I'm going to try to give you a little background on this but I'll try to keep it short.

I have a friend from jr. high that is having her daughter get married in a year and a half. This lady is also related to me through marriage. We don't get to see eachother alot but we get along fine.

My delima is they asked me to make a wedding cake for their DD. I gave them a big discount on the price. This will be my first wedding cake but not my first large stacked tier cake. Anyway, over the weekend I had a BD party for my MIL and they were here also. They told me that I would be making less cake then what they initially told me becuase the person that is going to caiter they wedding is also going to supply a cake .

Here is the problem. I seriously do not like that idea. When this wedding is going to take place I will be "legal" and have my business up and running and of course be in persuit of potential sales. What if the cake this other person brings in disgusting??? Then some of the guests would have my cake and some of the guests would be eating her cake and if the cake is disguesting I DO NOT want them to think I made it.

I don't have contracts yet.....I'm working on that one. I do know that I have read that some of you have a clause in your contract that states that no other cakes are allowed at the venue except for the cake that you prepare. This is what I plan on putting in my contract also.

They have NOT signed a contract with me because I don't have one yet. This is still something that we are hashing over trying to get everything set and then I would have them sign a contract.

What would you do in this situation. It's touchy because they are family. I don't want hard feelings from them. But I also don't want the "Cake Confusion" that could happen.

I'm tempted to tell them that they might be able to get the person that's doing to food to make cake for everyone

Let me know what you would do.....I appreciate it!

Just tell them like you've told us-Because my business will be up and running I will have an exclusive policy as to who provides the cake. Explain to them that you don't want your product mixed/confused with the other persons. You don't have to go into the fact that the other cake might be gross-could put them on the defensive.

There are several other threads about this and they can give you some other good ideas too!

Go with your gut, if it doesn't feel right then it isn't. Be polite but tell her that you will not do the cake if there will be another one there. I personally would be offended if someone said that to me. Hope it works out.

If this was'nt family I would feel very comfortable doing that. I guess since it is family I feel bad.....BUT...I know I need to stick to what I know would be right.

Yea, I won't mention that the other cake might not be good....I just shared that on here

I would think because they are family that you could be upfront and honest with them even more so! But then again...I have no problem telling anybody the way it is!

Why would someone have two different places make the cake? I would talk to her.

Just explain to her where you are coming from. Tell her you don't know the other person doing the other cake. You just don't feel comfortable doing this. I doubt the other person likes it either. Ask her why she is having two different people do the cake rather then just one.

Just be honest.

I'm doing a huge wedding cake in September and the lady who commissioned it told me that she has a full dessert buffet there plus a caterer. But she wanted my cake (a central centerpiece) and I'm okay with that. I know a lot of decorators who aren't cool with that kind of setup, but it didn't bother me. There will be desserts there but not another cake. Go with your gut instincts. Good luck!

I'd be ok with a dessert buffet along with my cake. Kind of apples and oranges situation. You see that set up a bit at weddings. I think the main difference is that no one would confuse a cream puff with a piece of cake. Wait, I guess that would depend on how long the bar has been open!

I could see other desserts (that is a lot of sugar ) but just as long as there is no other cakes. I just don't get that part. Like someone above said, who has 2 different people do cakes.

It's not as strange or uncommon as you all think to have different people provide the cake for a wedding. When I got married 24 years ago, it was common for the brides family to pay for the wedding cake and the grooms family to pay for the grooms cake, so that is what we did. I had a decorator that was my favorite so he did the wedding cake. My in-laws had a decorator that they preferred so she did the grooms cake. It worked out fine.

There's a difference between having two different people do the wedding cake and grooms cake than in having two different people do wedding cakes. That is really strange as far as I am concerned. I would just tell them that you had been really thinking about it and didn't want to upset anyone or cause any family riffs but......."My policy is that if I do a wedding cake, I am the only one that does a wedding cake. If it is necessary to have two cakes and you don't feel that I can do both of them, it would be fine to have the caterer do both of them." Or something along those lines. JMHO

Diane

Thaks for all of the replies...and I agree that I will set down with them and talk about this. Being that the wedding is like 18 months away there is still plenty of time.

From what I can gather the lady that is doing the catering for the wedding "throws" in a cake also. I'm not familiar with this being done. I've catered and never threw in a cake.

Anyone ever heard of a caterer ever throwing a cake in like a package deal????? [/b]

My main issue is that it needs to be disclosed to me when things are booked... I do have exclusivity worked into my contract, however I also will work with people if it's another licensed vendor providing a different product. We had two different bakers for our wedding, HOWEVER, both agreed about having the other (one baker wouldn't do table cakes, the other didn't have time after doing 50 table cakes and 22 individual cakes to even THINK about doing a centerpiece cake )..

I would talk to them and find out what the real situation is. For example their caterer may provide "dessert" with the meal, in which case, the cake might be for later in the evening instead of at the dinner thus not as many people stick around by the time the cake is cut. OTOH, I have to agree with you on the fact that you're already giving them a huge deal as it is. For the future, your "huge deal" will be "since I know ____ I won't charge the $60 for delivery that I normally do" or "Since I'll be there, I won't charge you for delivery or the security deposit which comes out to about $150".. Don't discount the cake, instead give them the discount on the "add-ons" that don't cost you much.. That way your CAKE is still valued and they "feel" like they're getting a discount..

You've already quoted them the best rate that you can do, if they want an inferior product or they're getting such a super deal from the caterer, guess what, they can have the caterer do the full cake or get the cake from someplace else.. Just like any other cake, if they don't like what you've got to offer, they can go elsewhere because they weren't your customers to begin with. When in doubt, get your contract written up and ready to go.

I agree with the others. Tell them exactly what you told us. It makes perfect sense. If they give you grief for it, then just let the other person take care of all the guests.

If they are family they should be more understanding and want to support whatever decision you need to make. While this is probably fantasy with most families I still say be honest

I am sure the topic will come up with them again. I really don't see them alot. Maybe four-five times a year. But, I'm sure we will talk about this.


I LOVE the idea of discounting delivery, set-up and things like this!! WOW! I never thought of that one. I'll be keeping this in mind for other events....THANKS!

You ladies are great when it comes to advice. Thanks for understanding why I was a little ticked off.

I'll have to get a few more details so I know if this is just a little cake for later for the couple OR if this is a big cake that will is intended for the guests to eat.

Thanks again,

Chrissy

So how would the caterer feel if you offered to bring some appetizers and maybe a nice roast beef to go along with the meal?

Some caterers offer a cake with their services and is included in the price. They don't like to give a "discount" to clients who don't want their cake because then the client will know exactly just how much their cakes are really worth. Not much.

If I do a wedding cake..that is it. No other cake is offered or I don't take the job. I don't mind fruit or some pastries being offered in addition to my cake but I'm not going to take the chance that someone will confuse my product with someone elses. Guests aren't going to remember which cake they had. They will just remember if it tastes nasty.

That's it!! I'll take a prime rib, a few steaks from the grill, maybe some salmon...oh and I won't forget few side dishes.....great idea!!!