann Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 3:51pm
post #8 of 45

as TexasSugar said, you have some inconsistencies in your pricing and the up charges muddle the situation. Apart from having the right customer for your price point, I think that you need to have the right product for the price point as well. Austin (and Texas in general) has some really nice cake shops with really good quality, and your prices are within $5 or so (on whole cakes) of what the 'big boys' are charging--and that's for fresh cake with unique designs, not the frozen grocery store cakes you mention. I can only judge from the photos you posted, but at this point it seems that your skill set doesn't match up to what a person could get for the same price or just a few dollars more from the professional cake shops. So yes, I do think you are charging too much for what you are producing.

All that said, you really need to be aware of the legalities of home baking and what is and isn't illegal (and tolerated) in your area (as i've learned here on CC, some areas have cottage food laws, some have restrictions but are more lenient, and others are super strict. From what i understand, Texas is super strict--you want to be legal in TX). I know you must have the best intentions in wanting to turn your hobby into a source for extra money, but it has to be considered a business first.

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TexasSugar Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 5:01pm
post #9 of 45

Also if you want to help out with trying to get home baking legal, check out the following website...

http://www.texascottagefoodlaw.com/

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amberc727 Posted 29 Mar 2011 , 11:27pm
post #10 of 45

I do not mean this to come across as negatively as it may sound, I truly want to help. You have some spelling errors on your page. Also, on the page with all your pictures, I would encourage you to remove pictures/descriptions of cakes that were your first attempt at something. It makes you look unprofessional in my opinion. Also, your football cake, you said you "threw it together" and that a cake someone would order would look much better. Seems like you might want to take that off. It's not helpful for a potential customer. If I went to look at the site to order a cake and saw that, there would be nothing to make me think my cake wouldn't look just like that one. Perhaps you're not quite ready to launch your site yet.

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Krista512 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 1:50am
post #11 of 45

I had no idea about the state not allowing it. to me that seams absolutely stupid. i have a state of texas food handlers certification and have taken the food handeling safety and sanitation classes for my last resturant management job. I just dont see how in texas there can be a home based child care that is licensed and able to cook food from their hom as part of what they provide for money in return but we cant bake for money out of the same exact kitchen seams pretty stupid to me.

yes I dont have any huge pictures yet as the cakes that I have done which isnt many i didnt get pictures of cause they were just made for friends. I dont know how to get good pictures with out getting someone that needs a nice cake made. I cant afford to spend $40 making a large cake just to decorate for a picture. I am honestly trying to do this to help my husband as he cant pay our bills him self. and with a baby on the way we cant even buy a carseat and stroller right now. we need the extra cash and this is the only think i know how to do.

im confused as how there are so many home bakers just in my city that bake from home these huge cakes and have fancy websites but what yall are saying is not one of them are legal??????

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jason_kraft Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 2:28am
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The law may seem stupid, and in some states there are cottage food laws that allow food service businesses to operate out of residential kitchens, but unfortunately TX is not one of those states (yet). Luckily you live in the state capital so you won't have to go too far to voice your opinion. icon_smile.gif

Until a cottage food law is passed in TX, your best bet to operate legally is to rent commercial kitchen space. You can find some rental options here:
http://www.culinaryincubator.com/maps.php?state=TX

This is probably not what you wanted to hear, but is important to know the risk you are taking operating an illegal business. Not only can your business be shut down at any moment by the health dept (leaving customers high and dry), but you are also placing your personal assets at risk from lawsuits arising from business activities, since you probably don't have liability insurance -- even if you win a lawsuit you could still be out thousands of dollars in legal fees. You also need to make sure your business's accounting is in order and you are reporting all your income to the IRS, or you could face significant fines. If your county or city collects sales tax you need to make sure you are compliant with those laws as well.

If you do plan to continue operating illegally, I strongly recommend you stop advertising, take down your web site immediately, and limit orders to family and close friends only. While still risky, this will limit your profile in the community and reduce the chances you will be turned in by a competitor.

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amberc727 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 2:29am
post #13 of 45

I understand wanting to help your husband pay the bills. I'm doing the same thing. I was just trying to point out ways to make your site more professional so that you can get more business.

One thing that I did when I was first starting was to makes cakes for friends and only asked them to pay for the ingredients. That way I got to practice and make some nice cakes, increase my skills, and get pictures at the same time. I did this for several people in my mom's group.

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cakesdivine Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 3:04am
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Even if they pay for the ingredients it is illegal, it is still considered selling a cake. The government doesn't care if you lose money on the sell even if you sell it for one penny it is a sale, and could get you in trouble.

Every person who does this from their home here in Texas is doing so illegally. And most do know they are breaking the law. They choose to take that risk, and you, of course, can do so as well, but don't be surprised when the health dept. comes knocking at your door. Also, pleading ignorance of the law is not an excuse nor will it get you off the hook with the HD. The current fine is $500 per sale, and you will lose the right to ever get a food establishment license. Having a food manager or food handler certificate is not the same as having a food establishment license. The fact that you didn't even bother to check out the regulations in regard to what is necessary to open a food establishment here in Texas means you do not have the business sense to even try to run a business. Sorry if that is harsh, but it is the truth. Call me a biotch if you want, but here of late I tell it like it is. You are further saturating an already over saturated market in Austin AND you are undercutting their prices, and offering a less than professional product.

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CWR41 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 3:30am
post #15 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by krista512

yes I dont have any huge pictures yet as the cakes that I have done which isnt many i didnt get pictures of cause they were just made for friends. I dont know how to get good pictures with out getting someone that needs a nice cake made. I cant afford to spend $40 making a large cake just to decorate for a picture.




You could practice decorating styrofoam cake dummies, snap a photo, scrape it off and decorate again to build your portfolio until you're able to find a commercial kitchen to rent.

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Krista512 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 4:21am
post #16 of 45

how much do comercial kitchens cost to rent. I know a small building that is completely empty down the street cost over $1000 a month and that is on the outskirts of town. right now i am barely making $5 profit how in the world am i suposed to make enough profit to rent a kitchen plus cover the cost of materials. I just dont see where when profit is in that. especially in my town most of the people in my town want a whole lot of everything that cost a whole lot of nothing. not just in the baking business but in every business around. I may just give up on the cake thing i was just wanting to do it to make a extra $300-400 a month to be able to make my car payment and have $50 i can actually by stuff for the baby on the way so we dont have him with having absolutely nothing. but this is not worth it.

curious.. so do most of the bakers that open their own shop have thousands of dollars saved up to start out and dont actually start getting paid back for a year or even longer. im not sure how all that works. and if the rule of thumb is to charge twice as much as the cost to make the cake. then you basically have what ever you spent to be the same amount as your profit then you have to pay your rent for your building and pay your taxes and such then you basically get less im estimating a 2-5 % profit if your lucky??? im so confused.

I love decorating i enjoy it and have fun doing it. I would love to be able to go and work in a bakery decorating cakes to get more experience since i cant spend $40k on schooling. but my whole pay check would go toward day care so it would be pointless.

any advice anyone.

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jason_kraft Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 4:33am
post #17 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by krista512

how much do comercial kitchens cost to rent. I know a small building that is completely empty down the street cost over $1000 a month and that is on the outskirts of town.



Renting a retail storefront is very different from renting a commercial kitchen only. Commercial kitchens cost between $10-30/hour to rent depending on location and amenities, and there is usually very little in the way of startup costs. It's like the difference between renting a furnished apartment and an empty house.

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right now i am barely making $5 profit how in the world am i suposed to make enough profit to rent a kitchen plus cover the cost of materials.



That's what a business plan is for...you need to work out what your costs are and what you need to charge to make a profit. If you're only making $5 in profit for a cake (have you factored in labor costs?) for a home-based business you are either paying way too much for ingredients or your prices are way too low (or both).

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I just dont see where when profit is in that. especially in my town most of the people in my town want a whole lot of everything that cost a whole lot of nothing. not just in the baking business but in every business around.



People who want cheap cakes are not your market...let them buy cakes from the grocery store. Your target market should be people who recognize quality and are willing to pay for it. The hard part is finding out where those people are and how to reach them.

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I may just give up on the cake thing i was just wanting to do it to make a extra $300-400 a month to be able to make my car payment and have $50 i can actually by stuff for the baby on the way so we dont have him with having absolutely nothing. but this is not worth it.



You are probably right. Starting a new food service business is hard work, and you probably won't see a significant profit for the first year at least. You'd probably be better off working at an established bakery or grocery store if you just needed the money in the short term.

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curious.. so do most of the bakers that open their own shop have thousands of dollars saved up to start out and dont actually start getting paid back for a year or even longer. im not sure how all that works.



Many bakers start out in a rented commercial kitchen to avoid startup costs, but those that open a retail bakery often take out loans and don't break even for a year or two (if at all).

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and if the rule of thumb is to charge twice as much as the cost to make the cake.



For pricing, I use the rule of thumb of ingredient costs + labor costs + marginal overhead costs + 20-30% for profit.

Regarding the day care issue, that's a tough one...if you can swing it I would recommend staying home with the baby as long as possible and cutting back so you can live off your husband's income. If you need the money you may be able to find part-time shifts at bakeries that are either before or after your husband's shift so you won't need day care.

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cakesdivine Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 4:35am
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Your pricing is incorrect only charging twice your cost is NOT how pricing is done. You have to take into consideration ingredient costs, paper goods, equipment, utilities, insurance, travel expenses, and your hourly rate you want to make then if you want to make a business profit (not your pay rate) you multiply the total by how much profit you want. Take your pay for you then either reinvest the profit or pocket it. I multiply my cost times 4. The more professional you come across the higher end client you can attract. Trying to attract the walmart mentality customer will never net you a profit.

There are a few incubator kitchens in Austin, some rent by the hour and some you can book a designated block of time each week and pay a monthly fee.

Get involved with the fight to change the law, that is the best place to start. If we get this law changed then you will have the ability to get your home kitchen licensed as a cottage food kitchen.

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Krista512 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 5:02am
post #19 of 45

ya i will deffinately make a call or something to the state cause this is just stupid.

so is what my main problem is being that I dont have the funds to buy a whole bunch of stuff in bulk so it cost less per cake???

I know that I have to buy the standard sheet cake box for 2.50 at hobby lobby and a package of cake boards 4 for $4 so i am paying $3.50 just for the box and board. when if i could afford to get a sams card ( $100 i have to put down that i dont have) i can get 50 boxes for about $32 that comes out to about 65 cents per box. but they only sell that one size box. and i cant afford that $32 either baking 2 cakes a week would take me forever to use that many to recover my money back.

i cant afford a kitchen aid mixer so i have to buy buttercream in bulk when i can get my friend to take me to sams.

the cakes that i have made i have gotten great reviews on. i just cant buy everything in bulk. i pay hobby lobby price for all my pans, cutters etc. and each cake seams to want a new molded pan of a different shape. i cant charge them the full $15 for the pan but i have to buy it. that is why my problem keeps comming into play.

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JanH Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 5:40am
post #20 of 45

Moving to Cake Decorating forum.

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sweetaudrey Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 11:41am
post #21 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by cakesdivine

Even if they pay for the ingredients it is illegal, it is still considered selling a cake. The government doesn't care if you lose money on the sell even if you sell it for one penny it is a sale, and could get you in trouble.

Every person who does this from their home here in Texas is doing so illegally. And most do know they are breaking the law. They choose to take that risk, and you, of course, can do so as well, but don't be surprised when the health dept. comes knocking at your door. Also, pleading ignorance of the law is not an excuse nor will it get you off the hook with the HD. The current fine is $500 per sale, and you will lose the right to ever get a food establishment license. Having a food manager or food handler certificate is not the same as having a food establishment license. The fact that you didn't even bother to check out the regulations in regard to what is necessary to open a food establishment here in Texas means you do not have the business sense to even try to run a business. Sorry if that is harsh, but it is the truth. Call me a biotch if you want, but here of late I tell it like it is. You are further saturating an already over saturated market in Austin AND you are undercutting their prices, and offering a less than professional product.




I wouldn't call you a biotch lol but I would say you are wayyyy off base on part of what you say. When you look at it from a BUSINESS point of you, you are absolutely right. But people with a conscience that care more about their family and making ends meet may not be thinking just of the BUSINESS side of things. Because, like I said, they have other things to think about. If I was a mom, I would do anything necessary to keep food in my child's tummy and a roof over their head. This woman sounds like she meant well and had a bunch of other things on her mind rather than the total stupidity of the government. I'm not trying to pick a fight, but I'm just simply saying that you are right and wrong at the same time. icon_smile.gif

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amberc727 Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 2:28pm
post #22 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetaudrey

Quote:
Originally Posted by cakesdivine

Even if they pay for the ingredients it is illegal, it is still considered selling a cake. The government doesn't care if you lose money on the sell even if you sell it for one penny it is a sale, and could get you in trouble.

Every person who does this from their home here in Texas is doing so illegally. And most do know they are breaking the law. They choose to take that risk, and you, of course, can do so as well, but don't be surprised when the health dept. comes knocking at your door. Also, pleading ignorance of the law is not an excuse nor will it get you off the hook with the HD. The current fine is $500 per sale, and you will lose the right to ever get a food establishment license. Having a food manager or food handler certificate is not the same as having a food establishment license. The fact that you didn't even bother to check out the regulations in regard to what is necessary to open a food establishment here in Texas means you do not have the business sense to even try to run a business. Sorry if that is harsh, but it is the truth. Call me a biotch if you want, but here of late I tell it like it is. You are further saturating an already over saturated market in Austin AND you are undercutting their prices, and offering a less than professional product.



I wouldn't call you a biotch lol but I would say you are wayyyy off base on part of what you say. When you look at it from a BUSINESS point of you, you are absolutely right. But people with a conscience that care more about their family and making ends meet may not be thinking just of the BUSINESS side of things. Because, like I said, they have other things to think about. If I was a mom, I would do anything necessary to keep food in my child's tummy and a roof over their head. This woman sounds like she meant well and had a bunch of other things on her mind rather than the total stupidity of the government. I'm not trying to pick a fight, but I'm just simply saying that you are right and wrong at the same time. icon_smile.gif




I completely agree. As a mom myself with 2 small children, I do what I can to help my husband make ends meet. I've considered starting a cake business myself, but I'm torn between wanting to help my husband by bringing in some money, and doing things the legal way. Here in NC we can have our home kitchens licensed, but I just can't decide if I want to make cakes as a business, or continue to only do them for family.

To the OP, I feel for you, I really do. I know how hard it is being pregnant and feeling like I don't have the money to buy anything for the baby. My daughter was born 7 months ago, and she still doesn't have a crib, she sleeps in a pack-n-play. I hope things start to turn around for you!

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jason_kraft Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 3:09pm
post #23 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetaudrey

When you look at it from a BUSINESS point of you, you are absolutely right. But people with a conscience that care more about their family and making ends meet may not be thinking just of the BUSINESS side of things.



When it comes to making money you can't ignore the business point of view. Running an illegal business that can be shut down at any moment, puts you at risk for fines, and exposes your personal assets to business liability is probably one of the worst ways to reliably bring in cash.

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TexasSugar Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 3:17pm
post #24 of 45

The problem with starting a cake business or any other business is that the money doesn't just come pouring in. You usually end up investing more in the beginning than you are getting in return.

When it comes to all of the cake pans I have from craft stores, I did not buy them with out a 40% off coupon. Michaels and Hobby Lobby both are pretty generous with their coupons.

I didn't look at your cakes, so I may be off based, but I wouldn't buy any of the character/shapped pans from Wilton. Outside of the fact that the character pans are copyrighted and you can't legally sale those, those pans are limiting and you really don't get alot of life out of them. You are better off sticking to some basic shapes, because you will use those more and more.

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jason_kraft Posted 30 Mar 2011 , 3:18pm
post #25 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by krista512

so is what my main problem is being that I dont have the funds to buy a whole bunch of stuff in bulk so it cost less per cake???



That's probably one of your biggest issues. If you can't afford to spend a few hundred bucks to get bulk supplies then you'll have serious trouble making a real profit, you are literally spending at least 5 times as much as you should be on supplies. Normally I would recommend using a credit card to fund your business, but since your business income can evaporate at any moment that would be pretty risky.

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i cant afford a kitchen aid mixer so i have to buy buttercream in bulk when i can get my friend to take me to sams.



This is another major issue. Sorry to say this, but if you can't afford to buy a mixer you probably shouldn't be running your own bakery.

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and each cake seams to want a new molded pan of a different shape. i cant charge them the full $15 for the pan but i have to buy it. that is why my problem keeps comming into play.



Your options here are to significantly increase your prices so you can bring in more capital to allow you to buy the necessary pans, or limit your menu to cakes that can be made using the pans you already have.

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sweetaudrey Posted 31 Mar 2011 , 9:26am
post #26 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason_kraft

Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetaudrey

When you look at it from a BUSINESS point of you, you are absolutely right. But people with a conscience that care more about their family and making ends meet may not be thinking just of the BUSINESS side of things.


When it comes to making money you can't ignore the business point of view. Running an illegal business that can be shut down at any moment, puts you at risk for fines, and exposes your personal assets to business liability is probably one of the worst ways to reliably bring in cash.




I agree with you in the business aspect. But I think what alot of "PURE business orriented people" forget is that when your a panic stricken mother who wants to provide for her kids, you don't think about anything but your kids. Cake decorating is something that the OP is good at and has a passion for. Alot of people that do not realise the liscencing part of making cakes are not unconscience, heartless people out to make a buck and put everyone else out of business. In reality, they just want to make ends meet within their family. I couldn't imagion being and mommy-to-be and not being able to afford rent, baby clothes, a crib, diapers, milk, etc for my child when he/she arrives. That would be a terrrrrifying thing to face. So what people don't understand is that she's probably a scared mommy-to-be and she just wants to take care of her baby..shes not out to break the law. That is why I've chosen to stand up for her. Because I feel like alot of cakers on here who have been in business for a long time forget that there are people out there that are not as blessed or far along at this moment in time. And they make people like the OP out of be heartless criminals when that couldn't be further from the truth. She isn't heartless, shes a scared mommy-to-be who just wants to be able to give the best to her child.

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Unlimited Posted 31 Mar 2011 , 2:25pm
post #27 of 45

I'm a kind and compassionate person... went to bed the other night worried for the OP that's pregnant with her 4th child. Then it hit meif someone can't afford to take care of the three children they already have, why would they keep having more? I don't understand that... it has to reach a point when you say "enough". Sure, everyone wants the best for their children, but if you cannot afford a baby car seat for the 4th one on the way (and all the other necessities for the next 20+ years), it's likely the first three children aren't receiving the best either.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not promoting abortion in any way... I love kids and think it's really neat to have a big familybut only if you can afford it. If not, you should utilize a plan to avoid it until you're in a better place financially. I understand that jobs change and things happen, but you can't always continue bringing more children into the world with the hopes that you'll be able to provide for them at some point in the future. Many believe that God will only give you what you can handleif you can't handle more, you need to use some common sense.

I realize that none of this is helpful to the OP right nowI wish I could help. I think it's the right thing to dotrying to make more money, but without all of the risk factors. If your husband is doing all that he can do to provide and you're anxious/able to help contribute, perhaps running a day care is an option for your situation at this time. Good luck to you and your family.

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jason_kraft Posted 31 Mar 2011 , 2:48pm
post #28 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetaudrey

So what people don't understand is that she's probably a scared mommy-to-be and she just wants to take care of her baby..shes not out to break the law. That is why I've chosen to stand up for her. Because I feel like alot of cakers on here who have been in business for a long time forget that there are people out there that are not as blessed or far along at this moment in time. And they make people like the OP out of be heartless criminals when that couldn't be further from the truth.



No one here is attacking the OP or making her out to be a "heartless criminal", and I'm sure she has the best of intentions, but the reality of the situation is that she is headed down a dangerous path from a legal and financial perspective.

You present a false dichotomy with your argument -- this is not an "us vs. them" situation where one side is supporting or "standing up" for the OP and the other is not. I completely support the OP in trying to make money decorating cakes and have outlined ways to change her current situation so she can do so safely without fear of being shut down, fined, or sued.

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sweetaudrey Posted 31 Mar 2011 , 2:56pm
post #29 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by Unlimited

I'm a kind and compassionate person... went to bed the other night worried for the OP that's pregnant with her 4th child. Then it hit meif someone can't afford to take care of the three children they already have, why would they keep having more? I don't understand that... it has to reach a point when you say "enough". Sure, everyone wants the best for their children, but if you cannot afford a baby car seat for the 4th one on the way (and all the other necessities for the next 20+ years), it's likely the first three children aren't receiving the best either.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not promoting abortion in any way... I love kids and think it's really neat to have a big familybut only if you can afford it. If not, you should utilize a plan to avoid it until you're in a better place financially. I understand that jobs change and things happen, but you can't always continue bringing more children into the world with the hopes that you'll be able to provide for them at some point in the future. Many believe that God will only give you what you can handleif you can't handle more, you need to use some common sense.

I realize that none of this is helpful to the OP right nowI wish I could help. I think it's the right thing to dotrying to make more money, but without all of the risk factors. If your husband is doing all that he can do to provide and you're anxious/able to help contribute, perhaps running a day care is an option for your situation at this time. Good luck to you and your family.




Yeah I agree that people should only have children when they can take care of them. But things happen. Pill birth control and other forms of prevention do not always work. I know someone who had their 'tubes tied' and they still got prego. So it's not always something that you can control. Plus, just because a person is struggling doesn't mean they can't take care of their kids. I know people who make sure their children have everything and they will go hungry just so that can happen. The best moms aren't always the ones in the cute outfits carrying Coach bags around and shopping at high-end baby stores.

Plus, I think there are more important things in life than worrying about what others are doing. I think we should just be the best we can be and let others worry about themselves. I think that is the 'adult' thing to do. Regardless of whether you agree with home bakers or not, doens't mean you need to completely up-root their lives for your own personal gain. The risk they are taking it THEIR choice. You should be the best you can be and just let other live. I mean you see these high-end bakeries that have to transport their cakes in box trucks or even just regular mini vans...they either sit in the trunk area with their cake to make sure it safely arrives or stay in the box part of their box truck. This is very illegal and very unsafe. BUT THEY STILL DO IT BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THEY HAVE TO DO TO KEEP THEIR BUSINESS AND LIVES AFLOAT. So come on now people, lets just dismount our high horses and worry about ourselves. Lets put on some big boy and girl panties and grow some hearts and move on with our lives. icon_biggrin.gif

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jason_kraft Posted 31 Mar 2011 , 3:47pm
post #30 of 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetaudrey

I mean you see these high-end bakeries that have to transport their cakes in box trucks or even just regular mini vans...they either sit in the trunk area with their cake to make sure it safely arrives or stay in the box part of their box truck. This is very illegal and very unsafe.



The consequences in your scenario don't compare to what OP is doing...maybe a few hundred bucks in fines if the truck happens to be stopped, which a high-end bakery could easily absorb. OP's situation is more akin to driving without a license or insurance -- one accident could result in complete financial ruin.

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