How much would you charge for this cake? The bride wants a 10" or 12" cake to feed 40 people. She also wants it priced as a sheet cake. The request is for fondant icing with fondant cherry blossoms on the sides and a few fondant flowers on top. She also wants a white almond cake with a fresh strawberry filling. She wants to spend less than $85. Maybe I'm crazy, but I don't think I can do it for less than that and would probably charge more. Your input would be appreciated. Thanks!

She may want it for the price quoted, but that doesn't mean she can have it! To me, a sheet cake is a one layer cake. The cake she wants is two layers. $. She wants fondant. $. With fondant flowers. $. With filling. $. I hope you kept a straight face and didn't burst out laughing when she told you everything she wants for less than $85.

Sheet cake, round cake, diamond-shaped cake - all of my cakes are two-layer and the same price.

I charged about $2.50 for fondant, so that cake would be about $112.5, but I round to the nearest $5, so it would be $115. - AND I know I'm on the cheap end of fondant.

HTH

I told her I charge $4/serving whether it is a round cake or sheet cake. She was very offended. I asked if she would be opposed to buttercream versus fondant. Of course her response was she liked the look of fondant and was unwilling to compromise. I told her I couldn't compromise on the $4/serving then. Her comeback was that another cake decorator said they would do it for $85. I told her I wasn't sure how they could charge $85 but maybe she should go for it then. She just emailed me and said she found another decorator that would do it for less than $85. I would still like to hear from everyone how much they would charge. $4/serving is the going rate here for buttercream so I thought I was giving her a good deal at $4/serving for fondant icing and detail work. I forgot to mention, this is a last minute cake.

Offended!?

Well, I get offended that Tiffany's cost so much and I can't shop there, but they don't lower the price for me!

You're in Fla., so I think that is a VERY reasonable price.

The very first quinceanera cake I did, I gave her my price for 300($65 lower than what I would charge now), and she said she could get it w/real flowers at one of the local bakeries for $180. (ha!) I know exactly what she was trying to do. I told her sorry, but this is the price. When I got home and told my mom, my mom told me I should have said, "Wow, that's a great deal! If I were you I would go with them." Did I mention I knew we was obviously buffing because 1. that was an outrageously low price and 2. I called that bakery to get a quote and they said up to $500

if she can get it for under 85 bucks why is she still emailing you about it?....i'd email her back and congratulate her for finding such a good deal, and tell her she needs to go ahead and make her order with the other baker then!

Well, I don't think the 10in would be quite big enough for 40, so I'd go with a 12in which serves 50 in my book. I charge $5 minimum for fondant wedding cakes, so I would charge her $250. Don't do it for $85, that would barely cover your supplies!

oh you should've called her bluff that would be a very fun story to tell to all of us

Well, she's not in Miami that's for sure because the minimum she would be charged by a shop would be 3.50 ( $140.00) for buttercream and 5.00 ($200.00) for fondant.

Unless they went with someone that baked from their home ( with no overhead) and even then I'm sure they'd hesitate.


Your comment that the client go offended when you told her what your price was just burnt my shorts. I'd like to see her get offended at the dress shop when they tell her the price of her wedding dress and then tell them she was told she could get it at XYZ shop for about 1/3 of the price.

I really hate that about our business. ( and I place the blame directly on our shoulders, when people balk at our prices some of us just cave in and say: "Ooooooooh OK, I'll make it for you for that price". If that's the case, then it's NOT a business it's a hobby, and I say, move over and let the big girls have the ball, lol, we tend to be people pleasers in this field which is great for the soul but bad for business)