So, a new bakery just opened in my town on Labor Day weekend. I had a bunch of cooking to do for this weekend so I decided to stop in and get a slice of cake for my husband so I wouldn't have to bake anything. I literally asked "that's it?" when she told me the price. 8 in round cake, the slice she gave me was just shy of 1/4 of the whole cake and my grand total after tax..$1.33!!! What??
That's crazy! Do their ingredients "fall off a truck"?
AI got a $1.65 cupcake at a local bakery the other day, it was pretty small but still! $1.33 for a slab of cake though, wow.
They'll either need to raise their prices or they'll be closed in 6 months.
I had the health inspector call to arrange a time for my annual inspection, and she started out by saying "I'm just calling to see if you're still in business." I said "Oh yeah,. I'm still here," and she said that I would be surprised at how many businesses have closed in the last year. I wouldn't be surprised, they're all the undercutters who I've watched as they opened and closed because they're pricing themselves out of business.
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I have never seen cakes by the slice any less than $4, even at the cheapest, no frills places I have ever come across.
Exactly! At my local grocery store it is about $3.50 and half the size. Her decorating skills are lacking but it was delicious. I would have paid way more, especially for a piece that size. She is robbing herself. She had an at home business before she opened up the store front so she had a decent following before she opened. She sells out of most everything by the end of the day. I went in about 30 minutes before closing and there were only 3 cupcakes, a muffin, and a few slices of cake left. I just can't imagine she is going to make money like that.
AA total price of $5 for an 8" cake can make sense...you would just need to restrict hands-on production time to about 15 minutes or so for each cake, use ingredients that fell off the back of a truck, and blackmail your landlord, utility company, and health dept to eliminate overhead.
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Even at my local grocery store, I've seen little 1.5"x1.5" slices of yellow or chocolate sheet cake for $2.99, and they usually look like someone dropped them upside down. But often they have them on sale 10 for $10.
A total price of $5 for an 8" cake can make sense...you would just need to restrict hands-on production time to about 15 minutes or so for each cake, use ingredients that fell off the back of a truck, and blackmail your landlord, utility company, and health dept to eliminate overhead.
Hahahahaha
A total price of $5 for an 8" cake can make sense...you would just need to restrict hands-on production time to about 15 minutes or so for each cake, use ingredients that fell off the back of a truck, and blackmail your landlord, utility company, and health dept to eliminate overhead.
It must be something along those lines because I can't see it working for her any other way! Not sure what her prices for everything else are but I imagine it is more of the same.
Exactly! At my local grocery store it is about $3.50 and half the size. Her decorating skills are lacking but it was delicious. I would have paid way more, especially for a piece that size. She is robbing herself. She had an at home business before she opened up the store front so she had a decent following before she opened. She sells out of most everything by the end of the day. I went in about 30 minutes before closing and there were only 3 cupcakes, a muffin, and a few slices of cake left. I just can't imagine she is going to make money like that.
Maybe it was because it was almost closing time and they were trying to get rid of it. I can't figure how any type of profit could come from that price.
Maybe it was because it was almost closing time and they were trying to get rid of it. I can't figure how any type of profit could come from that price.
Unfortunately not. I think she is still doing her at home prices even though she has a store front. At least that is the closet thing I can come up with. She had quite a following before opening apparently. Her cakes are delicious so she really could afford to charge so much more. That banana cake was the best cake banana cake I have ever had. Made from scratch and no artificial, fake taste to it at all. So good.
Sorry to chime in on this from several days ago but I was busy, busy. This echoes a conversation I had with a lady today. Her sister has a home based bakery and apparently does a lot of business. She said she had been really busy last weekend for a wedding for 350 people. She did their wedding cake and groom's cake for a sum total of $375.00. I mean, really???? That is $1.00 a serving. There is no way that order was worth her time. Why do people do this? She has to be frazzled baking and decorating away for all and sundry because she is the cheap cake lady. I would rather be enjoying doing something not cake related than to pay myself that little for that much work.
Sorry to chime in on this from several days ago but I was busy, busy. This echoes a conversation I had with a lady today. Her sister has a home based bakery and apparently does a lot of business. She said she had been really busy last weekend for a wedding for 350 people. She did their wedding cake and groom's cake for a sum total of $375.00. I mean, really???? That is $1.00 a serving. There is no way that order was worth her time. Why do people do this? She has to be frazzled baking and decorating away for all and sundry because she is the cheap cake lady. I would rather be enjoying doing something not cake related than to pay myself that little for that much work.
I know some do it for the experience but I think a lot of people just don't know any better. Or at least that is my opinion. $1 a serving isn't going to cover your costs when you factor in things outside of just flour and butter. When you run a storefront I would hope those are things that you understand. Otherwise you aren't going to last very long. The costs will eat you alive.
It's people like these that make the business a disaster for the rest of us actually trying to make a living off it. I mean, even as a home based business, $15 for an 8" cake doesn't cover the cost. Let alone your time! And I'd assume at some point you'd want to make some money and not just cover your ingredients.
This makes me sad and angry all at the same time.
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