Ask For The Rest Of My Money??

Decorating By luvmykids2bits Updated 27 Nov 2013 , 6:42pm by BrandisBaked

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MBalaska Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 3:30am
post #61 of 66

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZCouture 
 

Threads like this make me think of this.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/Mickey-goodman/are-we-raising-a-generati_b_1249706.html

AZCouture:  This lady is very brave to make these points in contradiction to current popular opinion.  It seemed like comedian George Carlin had been the one and only voice who spoke this way.

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howsweet Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 4:01pm
post #62 of 66

A

Original message sent by Norasmom

You should definitely stay a hobby baker, especially since you love your day job.  I like that I had requests from friends to purchase cakes so I legalized my kitchen and figured out how much to charge.  After doing so, I know that I have no desire to ever own a bakery or do more than a few cakes a month, and NO weddings.  I am fortunate to live in a wealthy area and don't have problems with charging appropriately.

 There's nothing wrong with being a hobbyist.  If you undercut as a hobbyist I'm not sure you would put much of a dent in the huge cake businesses in your area.  Multiple hobbyists undercutting in one area, however, is a different story.  I do think you get what you pay for in life, though.  I'm a stickler for hiring insured businesses myself.

As for the $5, I would let your "friend" know she forgot.  Just send a polite email saying you need to pay the grocery bill for the extra $5 in ingredients.  It's $5, not $50.

likely the reason you think you get what you pay for is because in most businesses they are competing on the same playing field. Whether you buy clothes at nord strums or walmart, neither has a spouse subsidizing their bad business practices. And it's certainly true there are lots out there selling cake who don't know how to stack or deliver and will promise stuff they don't know how to do. But there are still lots of bakers who know cake, but for whatever the reason, refuse to price appropriately. To say you get what you pay for is ignoring what's going on.

One hobbyist undercharging counts. Thinking it doesn't is the kind of thinking so many use to justify it. Most don't believe their pricing affects the cake market and these people also may not even bother to cost out their cakes or check out market prices. One lone hobbyist is not what's happening. It a whole bunch of hobbyists thinking and rationalizing that they work in a vacuum and not caring about anything else.

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liz at sugar Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 5:12pm
post #63 of 66

Quote:

Originally Posted by howsweet 

It a whole bunch of hobbyists thinking and rationalizing that they work in a vacuum and not caring about anything else.


If this is true, then they are following much of the advice given on this forum: figure out your expenses and what you want to make an hour, etc.  When a new member is told that they are the only one who can figure out the price of their cake, they are being told to work in vacuum, to a point.  And if they follow that exercise, why should they care about anything else?

 

These hobbyists have decided to make a dollar an hour, and if they get tired of it, they will raise their prices or quit.  No, they probably aren't including their overhead, but that is a whole 'nother thread.

 

I know of a number of cakers on FB in my area selling cupcakes for 50 cents each, with a $6 minimum order.  Do I really care? No, because the people buying from these types of sellers are just avoiding buying the box of mix and the can of frosting themselves.  They were never going to be my customer to begin with.  I don't care about their pricing, or their overhead, or their losses, because I operate on a different plane than they do.

 

If the market decides that my product, at my pricing isn't feasible, I won't make it.  But I'm not going to blame the 50 cent cupcake makers.  It isn't my job to worry about their welfare, and it isn't their job to worry about mine.

 

Liz

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 5:39pm
post #64 of 66

A

Original message sent by liz at sugar

If this is true, then they are following much of the advice given on this forum: figure out your expenses and what you want to make an hour, etc.  When a new member is told that they are the only one who can figure out the price of their cake, they are being told to work in vacuum, to a point.  And if they follow that exercise, why should they care about anything else?

You are correct that the cost component needs to be worked out individually, but pricing advice given here also factors in market value (which is dependent on customer perception and competition) to determine how much of a markup to add for profit.

I know of a number of cakers on FB in my area selling cupcakes for 50 cents each, with a $6 minimum order.  Do I really care? No, because the people buying from these types of sellers are just avoiding buying the box of mix and the can of frosting themselves.  They were never going to be my customer to begin with.  I don't care about their pricing, or their overhead, or their losses, because I operate on a different plane than they do.

Ideally this would always be the case, but when you have an industry with low barriers to entry you run the risk of competing with very talented people who have a knowledge gap on the business side. A local competitor who can meet or exceed the quality level of your products at half the price can seriously impact your business.

The more this topic is discussed, the more people are exposed to the idea of pricing based on paying yourself a decent wage as both a baker and a business owner, and that's beneficial for everyone.

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BrandisBaked Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 6:41pm
post #65 of 66

AExactly!

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BrandisBaked Posted 27 Nov 2013 , 6:42pm
post #66 of 66

A

Original message sent by liz at sugar

If this is true, then they are following much of the advice given on this forum: figure out your expenses and what you want to make an hour, etc.  When a new member is told that they are the only one who can figure out the price of their cake, they are being told to work in vacuum, to a point.  And if they follow that exercise, why should they care about anything else?

These hobbyists have decided to make a dollar an hour, and if they get tired of it, they will raise their prices or quit.  No, they probably aren't including their overhead, but that is a whole 'nother thread.

I know of a number of cakers on FB in my area selling cupcakes for 50 cents each, with a $6 minimum order.  Do I really care? No, because the people buying from these types of sellers are just avoiding buying the box of mix and the can of frosting themselves.  They were never going to be my customer to begin with.  I don't care about their pricing, or their overhead, or their losses, because I operate on a different plane than they do.

If the market decides that my product, at my pricing isn't feasible, I won't make it.  But I'm not going to blame the 50 cent cupcake makers.  It isn't my job to worry about their welfare, and it isn't their job to worry about mine.

Liz

Exactly!

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