I'm wondering how prices vary from various places and in comparison to established, free-standing bakeries.
How much do you start charging per slice for BC?
How much do you start charging per slice for fondant?
How much do you start charging per petit fours?
How much do you start charging for decorated coookies?
Do you have a minimum $ order amount on any of the above?
i'd like to know what everyone is charging too.
I just visited and researched several of the bakeries that do custom cakes (wedding & "fancy" party cakes) in my area (Los Angeles), and here's what I found-
per slice for BC?
$2.50 to $6
per slice for fondant?
$4.75 to $6.50 (I saw one listing for "up to $12")
Cupcakes- $3-4
minimum $ order amount?
I have decided that I need to do this if I'm going to start selling cakes. I think mine will be $50 for "standard" cakes, $80 for sculpted or shaped cakes, and $200 for wedding or tiered cakes.[/quote]
There is plenty of information in the forum archives. Use your key words in the search section and you will find that this very subject is asked at least once a week.
Theresa 
I no longer sell cakes, but when I did, I ended with prices for BC at $3.50/ serving. This is just frosted cake with borders, anything else was extra.
Fondant started at $5.00/ serving. Again, no frills.
Petit fours started at $4.50 each (I hate making them). One dozen was my minimum order for these and for cookies. Cookie prices vary tremendously.
HTH
Michele
I think it would be really helpful to post the charged in the description of the photo...that way those of us who are starting out and haven't figured out how much to charge would have a better idea.
It could be misleading. I charge a flat fee "per person". I don't charge extra for design in any way shape or form. As I tell my brides, "I can make a 3-tiered cake to serve 30 or I can make a 3-tiered cake to serve 300." To label a photo with a price of $250, you would also have to indicate how big the cake is, and the brides who are browsing the site looking for cake ideas would need to know that the cake designed for 100 can be made to serve 300 and vice versa. Some of you may be thinking "doesn't everyone know that?" and I'm here to tell you that brides don't know that. (And I've seen threads in which it seemed that some cake decorators dont' know that either.)
It would be interesting to see what kind of prices some cakes are receiving. I was at a recent ICES meeting in which we were shown a 3-tiered, fondant cake that garnered a price of $2700. Wow.
I totally agree, it's hard to explain just the simple... "You're getting with my $3/slice a PARTY slice, which is on average 1x3x5... The bakery up the road is charging you $2.50/slice for a slice that is 1/2x2x3..."
I charge...
$2.50 starting -- rough iced or bettercreme
$3/slice -- smooth buttercream or basic coat of white fondant -- no frills..
$2.80/slice -- you get what I give you 
(using their details of course in terms of the dress, invites, colors, etc.)
From there, it's completely dependent upon the "headache factor".. The bigger PITABZ the higher the total cost...
My "I can't turn on the oven for less than" minimum is $200.
$2.80/slice -- you get what I give you
(using their details of course in terms of the dress, invites, colors, etc.).
So you get the details of the wedding theme etc and offer them a slight discount to let you have free reign over the design?...interesting!
I am starting b/c at $2.50 (I just raised it $.50) and
starting fondant at $3.50.
Because people want to make changes to the design to save 10 cents I also have the elements broke down... dress bow $25
looped bow $45
fondant accents starting at $1.50
Monograms and toppers $25 to $250
mpc
My "I can't turn on the oven for less than" minimum is $200.[/quote]
You mean you're not the one who won't turn on the oven for now less than 3 grand? 
Michele
I am a novice and by no means anywhere near a professional, but I did want to mention that prices will vary from place to place. Deomographically speaking, large cities, where the cost of living is higher, usually charge more. Since I live in NJ and am originally from B'klyn, I know that stuff around here tends to be pricier, especially when I go into the city (NYC).
My "I can't turn on the oven for less than" minimum is $200.
LOL @ I can't turn on the oven for less than....
I love it!!
Standard flavors with IMBC start at $3.00/serving, basic decorations.
Standard flavors with fondant start at $3.50, basic decorations.
Specialty cake flavors, $3.50 to around $5.25, basic decorations
Extra work start at $0.25/sv and goes up from there, depending on time and materials.
These will all be going up about $0.50 across the board in the fairly near future...
I dont charge by the slice. I have a $150 minimum order, since all my cakes are custom made and i have so many flavours and fillings i can't put a base price on anything because i'd be going crazy with all the combinations.
Cakes start at $150 and that's it. THat is $150 Australian.
My cupcakes start at $3.80 but i have a minimum order of those too.
Nati
I know my absolute strength is when I get free-reign on a design. I also stress less, so the $.20/slice is just how much stress I've got to execute a specific design. It also lets brides know they can get a fondant cake for less, but they've got to give up something in return. Giving up control for most people is harder than forking over the extra cha-ching for the specific design they want so it works as a double-bind from their perspective.
Basically, what I get is pretty much all of the details surrounding the day and as many pictures as I can. Centerpieces, themes, brides/groom's attire, bridesmaids attire, jewelry, invites, flower arrangements, colors, etc. To me coming up with an idea that combines chickens and knitting is easier for me than someone bringing in a photo of a $20,000 cake they want recreated for their cheapskates budget (aka "it's just cake, I really don't care" brides)...
Of course, when it comes to the minimum, before I got my license, it was like "I'll have my minimum at $500..." in my business plan... Then reality set in, I've learned that it costs me $89 to feed 100 regardless of fondant or buttercream, figuring in some wages for feeding 100, the $200 became a reasonable compromise. Of course, I'd just LOVE to have one of those "don't turn the oven on for less than $5000 kitchens"
$2.80/slice -- you get what I give you
(using their details of course in terms of the dress, invites, colors, etc.).
So you get the details of the wedding theme etc and offer them a slight discount to let you have free reign over the design?...interesting!
I am starting b/c at $2.50 (I just raised it $.50) and
starting fondant at $3.50.
Because people want to make changes to the design to save 10 cents I also have the elements broke down... dress bow $25
looped bow $45
fondant accents starting at $1.50
Monograms and toppers $25 to $250
mpc
I saw the pictures on your website, hopefully that isn't what you charged for those cakes, which are AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would think you could easily add $1 to each of those per slice prices and not have anyone bat an eye.
I basically charge for myself .80 a serving to $1 and then add in supplies. For B/C that usually comes out to under $2........ but once I have my kitchen that will be going up. I basically go by my excel spreadsheet I created, it helps me to be the math control freak that I am (I teach math and a computer nerd), I like to know all of the breakdown So I don't have a set per slice price, but I definitely have a goal per slice price. Problem is, that didn't help me with my pricing for the 12 mini cakes I am making for tomorrow. They are more work than I had anticipated, so I figure I am making about $.50 an hour........ good thing it is for a friend! I'll never do these again.
Everyone, does your per slice price include the top layer?
alicegop
Your Yosemite cake is pretty!
My Price per serving does include the top tier which I have measured and personally served 16 pieces from a 6" round x 4" tall cake. My slice is 1"x2"x4"d
8"-30
10"-48
12"-68
14"-92
16"-118
(thought I'd keep going with my servings list)
I also charge cakes by the job- like since you said you looked at my website... the airplane I charged $450 and 3-d trucks are $350 up
mpc
....i can't put a base price on anything because i'd be going crazy with all the combinations.
Wow! I'd be going crazy trying to quote each cake from scratch every single time!
I find that everyone wants something different. I dont see how i can put a set price, especially when my cake bases vary so much in price.
I dont do many cakes anyway, so it's not like im doing 5 or 6 quotes a week from scratch.
I also have a wonderful spreadsheet made by a brilliant person where you put the cake sizes flavours and it does heaps of different combinations, with diff flowers, models etc, and then it spits out the price.
Of course if i was only offering buttercakes filled with buttercream, and decorated in buttercream, then it'd be pretty easy to set a price by the slice, but i do that, and many other combos.
I guess that what works for one person, doesnt necessarily work for another : )
Nati
Interesting answers. I would think everyone had a "set" price.
Boonenati, I've seen sites that also do this; they charge by project. Do you find it makes your job more or less easier and how do you find the result?
Nick
I find that if i divide the cakes by the number of servings, then the serving prices vary between $5.00-$8.00
it works well for me : )
Nati
Well I seem to do it a little differently. I charge per inch. So a fruit cake would be $NZ15 per inch so a 10" cake would be $NZ150 baked and iced in fondant icing. Ribbons, moulded flowers, toppers are extra. Mudcake and other flavours are $NZ12.50 per inch baked and iced. So the base rate for a stacked 10" 8" 6" mudcake would be $NZ300. I was never sure about the serving charge as it seemed to work out very expensive. These prices are for wedding cakes. I would be interested if anyone else does it this way.
I'm still wondering if your pricing for wedding cakes includes the servings in the top layer?
I've been looking at the price per person withOUT the top layer....... but I'm starting to rethink that concept. I think royalfrosting gives a per serving price that includes ALL servings and then reports that it serves minus the top layer for guests.......... THOUGHTS?
How much do you start charging per slice for BC?
Prices start at $3.00/serving (weddings)
$2.50/serving (celebration cakes)
How much do you start charging per slice for fondant?
Starts at $3.50/serving
How much do you start charging per petit fours?
I don't make these
How much do you start charging for decorated coookies?
$1.00/inch
Do you have a minimum $ order amount on any of the above?
No
***I am a legal home based business, I have all of my "papers" and I operate out of a seperate health inspected kitchen.
Wow, it's so interesting to see how everyone does things so differently. It always gives me new ideas on how to charge for things.
I personally start wedding cakes at $2.50 for BC and $3.50 for fondant, and certain embellishments are extra. As for everyday sheet cakes and such, I have a base price already set. I have recently started charging a per serving price for non-wedding tiered cakes as I have been getting more inquiries for those. I have never made petit fours, but would like to see how much of a PITA they are, LOL. As for cookies, I do basic drop cookies for $4 per doz and don't have a set price for decorated cookies, but I like the $1/inch thing.
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