9 30 pm last night phone rings,

THEM: hey girl this is ____ ____ I havent seen you in years. ______ told me you do wedding cakes.


ME: Mentally checking my brain for a face to go ith the name. Nothing.

THEM: I need one for my wedding. Can you do a 4 teir and I pick it up Friday?

ME: THIS FRIDAY OCT. 31??????????

THEM: Yeah the wedding is Sat at 1 pm. Nothing fancy it's wedding #2.

ME: NOooooooooooo I dont do wedding cakes any more, long silence on the other end.

THEM: So who do I call to get a wedding cake. How much will a 4 teir serve?

Whats the cost?

ME: About 4.25 a serving to start with. LONGGGGGGGGGGG SILENCE, what? For real?

Do you think I can call the donut shop and see what they have?

ME: Fine by me they keep 1/4 and 1/2 sheets in the case 24/7.
I have 3 cakes for the halloween festival and cake walk cakes to do.

THEM: Hey if I get some of the sheet cakes from the donut shop can you make tiers with them.

ME: Nope sorry.

THEM: Sorry you can be any help. Click.

I still dont have a face to go with the name, gonna get my HS yearbook out.

No way would I touch that one.

Good Lord, I love when people call and expect that you can just produce a cake with no warning...I had one guy last week call me and leave a message at 9:45 pm, saying that he wanted a flourless chocolate torte for the next day, and he'd be picking it up in the afternoon. Oh, please, sir, let me go jump through a hoop to make a cake for your last-minute request! Needless to say, if he got the cake it was from someone else.

People have no concept what it takes to decorate a cake. I agree, wedding cakes are out of bounds. Too many demands and not enough reward.

I swear, these customers are getting dumber.

Customers never cease to amaze me.

Wouldn't surprise me if you actually didn't know this person and they were just using that story to see if they could get a last-minute cake outta you for cheap 'cause they forgot about ordering a cake sooner!

I am so with you both!! Get this one:
9:00 am (I am at work) phone call --
Lady, "someone told me you do the 10 layer thin cakes with the homemade fudge icing"
Me, "yes I do"
Lady, "I would like to order one"
Me, "okay fine, when would you like to have it"?
Lady, "this afternoon by 5:00"
Me, "WHAT?, I do not even get off until 3:00, then home by 3:30, just exactly when do you think I would find time to bake 10 layers of cake and make fudge"?
Now this lady knows how long it takes to do one of these I guess she is another one of those people who think I have a magic wand that I wave, but as of now I am sure that she thinks my wand has turned into a broom that I ride.

They always want a masterpeice done for them with little ot no time to plan and if you do it for them and it's not exactly what they visioned then your the bad guy for going out on a limb for them ...... uuuggghhhh some people!!

Thanks I feel better now.

This is the 2nd time this has happened to me. Late call for a wedding cake. Thus why I hate the stress and wont do them any more.

I will do birthday cakes but other than that just dessert cakes.

Sometimes I wonder if these people order their cakes at the last minute so the cake will be "fresh-baked". Little do they know how many of us keep cakes in the freezer because of late orders like this!

Glad you didn't bother with this one....I would have laughed her off the phone )

HAHAHAHAHA, I have to laugh as I had almost the same thing happen to me last week! A friend calls says her friend is having an engagment party friday halloween night. Would I do the cake? I say give me 24 hrs to think about it as I have a ton of things to do the week in question. She calls back not ten minutes later and says never mind, she was going to the store to get a cake. I say ok fine. I hang up the phone and say to my husband guess I don't have to think about that cake! He ask why, I state bc I really didn't want to do it and she was going to the store for one. People don't understand the time it takes to do cakes!

I'm new to all this, but I'm amazed that someone would actually expect to order a 4 teir wedding cake on October 28th for a wedding on October 31st! Even if the cake is plain, you still have to bake it, freeze it, decorate it and stack it - I'm shocked and dismayed!

I agree with all of you. People don't understand how much work goes into any cake. They only see the finished product and aren't willing to pay for what it is really worth. What they don't realize it that the product they get from the store doesn't even begin to compare to a homemade cake.

I had a girl send me an email on Monday saying "I'm having a party on Wednesday and i need you to make me a cake for 150 people. Can you call me please" Of course I'll call you girl...but u have to give me ur number first. First of all, how are you going to send me an email on Monday for a cake for 150 ppl for Wednesday? Second, how are you going to send me an email telling me to call you if you don't put a number Some people are just clueless!

This is a tad OT, but it reminded me of a thread questioning whether cakes have already seen it all (as far as uniqueness goes).

I'm sure that one day the "dont" cake will be the biggest rage!! Lol.
(I shouldn't laugh--it's bound to happen. I can see myself making custom donut stands similar to cupcake stands).

Way to go!!!
I get last minute orders all the time, at least they are for birthday's. Sometimes I do them, somethimes I don't.

I think people assume I have NO life what so ever, and I am happy to bake around the clock!! I can pretty much bake an decorate a small birthday cake in a days notice, given no fondant details or anything, but do I really want to sit up all night long for a few bucks....NO!

Anyway, good for you for standing up for yourself!!!

The main thing is when someone calls and wants a cake in that short of time (for a birthday, wedding, anniversary, etc.) just tell them "sorry, I need more notice in order to do a cake." Or let them know you already have orders for the rest of the week.

If they give you grief about it, just tell them the same thing again.

No one (NO ONE) can take advantage of us without our permission.

I'm sure that one day the "dont" cake will be the biggest rage!! Lol.
(I shouldn't laugh--it's bound to happen.]

It HAS HAPPENED!

Haven't you already heard about the Krispy Cream Cakes! Saw that on TV... couldn't believe my eyes...almost as bad as the twinkie version!

I love the "nothing fancy .... just a big giant 4 tier cake!" part!

Had one this week, too. Guy calls me Monday, around noon, telling me he's throwing a party tonight (uh-oh!) and wants a cake (go on ......) shaped like a specific car!!

I burst out laughing, I swear to god I did, telling him, "Do you know how many DAYS it takes to make one of those?"

So he backpedals to "oh no, not SHAPED like the car .... just with the car emblem on top of it."

I said, "First, I'm a custom design business .... I make cakes to order, and even if I didn't have a full baking schedule today, I can't make a cake like that in a couple of hours. You might try (name of very expensive bakery in town) ..... they do a lot of these types of cakes and might be able to help."

He said, "No ... I already called them and they said they needed more notice." (DUH!)

I said, "I'm sorry .... even tho' we live in a 24/7 world, there are some things that can't be made "instantly". THanks for checking with us, tho!"

I don't get too many crazy requests - but if I can accommodate them I do and if I can't (or don't want to) I don't and give them the number of another decorator.

I have had a call on a Thursday morning for an anniversary cake for 50. It turned into a cake for a 3 tiered 101 serving cake with gum paste flowers. She paid $514 for it on paypal and I started work on it at 3:30 and delivered it under a hurricane evac order. I got paid big bucks and I love that. I didn't have a cake that weekend - so good for her and good for me.

I don't let people make me crazy - my motto is I will do it if I have time and energy and they have $. Otherwise I pass it to someone else who maybe able to fit them in. I feel that it never hurts to ask and sometimes they get lucky and I get to do a cake that I might not have and gained a very good customer. Again, this is only if I have the time and energy!

Last Fridag at about 7.30 pm my assistent and I were finishing up our orders for Saturday... shop closed, all lights off FOH. There was a ruckus outside and someone kept baning on the door. I was like WTF and went to the door. There's this guy standing there pressing a pic of one of my cakes to the window. I let him in and he starts telling me how he needs to order this exact cake (4-tier with hand-modelled GP figures of Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger and Piglet, plus lots of small flowers etc.) for 15 people, for his kid's first birthday... TOMORROW.

Honestly.

Maria and I looked at one another and, literally, burst out laughing.

I tried explaining to him that there wasn't enough time, but he kept saying that he really needs that cake and he'd pay me extra etc. He wasn't listening at all. Finally I just said, no, we won't do it.

he got all huffy and yelled, "Well, I guess I'll have to take my business elsewhere then!!!!" Yeah, buddy, I guess you will.

Then he stomped out.

I looked at Maria and said, "Man, that didn't just happen, did it?" She said, "No, it didn't".

That twinkie cake is great, Leahs!

A little less "drastic" but a couple weeks ago my daughter's room mom called me at 6pm asking if I'd to 30 cupcakes for the next morning. Nut-free, mind you. I was getting ready to go to work, and told her such. I would have to go shopping, too. She pressed. I've really wanted to get the school's cake orders so I gave in. I left my recipe with my brother, and he made them for me. Next morning I got up early, made frosting and pumped them out.
BUT I must have complained about it a lot. I got told 2 weeks ago about some desired for Nov 10th. I also got the school's orders!

Chutzpah!

You crack me up. Always good for a smile Sorry about your misfortunes, but I feel like since you weren't taken advantage of its okay to giggle

Its the 24/7 walmart mentality I tell ya.

People are so used to walking into walmart seeing it in the cases and think that any one who bakes does the same thing.

Even the ones like me who do special order only with advanced ordering we have the filled magical case. I wish.

Last sunday evening at 5:15 pm I recieved this phone call:

guy- "What time do you close?"

me-"6pm, in 45 minutes"

guy-"OK great! I'm on my way right now, could you start a yellow cake for me? "

me-"I'm sorry, all of our cakes are made to order. I have one 8" strawberry out front but I won't be able to make your yellow cake"

guy-"What?! BUT IM ORDERING IT NOW.... blah blah blah its my daughters birthday blah blah blah.........."

me-"Call the grocery store and have a great day!"

people just dont get it. I mean really BIRTHDAYS ARE THE SAME DAY EVERY YEAR.

and good for you for not making that wedding cake!

But...but...don't you just push a button on the oven door and out comes a perfectly shaped cake, panless and ready for the icingomatic?

This is the funniest one I ever got. I think this was on a Wednesday night, and she wanted it Friday night:

why did I NOT discover you sooner? tomorrow is my best friends 30th birthday. i love your whimsical cakes. we are having a dinner at XX in Uptown dallas for 25. what are the chances you could create a whimsical cake by tomorrow evening? she is fashionable, single, sassy, just won best employee award, a little nerdy, loves monkies and the color purple, was a cheerleader at LSU, has a weird affinity for sticking her tongue out like the rolling stones logo, loves word games and her most cherished christmas present from santa was a typewriter, just celebrated in NYC with her sisters..........can you possibly create a version of your three tiered topsy turvy fourth of july 30 topper with fondant monkie, wired flowers, feather boa cake. i know this may be a rush impossibility, but just wanted to try.