Anybody Seen Or Heard From My Bride?

Business By Jacscakes213 Updated 26 Apr 2012 , 1:01pm by denetteb

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Jacscakes213 Posted 13 Apr 2012 , 10:33pm
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seeking advice:
I booked my first wedding cake in february for the end of April. I know the bride because she works at a store I go to frequently. I have a good contract in place and took a 50% deposit when she booked. The contract states that the remaining balance is due 30 days prior to event. And I gave her an invoice that says what the balance is and when it's due. Here we are on the 13 , two weeks before the wedding , I haven't heard from her and cannot get her to respond back to me. I emailed her on the 4th with a "reminder notice" of the balance, heard nothing, I've left messages and tried to text as well ,, she communicates a lot through text. Nothing yet. Her cake requires gum paste flowers which I need to start on next Monday , and I'm not about to put all of that time in... Oh and here's the best part. I though I would " confirm" with the venue , I have never been there before so I wanted to find out which entrance I can use, etc. Well turns out they have no event under any of her family or her name on the date she said! What to do, I don't want to look dumb and show up hoping for payment ..please help.. Sorry for the length!

23 replies
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LoveMeSomeCake615 Posted 13 Apr 2012 , 10:55pm
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DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT make that cake without FULL payment! This sounds really weird, especially considering the venue doesn't have her name for any event. You have already gone above and beyond in trying to get a hold of her. if you want, you can send her one final email stating that her final payment is late and has incurred a late fee, so she owes you $_____. Set a final date and tell her that if you don't receive payment in full by then, you will consider her order cancelled and keep the deposit per the contract.

OR you could just not contact her again, since you have already tried several times.

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FromScratchSF Posted 13 Apr 2012 , 11:23pm
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I say she's in breech of contract and you cancel HER and keep her deposit. Send this letter CERTIFIED MAIL with return receipt and wash your hands of her:

"Dear Bride,

I'm writing to notify you that you are in breech of our contract dated ____________. In paragraph XX it states that final payment is due 30 days prior to your scheduled event. That date has passed, I have not received your final payment and repeated efforts to contract you have been unsuccessful. Unfortunately we are past the point where I can execute the cake originally agreed upon. I am hereby terminating our contract and any monies currently held as a retainer are non-refundable, and thereby forfeit by you.

Best of luck,

Me"

PS - If you call it a "deposit" you need to change that to "non-refundable retainer".

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Jacscakes213 Posted 15 Apr 2012 , 6:23am
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Thank you so much lovemesomecake and fromscratch for your replies. That was kinda of my gut but I didnt think of actually sending her a cancellation notice. That's a great idea. I didn't mention this earlier , but I have a paypal option on my website and that is how her deposit was paid by her dad so I even looked of his info and tried to contact him. I just don't get it. Why would you pay 300 bucks for a deposit and not follow through. I have bought a bunch of stuff for this cake that I have no idea what tom do with. I'm timing of making the cake in dummies since I have all of the stuff and using for my first show in July... My contract does state the it is a nonrefundable deposit. I have learned so much from you all on is site. Aye ....what a first wedding experience!

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KoryAK Posted 15 Apr 2012 , 7:37am
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In my contract it states the usual about it being non refundable and balance due 30 days prior, but it also says if payment is not received by 14 days prior to the event the order will be cancelled and no refund will be given. Of course, if people are communicating I may give them more time on a case-by-case basis, but this is specifically included to cover my butt for those who drop off the face of the earth.

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Jacscakes213 Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 5:20pm
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I will definitely be making some adjustments to my contract for a little more protection but I have enough in it to keep her deposit. I just can't seen to grasp why someone would just fall off the face of the earth two weeks before their wedding,leaving vendors hanging... Just don't get it...

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KoryAK Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 5:25pm
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Perhaps the wedding was canceled (and perhaps it happened before they even booked the venue) and they are too embarrassed to tell you. I've had that happen to me - hence the line in my contract! icon_smile.gif

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BARBARAJEAN Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 5:45pm
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If you cannot reach her by phone, I would go to the store where she works and point blank ask her or anyone for that matter, if she is or is not in need of a cake. If her wedding is cancelled and she was just too rude to let you know, you will feel better about keeping the money.If she is sick or some disaster took place, you need to know that too. I would be half nuts with curiousity and would have to find out some how.My daughter cancelled her wedding many years ago and the people at her venue refunded her deposit. It was of course not necessary, but we were very grateful and when she did get married we used their site. She however did not leave people wondering what was going on.

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FromScratchSF Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 6:36pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BARBARAJEAN

If you cannot reach her by phone, I would go to the store where she works and point blank ask her or anyone for that matter, if she is or is not in need of a cake. If her wedding is cancelled and she was just too rude to let you know, you will feel better about keeping the money.If she is sick or some disaster took place, you need to know that too. I would be half nuts with curiousity and would have to find out some how.My daughter cancelled her wedding many years ago and the people at her venue refunded her deposit. It was of course not necessary, but we were very grateful and when she did get married we used their site. She however did not leave people wondering what was going on.




I'm sure you mean well, but woah is this really bad advice. Look.... If the bride wanted to tell you all her drama she would have returned calls and emails. But quite frankly, if she's dogging OP there is a reason. Putting myself in her place, if ANYONE ever stormed into my place of employment like you are suggesting to find out what happened with my non-wedding so you could feel better and satisfy your curiosity, I'd have you thrown out of the building and I would consider pressing charges for harassment. I'd post every negative review on every website known to man and I personally make it my mission to humiliate you as much as you'd be humiliating me by having the audacity to harass me at work over a wedding cake that you never made.

It's none of anyone's business why the contract is not being fulfilled. That is between the bride and her fiancee.

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BARBARAJEAN Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 9:37pm
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Sorry I came off as a person who would storm anywhere...I am a little old lady.I would not harrass anyone. Since the two people were friends from the store, I thought why not just give her a visit instead of worrying about it for days. Curiosity is not a bad thing. I also think it is awfully easy to ignore an e-mail and a phone call sometimes works better.Please believe me, I storm no where and I harrass no one.

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shanter Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 10:09pm
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OP,
Make sure that the money stays in your PayPal account. The bride or her father may try to get it back from PayPal.

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cakeyouverymuch Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 10:28pm
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I'm with Barbara Jean. It isn't necessary for the OP to storm in demanding to know the whys and the wherefores. No matter what the circumstances the bride owes the OP a response as to whether she wants the cake or not. If approaching her in person is the only recourse the OP has left I say go for it.

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Jacscakes213 Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 10:40pm
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Ok... So as for going to her place of work.... It's a tanning salon that both my mother and I go to frequently... The other day I went into tan a girl that knows her semi well says" hey how are you , are you still doing so and so's cake" ( I hadn't been in in awhile) I said as far as I know. As I was leaving , I asked when so and so would be working again and the girl saud the next day from blah to blah. I said okay thanks. A coupe days later I went in again and was like oh shoot I missed her and they said she was taking a six month break. H,mmmm...
As for the money in my paypal....I have my account set up to autotransefer at the end of each business day...
I don't plan on using her place of employment to get to her. I agree that whatever is going on with her is her business... I just need to get a yes with the rest of the money or no and be done with....

Can't seem to get any answer at All....

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MsGF Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 11:04pm
post #14 of 24

Sounds to me like she has bigger problems then the $300.00 she gave you. I would do what ScratchSF said, send her a certified letter cancelling the order and be done with it. Make a dummy cake with the supplies like you said. Think of it this way, if you missed an insurance payment, do you think they would call you, text you, email you over and over, of course not. They would send you a letter cancelling your policy and they'd keep whatever cash you had already given them. They would just wash their hands of you. I'm not sure why we feel the need to chase people for money and orders. Business is business, it isn't personal. Good Luck

I still think ScratchSF has the best idea.

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costumeczar Posted 16 Apr 2012 , 11:28pm
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I agree, the weddding has obviosuly been cancelled and she didn't bother to tell you. That occasionally happens to me, and especially with non-refundable deposits clients don't get in touch because they figure there's no point. Send the letter and don't give it another thought.

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Apti Posted 17 Apr 2012 , 1:04am
post #16 of 24

Quote:
Originally Posted by FromScratchSF

I say she's in breech of contract and you cancel HER and keep her deposit. Send this letter CERTIFIED MAIL with return receipt and wash your hands of her:

"Dear Bride,

I'm writing to notify you that you are in breech of our contract dated ____________. In paragraph XX it states that final payment is due 30 days prior to your scheduled event. That date has passed, I have not received your final payment and repeated efforts to contract you have been unsuccessful. Unfortunately we are past the point where I can execute the cake originally agreed upon. I am hereby terminating our contract and any monies currently held as a retainer are non-refundable, and thereby forfeit by you.




I agree 100%. This is the perfect professional response. I applaud you for having a business contract. I applaud you for not caring about her reasons, they are her business, not yours. You have done your due diligence and the final letter (above) will seal the end of this transaction.
---------------

Quote:
Originally Posted by cakeyouverymuch

I'm with Barbara Jean. It isn't necessary for the OP to storm in demanding to know the whys and the wherefores. No matter what the circumstances the bride owes the OP a response as to whether she wants the cake or not. If approaching her in person is the only recourse the OP has left I say go for it.




I politely but emphatically disagree that the bride "owes" the OP a response "no matter the circumstances". The bride fulfilled her part of the contract by submitting $300 in a timely manner to hold the date. The bride knew the contract stated that the money would be lost if the remainder was not paid on time. Even very polite inquires at her place of work are vastly inappropriate and very unprofessional. (I think the original use of the word "storm" was perhaps used for emphasis, not actually to denote "storming" into a business.)

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Cakery2012 Posted 17 Apr 2012 , 1:22am
post #17 of 24

This Bride obviously has bigger problems .I'd just send the certified letter and keep the $300.
Its business.

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Jacscakes213 Posted 17 Apr 2012 , 1:46am
post #18 of 24

Good news, she had suddenly reappeared. Her phone was broken and she couldn't find my number, then it dawned on her today to Google me..and who la

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costumeczar Posted 17 Apr 2012 , 2:44am
post #19 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacscakes213

Good news, she had suddenly reappeared. Her phone was broken and she couldn't find my number, then it dawned on her today to Google me..and who la




Oh my God, what a genius she is! What did she say?

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Cathrine123 Posted 18 Apr 2012 , 8:16am
post #20 of 24

Yeah, what did the bride say? I am intrigued icon_razz.gif

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denetteb Posted 18 Apr 2012 , 2:44pm
post #21 of 24

C'Mon, Jac, don't leave me hanging? Is the cake on or off? Are you going to cancel the cake since she missed the deadline for final payment? Why was there no wedding scheduled at the venue? Is she on her knees begging for forgiveness and going to name her first child after you if you make her cake? I am dying for the rest of the story!

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Jacscakes213 Posted 26 Apr 2012 , 6:21am
post #22 of 24

Ok, sorry everyone, didn't mean to go MIA! So out of the blue, she called me from a local wedding store! She says, hey there, what size cake stand do I need to get! Of course I was like ..where in the heck have you been? I told her she totally left me hanging that I was like five seconds from cancelling her order... I told her to ge the cake paid in full ASAP!! She apologized, got the cake paid for and that's what I've been working on ...making gum paste callas and those types of things.. Oh but what stress... After this wedding.... There will be chug a com in' to my contract.... A late fee added and a few of your other suggestions... Ugh.... ..funny though..she was so oblivious!!!

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Apti Posted 26 Apr 2012 , 12:15pm
post #23 of 24

So....basically.....she was an idiot. Lucky groom.

Glad it worked out for you (and her)

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denetteb Posted 26 Apr 2012 , 1:01pm
post #24 of 24

Glad it is all working out, too bad it had to be so stressful.

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