i dont charge for my time either but my sister keeps telling me that i should.
i also wouldnt know how to go about it but maybe you could time how long it takes you to design the cake and charge 50% of what the cake costs. i dunno if it can be done that way...just an idea.
I'm not an architect .... I'm a cake decorator. The most time I've ever spent on what a cake looks like was about 10 minutes .... mostly while I waited for the bride to make her final decision during our conversation. Sketched it out during the conversation.
Off the top of my head, I can only recall a couple of brides who had no idea or just a vague idea ("red and gold, but not christmasy"). Most of them come to the sampling with not only a definite idea, but usually with photos and clippings of cakes they like. In my case, I'd say 99% of my brides have the design already picked out when they arrive. What are the numbers for some of the rest of you?
Previous threads have asked why wedding cakes cost more than "regular" cakes. Because they have more cost involved .... "design" time, sampling time and the costs associated with the foods sampled, set-up time, dealing with the brides (and the bridezillas - few and far between as they are).
So to me ..... whatever time you spend "designing" a cake should be part of the cost.
Unless you also have a line-item charge for:
- tastings
- setting it up at the reception
- the time you respond to a bride's question(s)
- Bridezilla factor
I don't have any idea how I would charge for "design" time. If I had a line-item like that on the invoice, I would bet the bride would want a guarantee that the cake had NEVER been seen anywhere else before.....and I just can't guarantee that. I mean, how many ways can you wrap a ribbon around a cake?
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