I am a new home baker and recently have been doing a lot of cake orders. I have had at least 2 cakes a month (this is a lot for me). But I am having a hard time pricing my cakes and figuring out the whole deposit thing. I was wondering if anyone could share there price list/deposit list with me just as an example. Anyones input would be great, I just called the newbies because I am not at the level to be charging to much money.

I also wonder if anyone has figured out the breakdown of cost of making fondant,icing and cakes? I make MFF, Indydebi's Crisco-Based Buttercream and Kakeladi's ORIGINAL WASC cake recipe. Thanks!

Hi Nicole! I am allways looking for other home bakers to "bond" with. I am a stay at home mom who does cakes for friends, family and refferals. I have a web site but do not promote my business to much as I don't need or want to be to busy. I also do about 2 cakes a month. my prices for a basic cake with no intricate art work is $1.00 a serving. If I am doing alot of art work or if it is a very time conssuming design then I add an "art fee" to my base price. This allows the client to alter thier order to fit a budget. As for deposits, I allways require a 50% deposit and do not start any work untill it has been recieved. I hope this helps. Feel free to put me on your buddy list if you want to talk more.

Hi! I didn't realize that there were so many things that a home baker should account for in the price. This thread was very informative about items to think about and prices. I too wonder what to charge friends and colleagues. I low ball myself b/c I am a beginner too.

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-628389.html

Thank you BeeBoos! This really helps. I am also a SAHM of an almost 3 year old and don't have hours to spend at a time on a cake. I actually had someone who wanted a pretty detailed cake for the weekend (Topsy Turvy w/gumpaste bow and scroll work). I told them I needed a two week notice and they thought that was crazy. Your website is great! I love your work! Thanks again!

MMF costs about $4 to make one 2lb batch

Just because you are a beginner caker doesn't mean you have to charge low prices. Don't sell yourself short. When I first started out I thought to myself there is no way that people will pay me alot of money to do their cake because they know that I am just starting out. Well, let me tell you, they paid me more than I asked for because they knew that they were getting better quality from my cakes than the grocery store or walmart could ever give them. If you start out with low prices now, it will be harder to change and raise them later when you get better with your decorating. Don't be affraid of charging what you, your time and the cake ingredients are worth. As far as the deposit goes I agree with at least the 50% up front, but I am a little bit more strict with my cakes and so I require the full payment no later than 2 weeks before the cake is due. Some of the other cakers on here might think I am a little crazy with doing that but my customers have had no complaint about that yet because the bakeries in my town require the same thing. I hope this helped you some. Good luck with your decorating and your future cake business.

wow! $1 a serving? That is too cheap? Does that even cover the cost of ingredients and electricity much alone soap and water to clean up? Then I know you can't be making a dime to pay yourself! 50 percent to hold the date, remainder due no later than 2 weeks out. Orders for tier cakes need to be done at least a month in advance. Small thing and want to work a cake in, fine, just point out your policy is more notice but you will do the best you can. IF YOU WANT! Don't be a push over, if in doubt, ask Indydebi, she will set you straight. She has good advice and I would take all she will give.

Nicole, Thanks for the compliment. I just wanted to clarify something about my pricing. I price for my market. I live in a small town of 6500 and my prices are right in line with the 3 other experienced decorators in town. Now remember that the $1 per serving is for a very basic cake. Most of what I do is higher priced than that because they know I am going to go overboard when decorating thier cakes (especially those for kids) I did a 3 tier totally fondant covered cake with 3 flavors of cake, stars on wires big fondant bow on top etc..(the dang picture of this cake will not post no matter how many times I have edited and resized it and that pisses me off because I think it was one of my best) and got nearly $400 for it so I have learned not to short change myslef. Thanks for everyones input. It is nice to know what others with your ability are charging.

4 dollars a batch?? Where are you buying your ingredients??? I buy my sugars, and marshmallows at Cash and Carry. A restaurant food retailer in our area. I am sure that there are some in your area.

If you buy the store brand marshmallows, it should only run you about .89 cents a bag. You can also buy powdered sugar for about $1.50 a bag if you use the store brands or look for the sales. I only purchase from a grocery store if it's on sale and I can do it cheaper than in bulk from the Cash and Carry store. Oh yeah, and WINCO is another great buy in bulk place to get sugar.....LOVE IT!!

I'm like you guys, I'm a mom that just happens to bake from home sometimes for money....I call it "Anti Crazy Lady Therapy".....unless of course a customer turns out to be crazier than my "cure".... LOL

I'm here to help if you have any questions that I can answer....I've been baking ever since I was 10, so I'm always ready to share!

You need to charge more. I don't even know if you can get a walmart cake for $1 a serving. I am also pretty new, only a few months and maybe 15 cakes in. I charge $3.50 for BC and $4.50 fondant to start. My 3D cakes start at $75 for a basic design with little carving. It goes up from there, even if they only need it to feed 5 people. Since you don't want to do a lot of them, than go ahead and raise your prices...at LEAST $2.50 to start. Don't feel like your time and talent aren't worth the money you should be getting. If it's a really detailed cake and you are worried it may not look great, than do a practice cake first. As far as pricing for your area, that's a good start. But don't lowball the other bakeries just because you are new.
As for how much each ingredient costs, check out the business thread. There is a sticky at the top with Alice's pricing matrix. If you look at that it breaks everything down for you on one of the bottom tabs of the matrix.

I am so glad to hear that $1 is just a base price. I still say it should be more but you have to live with it. I just worry about you being a single mom and doing all this work for next to nothing, burning out and then what? Look forward to seeing a lot more pics from you soon.

I noticed it is MFF and not MMF, I bet that makes for a big price difference. I am still trying to find the gelatine in bulk. We have it at the store in envelopes, 6 to a box. That's it. Where do you get your gelatine?

Texas,
Thanks for the offer. I will eventually get the mom I made it for to send me a copy in the correct size. She is a professional photog so she sent it in a pretty large size. I have put it on my web site (pink blue and silver sweet 16 cake) but for some reason this site either says it is to big or to small. I have pretty much given up on trying to get it on this particular site.