Need Your Opinion On My Cake Prices

Decorating By sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Updated 11 Jan 2012 , 8:11pm by Annabakescakes

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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 9 Jan 2012 , 9:26pm
post #1 of 19

ok so im trying to work out my cake prices and have composed spreadsheets to accommodate everything, including delivery, gift wrapping, cake extras, fillings etc

ive been asked to give a quote for an 8inch cake for a baby shower.

in putting all the info in my spreadsheets, its given me a price of £67.29.

does this sound way too much?

it uses the same amount of batter as 24 cupcakes (still not 100% on batter amounts) which would cost £48 for decorated.

getting my head round this is hurting lol and would love some input from my fellow cakers!

many thanks in advance icon_biggrin.gif

18 replies
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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 9 Jan 2012 , 10:06pm
post #2 of 19

also i can post up spreadsheets if you guys think this could help. you can change the prices of ingredients etc to your own specifications!

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pounds6 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 1:57am
post #3 of 19

Can you give us a little more information? Is it buttercream or fondant? Is it a 2 layer cake or 3 ? Is there a fruit filling or whats in the middle ? Are you making characters or whats the degree of decorating? Hard to know if your price is low, moderate or high unless we know what you are charging for?
Need more info and then we will be glad to give some feedback. icon_smile.gif

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Marianna46 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 2:38am
post #4 of 19

How many people will this cake serve, based on the standard 4" x 2" x 1" serving size? And do you have a per-serving price? If you need help with the serving amounts, you can go to the Wilton website or there's an excellent calculator by a CC member named metria:
http://shinymetalobjects.net/cake/calculator/cakulator.cgi
I'm a little hazy on the value of the pound right now, so I can't tell you whether the price you're quoting is in line or not.

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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 12:48pm
post #5 of 19

Sorry lol I did think more info was needed! It will be 2 layers and it's just a sponge and vanilla butter cream cake and will be covered with fondant! They wanted a cake that Serves 10-15 people and my serving sizes are slightly bigger then Wilton! They are open to anything when it comes to decorating th cake so I was going to top the cake with a pair of baby converse and decorate the outside edge with other baby related items! I Was thinking about. Charging £5 ph kitchen rental when cakes and baking and £8ph for my time decorating the cake!

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Marianna46 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 2:01pm
post #6 of 19

Well, it sounds to me like you've got it figured out! Good luck with it. I love making those baby Converse - they look really spectacular on a cake, too!

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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 5:49pm
post #7 of 19

So the price seems reasonable?

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Marianna46 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 5:53pm
post #8 of 19

That I don't know, because I don't know how much the pound is worth and, more importantly, I don't know what ingredients cost and what a decent wage is in your neck of the woods. Could somebody from the UK pitch in here?

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jgifford Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 10:26pm
post #9 of 19

The exchange rate is currently 1.5487 so it would be approximately $43.44.

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kelleym Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 11:24pm
post #10 of 19
Quote:
Originally Posted by jgifford

The exchange rate is currently 1.5487 so it would be approximately $43.44.



Actually it is the other way around, 67 GPB is approx. $104.00.

http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert/?Amount=67.29&From=GBP&To=USD

icon_smile.gif

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Annabakescakes Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 11:33pm
post #11 of 19

IMHO, I think $104 is outrageous for an 8" cake. My very most expensive 8" cake has cost about $70, and I was embarrassed to charge it, but it had a lot of decoration.

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Bec005 Posted 10 Jan 2012 , 11:52pm
post #12 of 19

My 8 inch cakes start at $100 for basic decoration and that is cheap here but that is for mud cake with ganache and fondant.
I'm in australia so it really does depend on your location I think it sounds reasonable

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Annabakescakes Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 12:04am
post #13 of 19
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bec005

My 8 inch cakes start at $100 for basic decoration and that is cheap here but that is for mud cake with ganache and fondant.
I'm in australia so it really does depend on your location I think it sounds reasonable




Good point, but no one here would pay that for a sponge. I need to try mud cakes.

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Lovelyladylibra Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 5:16am
post #14 of 19

i think thats a bit high

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Evoir Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 5:58am
post #15 of 19

Sounds high to me, for a sponge cake.

Just asking too: have you made many filled sponges with fondant icing?

Like the other Aussie poster, my 8" mud cakes are about $130 with no filling and minimal decoration. I don't cover sponge cakes with fondant. To my mind, the two do not go together...its far too stodgy an icing for such a light cake.

All the best with it, though..I am just stating my personal opinion and in no way criticizing your methodology icon_smile.gif

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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 1:22pm
post #16 of 19

I did think this was way too high, hence posting for your opinion!!
I've recalculated and still come up with a price of £61.65.

Broken down:-

Cost of sponge: £1.69
Cost of frosting: £1.22
Cost of cake extras (fondant, cake box etc): £21.74
Cost of labour:-
Kitchen Rent (£5ph) :- £5.00 (when cake is baking)
Labour (8ph) :- £32.00 (when I'm working on the cake, mixing and decorating)
As I stated, I'm not 100% on pricing at the moment, and must be going wrong somewhere? Am I charging too much labour and rent? Because the price I've come up with is expensive compared to ones of the same stature in the uk! I haven't got back to the customer with a price yet! She is a friend, so she is fine with waiting a day or two! She's knows this is new to me!

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sugar_rush_cupcakes11 Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 1:48pm
post #17 of 19

Ok ive found the problem! I went though my speadsheets, checking formulas and prices etc. The price of my fondant was wrong by miles!

Making cake extras :- £6.31

Making Total Price £46.22.

This sounds more reasonable to me! how about you guys? and any opinions on the breakdown of my pricing? I havent started trading properly yet despite being fully legal, just because im not fully organised yet! And good job too! You guys have been helpful even though it was an epic fail on my behalf! icon_biggrin.gif

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jgifford Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 2:12pm
post #18 of 19
Quote:
Originally Posted by kelleym

Quote:
Originally Posted by jgifford

The exchange rate is currently 1.5487 so it would be approximately $43.44.


Actually it is the other way around, 67 GPB is approx. $104.00.

http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert/?Amount=67.29&From=GBP&To=USD

icon_smile.gif




Oops - you're right. icon_redface.gif Way too much time in front of the computer for one day. Thanks for catching that.

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Annabakescakes Posted 11 Jan 2012 , 8:11pm
post #19 of 19

I think that sounds mush better, it is about $71.58, but since you don't have a per serving price, it won't hurt to round to the nearest whole number.

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