I'm an amateur baker that has about 5 years experience baking for myself and friends. I always supplied my old office with cakes for bday parties, and by word-of-mouth I got hired to do a wedding cake for a friend of an old coworker. She and her young marine fiancee are looking for something affordable, so they went with an ammy like me.

I know I can do the cake with my eyes closed- she picked my "signature" white choc cream cheese icing and red velvet, which I make about once a month. I have no idea how to price the cake though! I'm doing a square 3 tier (8-10-12) cake. To save money she's ordering flowers to decorate it with, and I'm going to do a string of pearls around each tier. She doesn't care if they're edible, so we're just using costume jewelry.

What would you charge for your time to make a cake that size (8-10-12 inch tiers), frost, deliver within half hour radius, and then help stick flowers in at site? I know how much the materials will cost already, and will add that at the end.

Thanks from a newbie!

There is a "sticky" in the Cake Decorating Business Forum that can help you.

First off welcome to CC!
Next we can't really tell you what we charge since pricing is so different across the country. What is normally suggested is figure out how much the cake is going to cost you to make, then call other bakeries in your area to see what they charge then go from there. Don't call big box stores like Walmart, Sams or the like as their prices aren't what you can match as they buy cakes in bulk.
Mileage is charged per round trip mile from your starting point and that's up to you what you charge.
HTH

Just be sure the fresh flowers are non toxic and pesticide free. There are very few flowers that are safe to put on a cake.

Mama- Thank you! Those Excel files are really detailed, I'll have to look through and see if I can understand them.

Sari- Thats a good idea! I've been trying to look online and see. I live in Orange County, CA, so I figure there have to be a lot of stores around here that are pretty expensive.

Tiggy- Thats a good point! I asked the bride and she assured me they were ok, but I still should make sure that they're ok.

Be careful if you're in california. They do not allow a home based cake business. If you're already planning on renting a licensed kitchen then no worries.

Where is the reception going to be at? Some places require a licensed business to provide the cake. You may want to verify this before providing a price.

Leily, I am delivering and setting up at her home. The reception is going to be at her parent's house, so I'm not sure what the requirements are for licensing if it's at her own home. I have a business license for tax purposes, but not one to prepare food. I've previously flown under the radar because I only sell to private parties/people serving in their own homes. Does anyone know if the location of the reception has anything to do with the licensing requirements?

I just looked up CA law, and it looks like it would be much easier to rent or borrow a friend's restaurant kitchen than cook in my own home, if I am still required to use an inspected space.

location of reception doesn't have anything to do with selling cakes out of a home kitchen. The issue is that it's illegal to sell cakes made in a home kitchen in california. But if you're comfortable trying to fly below the radar then that is your choice. I have no idea what the fines are out there, i have just heard they are high, so i always try to warn people when i see this as many do not know it's illegal.

and yes it's still illegal if they only reimburse you for the ingredients. If you receive anything (gift cards, money, etc... it consitutes a business transaction as you have received something in return for your product)

..moving to Cake Decorating.