Hi all,

OK, I'm new to decorating and find myself wanting to try all different avenues. My friend and I have started a side business (hopefully legit someday) and the other day my brian got hooked on Gingerbread Houses. I have searched high and low on line - I think I actually reached the end of the line - but there's not a lot of info out there as far as the retail end. I have found some great sites for recipes and patterns (though I always welcome more info) but just nothing as far as buying/selling premade, pre decorated houses. I wanted this info so I could do some price comparisons but there's nothing out there as far as online bakeries that sell GBH.

1 of 2 things -

1 - I've totaly missed the boat and nobody really buys GBH because they're too expenisive as just a decoration?

2 - GBH is typically a thing that you would rather do than buy - even if your the busy professional that has no time to bake?

Any and all comments are really appreciated before I dive into this empty pool...

thansk,

Doreen

Hi! I'm so glad to hear someone loves gingerbread as much as I do. I have a party for my children every year where we make miniature houses and each friend brings a bag of candy to share. So FUN!!!! I have seen the premade houses for sale for between $60-$85. Checkout the website for Red Envelope-they make them with a personalized plaque above the door for $85 or so PLUS shipping. I have considered selling them at Christmas as well-let me know how it goes.

Our family has a holiday tradition that every year right before Christmas we make and decorate a gingerbread house. We love them! Sometimes we are adventurous and create our own pattern and bake it and if we're pressed for time, we just buy a premade one and "glue" it together. We then use the gobs of candy my kids get from Halloween as most of the candy for the gingerbread house. I go through their candy and pull out the hard candies, the starburst and skittles, the tootsie rolls, etc. Candy lasts a long time and Christmas isn't that far from Halloween anyway. The kids get way too much candy, so this is a nice way to "eat it later".

This is a tradition for us and we look forward to making one each year and the kids love eating the candy off of it through the holiday break. For us, it's the fun of making it together instead of buying one already done. But I'm sure there must be a market out there that would purchase one already done and use as display.

Not sure if this answers your question...but just a few thoughts of mine.

good luck,
Jennifer

a lady at a craft fair near me was selling here' for $100+ depending upon detail, size, etc.

Buckygirl & Doug - thanks for the pricing info, it helps!

Jennifer - I totally agree with you that it should be about the fun and doing things as a family. I live in L.A. where very few have time for that "sort of thing" but always want their home to "feel" family friendly. I guess they could get the Nanny to build it with the kids... What's a girl to do? Make lemonade, or in this case, Gingerbread.

Any other thoughts/ideas - please let me know.

thanks,

Doreen

Do a search for 'made to order gingerbread houses' instead of just gingerbread houses. You get quit a few bakeries and such with them for sale! Hope that helps you!!

Doreen, This sight might be helpful...
http://home.comcast.net/~ultimategingerbread/marketing.htm
Here's another one...
http://www.lovin-oven.com/giftshouses.html
Hope this helps you!

thank you so much, Heidisuesmom

Just a thought... could you make a GBH decorating kit. You provide the house already put together. Supply the icing and a some candy so the customer can do the project as a family in their own home?

I love making/decorating gingerbread houses!! My mom started that tradition for me and my brothers when we were very young and we have continued the tradition now for my mom's great nieces and nephews ranging in age from 8 - 18. We host a gingerbread house decorating party every year on Thanksgiving weekend (on Saturday) and everyone gets their own house to decorate (including all the adults).

At the beginning of November we all get together to decide a basic shopping list for candies, crackers, gum (Wrigley gum cut in 1/3's make great shingles) and divide the list between everyone. My mom and I do the baking of the houses a couple of weeks ahead of time. We make all the royal icing glue the week of Thanksgiving and put the houses together a couple of days before the "party" so that it's set/dry...we found that works best when small children are decorating because they tend to put way too much bulky candy on the roof and then get upset when it slides off! LOL!

It's a lot of fun...but with kids involved, it's also a HUGE mess!

There is a place in Nashville, TN that sells pre-decorated gingerbread houses, kits to decorate your own and even has workshops/parties where you can come in a decorate there. She has been featured on Oprah. The website is: http://www.enchantedgingerbread.com/home.htm

I'm also a member of a yahoo group all about gingerbread houses that's pretty cool, but mostly active in the winter months. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gingerbreadhousebaking/

Sorry this message is so long...but it's something I love to talk about!

thanks again for the info everyone!

GRETA - Yes, I'd like to sell the "prefab/pre-decorated" for the people who have no time or patience - plus it gives me a chance to be creative but I also want and will sell the kits so that kids and families can have that experience

KENDRAANNE - thank you so much for all the info! As a kid I used to love building gingerbread houses, or maybe I just loved the idea of it - looking back, I think maybe we did it once and just recently it hit me like metal safe falling from the sky and I'm all consumed with the idea. Part of my idea/business plan, is to have sessions for kids to come in and build and or decorate pre made houses - ala "build-a-bear" or (the name excapes my clouded brain right now) the place where you go and paint your own ceramics... anyway, I'll check out the webs that you sent over next week as I'm leaving work right now and my home comp is on the frizt.

Happy friday all!!!

Doreen

I saw a lot of them for sale in catalogs starting last September. I think Williams Sonoma sells one and maybe the Bakers Catalog - there were a slew of kits, premade and customized.