Aaaaaaaarrrggghhhhhh!!! (Vent!)
Decorating By MikeRowesHunny Updated 21 Apr 2007 , 11:18pm by Tramski
I have a cake order for 13th May. My customer wants a Dora themed cake with 'adventure zones'and insists that there is a rainbow in it. So I suggested that we do the cake like a Dora adventure with Dora, Boots, the rainbow, a river, bridge and mountains on it all done in chocolate transfers, and gave her a quote. Great she says, but she wants the rainbow behind D&B, and a treasure chest at the end of the cake (note, extra detail no.1)! So I design a cake, send her a sketch and she comes back with - I like it but I want trees on it too (note, extra detail no.2)!. Ohhh, and I want to change the party from the 5th to the 13th. The I get a mail asking if I can do the mountains in cake - no problem I said (I'll use the mini wonder molds), BUT I am going to charge you more for that (because of the extra ingredients and baking time etc), because I have already let you add additional details to the cake at no extra charge! Then I get a mail asking if she has it delivered to another location would that change the price - yes, it's nearly twice as far away so the delivery cost will double. NOW I have an email asking if she takes D&B off the cake, will that bring the price down - yup, but not that much! I also told her that if she wants to use a plastic D&B that I want them to put on the cake myself, so shhe will need to mail them/ deliver them to me!
17 emails have gone back and forth over this bl**dy cake - and it's for a 4 year old's birthday, I've emailed less over all the wedding cakes I've done lol! I'm about ready to tell her to go elsewhere 
! Anyhoo, thanks for letting me vent!!!
I am convinced that people have lost their minds. Do not budge on price and tell her after today the design is set and not more changes can be made.
LOL!! I guess she really wants to make this birthday special but she doesn't realize that the 4 year old would be just as happy with a line drawing of Dora!! I hope that your troubles with this cake client are resolved soon. Maybe tell her that the last day for changes is Monday!!
oh my gosh, this is why I'm so glad I don't do birthday cakes! They think they're getting the cake for the kid, and the kid couldn't care less. Like the above post said, 4 year old would be happy with a line drawing or plastic pieces!
birthday parties and little league games .... they'd be SO much more fun for the kid if they wouldn't let parents in! 
I hope you are charging her enough for this.
And if I might make a suggestion - don't send sketches anymore. There is a woman on another forum I belong to who had a few potential clients in a row ask her for sketches, only to find out that they took the sketches elsewhere to have them done.
Theresa 
I have a grand daughter who's parents ask her oppinion on everything that they do for her. So I can see where this parent is going. She may have been taught to have a say and the parents are now in a postion to make her every wish come true. Because she will see if that tree, mountain, etc is not there and will complain that she hates/loves it. Living with grand child who rules the roost.
In my opinion....Birthday parties are more about the parents giving a better, bigger party than Johnny or Suzie's parents. It's not about celebrating turning a year older. I've actually had moms say to me "I want Suzie's cake to bigger and better than So & So's cake was last month". I can't believe how competitive people are!!!! Oh well, if they want it bigger and better I hope their willing to pay for it!!! I guess it's good 
business for us decorators!!
Carrie
cakel8t -
That is the trouble - customers are not willing to pay the extra price for the cake they want.
I read in here all the time about how customers try to renegotiate prices on cakes, especially with home-bakers. For some reason, they think that home-bakers are more desperate for the work, and are more willing to bear the added expense.
I would rather turn down a cake customer than assume the financial responsibility just so they can have something better than their friend or relative.
Theresa
I get that all the time with running my dh's business.
I think there really are people out there who are sitting there with a calculator, doing the math, when we have this conversation:
Them: "If I order X, how much is that?"
Me: "$150.00"
Them: "What if we do Y instead, how much is that?"
Me: "$160.00"
Them: "And if we blend them? How much would that be?"
Me: "$155.00."
Them: "Hmmm. How much is Z?"
Me: *click*
Not really, but it's amazing how much different a few dollars makes to some customers. I mean, literally $5.00....
whatever...
I am back. You are right about people wanting something bigger, better than the "Jone's". But they all so want bragging rights that thiers cost much less than the "Jone's". It is sad cause we decorators are the ones to suffer the cost.
Not if you stand firm by your prices, my friend.
Theresa
In my opinion....Birthday parties are more about the parents giving a better, bigger party than Johnny or Suzie's parents. It's not about celebrating turning a year older. I've actually had moms say to me "I want Suzie's cake to bigger and better than So & So's cake was last month". I can't believe how competitive people are!!!! Oh well, if they want it bigger and better I hope their willing to pay for it!!! I guess it's good
business for us decorators!!Carrie
this says it all right here!
I got another email with a go for taking D&B off the cake a replacing them with plastic figures- great, less work for me (but only $10 reduction!), but I'm still charging her $75 for the cake & delivery (and it's a 1 layer scratch lemon 1/4 sheet with 3 mini wondermold cakes and a fair amount of chocolate transfer work, glitter & fondant accents). What I really feel like doing is charging her a special PITA rate of $100 lol! PLUS she still doesn't know where she wants it delivered as her husband is away until 2nd May - ummm, what's that got to do with anything?! Lord give me strength !
...Plus she still doesn't know where she wants it delivered as her husband is away until 2nd May
- ummm, what's that got to do with anything?! I just luv it when they're illogical and their answer has nothing to do with the question!
True story: I had a wedding and we were waiting for the bride and groom to do the cake cutting. I cornered the photographer (who was a friend and not a "real" photographer) and asked, "what happened to the cake cutting?" She then explains how the DJ's hard drive crashed and the maid of honor was going thru the CD's looking for music. I said, "that's fascinating, but what's that got to do with why we are delaying the cake cutting?" She gave me the mystical oh-my-god-I'm-so-blonde look and said, "wha.... I don't KNO-o-o-w!"
Now the plan was for the bride and groom to do the cake cutting photos, then proceed directly over and open the buffet. I told the photographer, "Look, they were an hour late getting here and food can only set out a certain period of time and we're pushing it now. We are going to open this buffet or I'm throwing this food out the back door. Now, can we get that cake cutting done, please?" (smile sweetly, bat eyelashes, and stand there with my arms crossed and my "because I'm the mom!" look on my face!)
(Yeah.... I DO tend to get kinda bossy! Some call it a fault.... I call it an asset! 
)
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