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How much would you charge???

post #1 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:05pm
Thread Starter 
I was asked to make this cake. To feed 300 people. I quoted her $600 and free delivery and set up. With a $100 refundable fee for the return of the pillars and the fountain. I think this is a very reasonable price and would like to know how much some of you would charge.
Thank You,
Jasmine
LL
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post #2 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:25pm
$600 for 300 people is only $2 per serving. That is extremely low. I think you could have gotten much more
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post #3 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:26pm
from me, $1150 including delivery.

Why would you offer free delivery? It ties up your time and you have to be prepared to use your skills to repair anything that might need to be repaired. You must be compensated for your time.

I would RENT the pillars with both a refundable deposit and a rental fee.

My quote did not include the fountain.
Answers to the most often asked questions re: SPS. SPS instructions are on Page 15 of the Sticky at the top of the Cake Decorating Forum. Supplies can be ordered from Oasis Supply, Global or BakeryCrafts.
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Answers to the most often asked questions re: SPS. SPS instructions are on Page 15 of the Sticky at the top of the Cake Decorating Forum. Supplies can be ordered from Oasis Supply, Global or BakeryCrafts.
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post #4 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:27pm
How much would the ingredients cost, and how long do you think it will take to complete the order (including baking, decorating, and cleanup)?

We would price at the $1500-1800 range, not including delivery or setup fees.
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post #5 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:27pm
That was the first wedding cake that I did. Wish I had charged a lot more! Allow lots of set-up time.
Love cakes!!
Valerie
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Love cakes!!
Valerie
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post #6 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:30pm
You've not indicatewhere you're located, or if you're a home baker or bake out of a rental kitchen/bakery all of which can affect your pricing. However, just on what you've said, you've quoted this cake based on $2/person. Does that price cover your costs and give you any profit? You mention the refundable deposit on the pillars. Is that on top of the $600 or included in? I wasn't totally sure in the way you wrote it. If included, then you're making even less.

It was difficult to tell for sure,but it looked like it was either all buttercream, in which case that's a whole lot of piping, or it was fondant with the piping on it. Either way, I'd be charging at least $3-$4/person because of the amount of piping. If it's fondant, then at least $5/person. That puts the cake at $900-$1500. Free delivery anf free setup is your choice, but based on the pillers and such, I'm not sure I would do a free setup. But what to charge, I don't know.

And are you getting the customer to arrange/pay the florist for the flowers or is that part of your price?

I really think you've under priced yourself on this cake. It's quite large and will take you quite some time, including setup.
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post #7 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:36pm
Does it include the figurine?
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post #8 of 17
2/15/12 at 3:51pm
Ugh, just doing the all those 6" cakes would be $600 for me. Have you already firmly quoted the price or can you increase it at all? Or tack on a hefty delivery/setup charge? Bride should be paying for flowers and if possible have the florist arrange them so that's one less thing for you to do.
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post #9 of 17
2/15/12 at 4:08pm
No way would I do it for under $3-$3. 50/serving. That's going to be a huge pain to set up! Don't forget to figure in your overhead (liability insurance, accountant fees, etc) plus pay yourself a wage!

Oh, and no free delivery here!
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post #10 of 17
2/16/12 at 9:48am
I think you undercharged as well. I'd say at least $900 plus $150 or more for set up and delivery.
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post #11 of 17
2/16/12 at 9:54am
I've done that cake and the original (Wilton design) is all bc. The piping goes fast, once you get a line marked on the cake. It is quite unforgiving.
Answers to the most often asked questions re: SPS. SPS instructions are on Page 15 of the Sticky at the top of the Cake Decorating Forum. Supplies can be ordered from Oasis Supply, Global or BakeryCrafts.
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Answers to the most often asked questions re: SPS. SPS instructions are on Page 15 of the Sticky at the top of the Cake Decorating Forum. Supplies can be ordered from Oasis Supply, Global or BakeryCrafts.
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post #12 of 17
2/16/12 at 10:05am
Thread Starter 
I was just curious what you all would charge. I am a baker out of the home and feel I need to charge a lot less per slice. I have not done a wedding cake before, but I did tell her to pay for the flowers. I was hoping to make just around $300 on this cake. I did the free delivery and set up to get customers. I know I should charge more, but I have to start somewhere lol. The funny thing is she mentioned she will talk to her fiance and I have yet to hear back from her, its been a few days. People I tell you. I was wondering if any of you know if there is anywhere I could set up a free website?
Thanks again
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post #13 of 17
2/16/12 at 10:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjsblondie

I was just curious what you all would charge. I am a baker out of the home and feel I need to charge a lot less per slice. I have not done a wedding cake before, but I did tell her to pay for the flowers. I was hoping to make just around $300 on this cake. I did the free delivery and set up to get customers. I know I should charge more, but I have to start somewhere lol. The funny thing is she mentioned she will talk to her fiance and I have yet to hear back from her, its been a few days. People I tell you. I was wondering if any of you know if there is anywhere I could set up a free website?
Thanks again


Which state are you in? Some states allow you to legally sell cakes made from home, but some require a licensed and inspected commercial kitchen. If selling homemade cakes is illegal in your state you would definitely not want to advertise or put up a web site, but if you are legal a good place to start would be a Facebook page, and when you are ready for a real web site 1and1.com offers reasonable web hosting packages.

You have to be very careful about undercutting yourself...when you try to offer the lowest possible price you will tend to attract very price-sensitive customers, and that's the opposite of what you want when selling a premium product, so when you finally increase your prices to reasonable levels you will have to start from scratch building a new customer base.
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My experimental blog: The Bakery Business Perspective
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post #14 of 17
2/16/12 at 10:32am
I would charge $750.00 minimum just for the cake, plus equipment deposit and delivery. $2.50/serving is the going rate in my area. And I personally don't believe in charging a set-up fee, since the cake's not finished until it's all put together. I think you're seriously undercharging, but I understand your reasoning.
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post #15 of 17
2/16/12 at 12:13pm
I have found that when you are starting up a business and are going through the process of becoming legal in your county or state, you may want to make free cakes or drastically undercharge. Then when you start your business no one wants to pay your prices. I stopped making free cakes at the beginning of this month, yes even for a friend who used to pay another baker (before I started baking) fr her bday cake. when i caled her to pick up her cake (a gift) she said the following " oh just leave me a slice--WHAT!!!!!, the shoe and other fondant details took several days, there was no mold for the shoe and some of the flowers were without cutters---then after she reaved about how good the cake was--SHE SAID: oh, I used to pay her 30 bucks but then they did not taste good. I would have charged 600 to 725.00 range not including delivery. No set up charge. good luck in your future endeavors.
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