AI have taken an order for my 5th wedding cake and the customer is asking for a trial size of what the wedding cake would look like. Is this a normal type of request and how big should i make it and charge?
A
Original message sent by Godot
Seriously, though, you probably shouldn't be in business (taking orders) before you've costed out your formula and have a concrete pricing structure in place.
I have tons of cake dummy's, some are decorated already (for practice & bridal shows/portfolio) I have these throughout my studio/office labeled if someone wants a visual. I will pull out plain dummy's too if someone wants to have a visual of the lifelike size.
I also have a book with different stacked tiers; rounds are on one page, squares, misc., etc. these are labeled by tier size and total servings with/without the top tier. We go through this as part of their consultation. Some people require more visuals then others.
They are also given deconstructed cake samples, fillings, & frostings-perhaps this is what she wants?!?! I do charge for all of this.
Honestly, Godot is right most of these things should be ready before you start running a business, if you have to ask certain questions you might not be ready. I don't mean any disrespect, please don't misunderstand. Obviously, you cannot ever be prepared for everything! However, we are supposed to be the professionals, able to guide potential customers. She probably doesn't know what she wants, asking for a sample wedding cake...charge her whatever your price per serving plus regular expenses, as you would with any other cake. I would explain that this isnt necessary, that's our job, a tasting is one thing but there is no reason she would need a mini wedding cake unless she's unsure of your skills.
You can draw her a sketch, that should suffice. I just don't understand what she's wanting lol. I can guarantee she won't want to pay you to make her a practice cake, but what do I know! If she's willing to then go for it, just make sure you get paid in advance.
Is it a crazy new design?
Hi Juliek1980!
Welcome to cake central. This is one of the best places to learn and share, ever!
Godot and Smckinney07 are right!
In my 14 years as a custom designer, I have done one sample wedding cake.
The wedding cake order was my largest wedding to date, for 1,000 servings. So, the sample cake is free for cakes to serve 1,000 or more.
For cakes under 1,000 servings, I can provide mini cake samples, which start at $100 each. So far, just the one. Feel free to use my rule!
Best of luck! You'll do fine!
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