When you are giving out a quote for a birthday cake do you use the wedding size serving chart to give out your quote or are you using the larger slice guide to give a quote?

I've been charging wedding size slices for both wedding and birthdays but I know some people like larger birthday cake slices. Thankfully no one has complained about my method so far but curious if I need to change it. If I'm thinking correctly if they wanted the standard birthday slice size they have to buy more cake, right?

Also if anyone has a cutting / serving guide for party cakes can you post that info. I've got the wilton guide for cutting wedding cakes but am curious to see how many slices you can get from each pan using the party slice guide. I've searched this forum but can't find a link to this info

I used to agonize over it until I decided to just go with prices for wedding size slices only, no matter what the event. If they want to slice it bigger, they need to order extra cake.

Reason: I figure my pricing by what it costs me to actually make the cake. Why would I charge them less $ for the same cake just because it's a different event? It still costs me the same to make it and takes the same amount of time.

I don't want to lose money on non-wedding cakes, and I didn't want someone saying, "But what if we just want a *party* cake, not a *wedding* cake?"--It's the same cake, whether you're partying or getting married, far as I'm concerned.

hth

Wilton cake preparation and servings guides:
(All four charts for 2 & 3" pans, wedding & party servings.)

http://www.wilton.com/cake/cakeprep/baking/times/index.cfm

Doug does wedding servings for sheet cakes:

http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-591535-.html

Indydebi's illustrated guide to cutting tiered cakes:
(Yields about 10% more servings than Wilton's method.)

http://tinyurl.com/644w95

HTH

regarding party vs wedding with respect to tiers vs. sheet cakes only

a 4 in wedding tier sliced at 1x2x4 serving size is the exact same amount of cake as a SINGLE layer sheet cake sliced 2x2x2

1x2x4 = 8 cubic inches of cake
2x2x2 = 8 cubic inches of cake

the trick to pricing sheet cakes -- be sure the customer knows it will be a SINGLE layer (have to decide if that will be torted and filled w/ one layer for filling -- generally only at extra cost!)

if they want a double layer -- then the number of servings per sheet DOUBLES and they are to cut it wedding style: 1x2x4.

that way it's still ONE price/serving regardless.

----

as for adjusting for Party size vs wedding size on 4in tiered --- don't.
sell by the wedding size and if they want "jethro portions" (thanks IndyDebi for that) -- buy more cake

If you have an 8in round cake and you charge the same price for party and wedding them you will be selling the same cake for less if you do party servings.

8in round
20 party servings at $2 is $40
24 wedding servings at $2 is $48

Not a big price difference but it really does add up with the larger cakes.
12in round
40 party at $2 is $80
56 wedding at $2 is $112

If you decide to charge different prices then I would go with a price per cake size. Saying your 8in cake is $48 and will serve 20 party or 24 wedding. I do think that sometimes the simpliest pricing is the easier priving for you and your costomers. One size, one price. If they want more cake they can order and pay for it.

A 10" round cake serves 38 wedding servings. I use 35 since I like round numbers.

I tell the customer, "A 10" round will serve 25-35, depending on how you cut it. The price is $xx.xx"

I do NOT go into a big schpeal about how it's so much a serving, based on thsi size serving and it serves this many, but if you cut it bigger, blah blah blah. Customer doesn't care.

Had an attorney's office call for 2 cakes a couple of weeks ago. She told me, "We have 30 people and we like to cut 'em big!" I said, "well, the 10" round will serve 35 standard size servings, but ....." and she interrupted me and said, 'Then we better order a bigger cake.' (Oh please can I clone this lady into ALL of my customers please??????!!!!!!)

A "party size" slice is about 50% bigger than a wedding slice. Why would you give them 50% more cake for the same price per slice? THat is totally nuts! And if you charge $3 for wedding slices and $4.50 for party slices, then the price of the cake is the same, so why bother with 2 difference price-per-slice?

Just pick a chart, determine yoru pricing based on that chart, and stick to it.

To me, it's a no-brainer. Do I need to repeat my KFC analogy?

I am afraid I could never do the per slice thinking with celebration cakes. I don't remember last time I just did a Round Cake. Most of my cakes these days are of THINGS. How many servings can you get out of a beer bottle cake? Well, depends, do you want the long neck verson?? Or a nekkid lady. How many servings is THAT cake!

What I do is figure out the cost of the materials it will cost me to make that cake, tell them it will serve a range of servings (I usually figure it out by how big of a sheet cake I carved the cake out of and how much cake is left over..I usually have a pretty good idea) and I figure out how long it will take for me to make it, then I give the price. A round cake 10 inch round cake with a bow on top will run $90 dollars and serve 30 people. A of a pretty lady, holding a rose in her teeth and feathers of gum paste in her hair will serve 25 but cost $200 dollars. So it depends.

Speaking of servings, anyone have any idea how many servings Wilton character pans serve? Especaily the stand up bear? I use it for OTHER things and I have been telling people 12 servings, maybe 15...I wish Wilton had a chart!