Got home from work today and had a message that there was an instructor's position open in my area. I am to contact the supervisor with a date and time when we can talk. So!! Some questions here!!

1. Are you happy being an instructor? Was it everything you thought it would be?

2. Can you set your own hours?

3. I know you get a discount on Wilton products, but, do you get any actual MONEY for doing this?

4. Would you advise someone to do it?


Thanks!!

Beth in KY

BUMP for ya.....
Have ya found anything out yet???

They offered me too, by email personally.
But I know they are not giving any actual money.
You can get experience here that is the important thing.

You can get more info from CC members.

Thanks
Nitu

I read somewhere on here that the WI get paid for doing the classes at Michaels and such so I'm bumping ya so you can get some more answers Good luck.

I have some really good info on payment that I received from another CC member, if you'd like it, I can forward it to you.

Melvira is a WMI...PM her your questions, she's always helpfull.

here goes....I truely love being an instructor,you meet so many people an d some become friends,and it is a joy to see people get excited because they can actually do this decorating.some people will get discouraged and put themselves down in class, but you have to know how to handle that situation and do some one on one basis with that type of indivisual.I have only seen that with about 3 people in my case.most people are loving it.it really is fun. I love the wilton discount and I get the employee discount at the Michaels I teach at,so theres lots of savings.sometimes I think the money is not worth it but you have to figure that rate is for 2hrs,and for me,the 2hr class I teach once a week (sometimes two) is the amount I make for 4hrs at my real day job and thats all stress!!! the class demos are great pay and you can always hold your own demos but at the hourly store wage and hold extra classes for other technique(spelling?) at first I was making all the cakes real and frosting and it was adding up to what i was making so I got smart and did differently.my account(store) is very flexible with me,whatever nights or hours I want to change and they allow me to do alot of store use for products. sorry long winded I would say give it your best shot and see what works for you

I am a WMI and I just love it. I work at a Michaels and the pay depends on how many students you have in class. I have met so many people and made new friends. You don't make a lot of money but making new friends and doing something you love is worth it. You get a 40% discount on all Wilton products and when or if you attend the training seminars you usually get a bunch of free stuff. I set my own hours and teach when I want. What more could I ask for?

Bethola, I am a WMI and I love it! I wouldn't give it up for the world. I can set my own hours pretty much, I not only get the discounts, I get paid for doing it. But as nicksmom said, you get to meet some great people and see their ideas and what they come up with in class. I also work during the day and teach at night so as she said, the day job is stressful, teaching at night is fun for me. The only thing you can do is give it a try and see if it is for you. You get to meet great WMI's as well! All the one's I have met so far are the nicest people.
Good Luck!

I am also a WMI and I love it. I just started doing it last month and I only teach Course 3. The Hobby Lobby where I teach has an instructor that teaches Course 1 and another one that teaches Course 2 and I teach 3. I have meet so many interesting people and it's really fun to see them having fun. The pay could be better, but as someone said earlier if you look at it in 2 hour blocks of time, it's pretty good. And, the 40% off all Wilton products is nice, but it's only from the catalog and you do still have to pay shipping. I would definately give it a shot and if you don't like it or don't think it's worth it, you can always decide to pass later. Hope it goes well for you! Good Luck!

I have been teaching for 3 years and love it! For 2 1/2 years, I was the only instructor at the Michael's that I work at, so I did 2-3 classes a week. That is what my personal schedule allowed. At the beginning of 2005 through July, I was able to save all of my paychecks to pay for my trip to the 2005 ICES convention and my mom's portion as well: airfare, rental care, hotel, my food and all the cake toys I bought. If you put effort into the classes and promotiong them, usually you can have a good turn out whcih means more pay. All the factors that you asked about really depend on what account you get assigned to as well. I can speak as a Michael's instructor--even thought I teach Wilton classes, I am employed by Michael's and get my weekly pay check for teaching--that amount is based on how many students sign up for a class. I also get the 25% Michael's discount which is good and the 40% Wilton discount. I get to set my schedule and because Wilton classes are corporate classes, I pretty much get what I want!

Again, I love it. I don't get rich from it, but it helps me support my cake toy habit. I now have a co-intructor at my store, which works out great because my hubby wanted to cut my hours (well actually quit completely but I said no way! ) So I alternate each month teaching either 1 or 2 classes. When I teach one, the instructor teaches two. Works out great for us. I am still able to get at least a little something each week to put in my cake fund.

Wow! then I got wrong info about not paying money!
I will check this again. I am always interested being instructor. It was not money matter but I didn't have work permit that time.
Lets see now. I would love to get some experience.

Thanks for this good thread, Beth.
Nitu

I've made numerous posts about teaching. You may want to do a search for more answers.

I love teaching. I enjoy sharing with people and seeing them start from the beginning and blossom into a cake decorator. I have had some great students that have taught me a few things as well.

Yes you do get paid. It is by students, but I do think the different store might pay differently. That is a question you will want to address with the supervisor when you talk to her. Unless you know which store it is for, then maybe somoene from that store can give you more information.

When you teach will depend on when there the classroom at the store is open. If they offer alot of classes there may only be certain times you could teach the class.

You do get a discount from wilton when ordering from them. Michaels gives the WMI the employee discount cause we are Michaels employees. Some stores hire you as independant contractors, so in that case you don't get a employee discount.

Wilton also gives you chances for earning Gift Certificates as well as other incentives and they do you special deals on some products. And ever now and then you will get something free.

Those are the pros to the job.... The other side of the coin...

For course one you have to haul your mixer, a cake you baked and stuff to make icing, to show you to torte and ice a cake. This comes out of your pocket. In course 2 you are suppose to make royal icing. In C3 there is the use of fondant and in the new course there is fondant and gumpaste. Any supplies you see the WMI use in class belong to them and they had to pay for them.

At Michaels you are required to do 5 class previews a year. These are 3 hour demos where you bring a cake or cupcakes to decorate, again this is out of your pocket. But you do get paid for the demo.

They also want to you to do monthly (atleast 1) demo at Michaels as well. They just increased the pay for these, but still what you use in the demo you pay for.

The demos will depend on the store as not all of them require the demos or pay for them.

I am glad I am an WMI, so please don't think I'm trying to talk you out of it. But I think it is fair to let you know everything that is expected of you. Before I decided to take on the job I talked with another WMI and she gave me the pros and the cons, so I knew what to expect going into the job. And was able to make a educated choice on what I was doing.

My best advice is if you are looking for something to pay the bills, this probably isn't the job for you. If you are looking for extra spending money and enjoy meeting all kinds of people, then go for it.

Feel free to PM me if you would like...

the cost comes out of your pocket in c1 for a real cake and filling and ingrediants for frosting etc.. my store allows me to use product from the shelves for store use as long as nothing leaves the building.I store use the frosting alot for class and demos and the fondant for course III.I guess maybe I got lucky

Thanks SOOO much everyone! I LOVED my WI in Evansville, IN. She was THE BEST EVER!!

Since I was a nursing instructor....I'm used to helping people develop new skills, actually, that was the best part of teaching for me. I enjoy teaching new skills.

Thank The Good Lord, I don't need the money to pay the bills, but, it WOULD be nice to have some extra to support my "cake habit"! LOLL OR nice to save for a medical missions trip to Capetown South Africa.

I'm not really sure where the opening is. The message just said "In your area", BUT, if it is where I THINK it is....it will be a Hobby Lobby.

I'm going to send out the e-mail tonight and we'll have a telephone conversation on Monday morning. I'll let you all know what happens and THANKS AGAIN for all the information. I appreciate it!

Beth in KY

I totally agree with texas sugar on the "sharing" issue. I to make the royal and I have share mine sometimes because some students have a big problem making this.

Wow, I've heard lots of things but never have I heard of an instructor having her students bring the materials she agreed to bring when she signed the WMI agreement! That's pretty rotten.

Anyhoo, I've been a WMI since 1998 and I love it. Now I'm teaching in two Michael's stores and it's a pretty nice deal. It's an awesome hobby.

Well she got lucky. But no figure she's not teaching anymore. . .

Good Luck Beth!!! Your cakes are beautiful and your inner desire to teach and instruct would be an awesome combination!

nglez: how's your job situation going? I've been wondering!

Well... here I come... a really sharp needle in a room full of pretty soap bubbles. My experience is not representative of what you should expect, but be warned that it could happen. I am never paid correctly. They are constantly shorting me. My last check was less than half of what it should've been, even though it was the check they were supposed to be adding to in order to fix previous underpayments.

I work at two different Michael's stores in two cities... those two cities are over an hour apart... and yet, both managers AND event coordinators are buttholes. I think it might be a requirement for the job.

The pay is lousy. You are really doing this for the fun of it, not to make money. Mine barely covers the gas it takes to get there. Forget about supplies. I am paying them to *let* me teach in essence.

The people from Wilton that are supposed to be molding you into this fine instructor... not so much. I have absolutely no support from Wilton. I have only talked to the lady that hired me like twice. Once to ask if I'd like to teach at the first store, once to ask about the second. I get monthly newsletter emails and stuff, but essentially, I'm on my own. So I just do whatever I want.

The actual class part... this is liquid gold. Those two hours, when the manager is nowhere to be seen, and you aren't thinking about the piddly paycheck... that is wonderful! You see some people that have amazing blossoming talent, and you meet a few that should really continue buying their cakes at Wal-Mart... but you have fun. This part makes the other stuff bearable I suppose... but I am still thinking of getting out of it simply because it has become a liability. Oh... and the discount only applies to Wilton stuff you purchase from the website, and of course you have to pay shipping charges on it. Just an FYI so that you have all the info.

Good Lord I'm a negative nelly today, aren't I?

Melvira, you just crack me up every time I read your posts!!! "Negative Nelly" - I love it!!!!!!

When I took Wilton courses I had a very good instructor. Our classes were only 90 min and that time zoomed by. I can't say that I got too much out of the actual classes. I learned more at home on my own. And who mentioned bringing in your own mixer?!? Geez.............. We brought in our own cakes,
supposedly crumb coated and ready to ice. The we brought in an iced cake ready for that wonderful star rainbow, then those adorable (NOT) clowns. You do see all kinds of things at those classes. Sometimes it was hilarious, other times I just watched in wonder the way some of the students did the simplest things. As has already been said a few times before cake deorating isn't for everyone.

As an instructor of many things...

I'm taking the Wilton courses- my instructor has NEVER brought in one cake, mixer, or icing. She always borrows our tools & icing to demonstrate. She had us each bring in a cake for weeks 2 & 4 of Course 1, and icing every week of courses 1 & 2. She just describes how to mix up icings and prep cakes, and uses our stuff to demo when she can. It works very well, actually.

I've facilitated, led, taught and instructed MANY things. And I've enjoyed the most those classes that I've been paid the least for... where the students had a real appreciation for what they were learning. That being said, make sure it's going to be convenient for you, too. And don't hesitate to cut back your hours when you get stressed, or it won't be fun anymore.

I had the same instructor in Wilton I, II, III, and III again (fondant). In Wilton I she had us bring in a cake a week, iced and ready to decorate. She brought her own equipment and even lent my cake buddy Val RI because, well...Val is GREAT with fondant drapes, but, she STINKS at RI! LOLL

Hey,I took my KA to Michigan to do a groom's cake. It fits very nicely in a rubbermaid tote in my "7 body trunk"! LOLL

Beth in KY

PS Have sent the e-mail....let's see what happens!!