Well, I don't know how big your town is, but at our Walmart... a HALF sheet will cost you $25-30. As you know, it is only a 9x13 single layer. It also tastes like it has been frozen. I don't think you are out of line charging $40. I actually think that is UNDERPRICED.
I talked to a marketing lady (I am just starting the word of mouth thing, with business cards and flyers. I am also going to do a few "at cost" cakes)... ANYWAY... she told me that there are always people out there who will want a cheap cake, or photos or whatever. She told me that if I price my cakes higher, call them designer, then there is a market for that. THere will be people that will be willing to pay for quality. If you keep your pricing really low because of a few cheap people, then you will forever be battling with cheap people, because this market of people cannot afford a decent cake.
If you market to a different group of people, they will not flinch at a higher price because they are used to paying for quality.
Incidentally, the people I am marketing to do not decorate their homes with stuff from Walmart. THey are high end people.
The marketing person also told me to take a free cake into a HIGH END photographer, and the best florists in town. Have a thing of business cards, and see if they will let you put your cards on their counters. Then they can also say that your cakes are wonderful as well as beautiful. Remember that the high paying customer does not have portraits done at walmart, either. They are also the people who have top of the line parties for children and need awesome cakes.
Remember your market. You are not competing with walmart, because you are a CUSTOM cake decorator. Hold your head high and act like you are worth more, because you are!!
I haven't been able to post several of my pics because they are too 'big' size wise for CC and I haven't been able to crop them down. The cowboy hat is on my website though. I can't even get the happy trails one on my website. Need to invest in some editing software apparently.
Just call me the cake nazi, like the soup nazi on seinfield. No cake for you. haha
I totally agree I would also be the cake Nazi and say NO CAKE FOR YOU EVER. 
Did you make the cake as a donation? If yes, then you are under NO OBLIGATION to make another FRESH CAKE!. OMG the gall of that Lady!
NO CAKE EVER! 
EVER. She left it, too bad, It was basically fridge weather. Unless she was too hot in that weather. How rude.
By the way , you can crop your pictures in MS Paint. If you want directions I can help you, I know I have them somewhere.
Good Luck - again no cake for her.
If you market to a different group of people, they will not flinch at a higher price because they are used to paying for quality.
Incidentally, the people I am marketing to do not decorate their homes with stuff from Walmart. THey are high end people.
The marketing person also told me to take a free cake into a HIGH END photographer, and the best florists in town. Have a thing of business cards, and see if they will let you put your cards on their counters. Then they can also say that your cakes are wonderful as well as beautiful. Remember that the high paying customer does not have portraits done at walmart, either. They are also the people who have top of the line parties for children and need awesome cakes.
Remember your market. You are not competing with walmart, because you are a CUSTOM cake decorator. Hold your head high and act like you are worth more, because you are!!
I agree with all you said and I love your signature, I just wish people would understand it.
Good Luck.
You should have asked the lady at the auction if she had every be to a wedding and eaten the cake, they sit there for over three hours at times and are very fresh. Hang in there your price is just what I charge.
Can she even bake, cool, ice and decorate a cake inside of three hours?? 
I posted this topic last night, and just now got up for the day and checked it.
LOL. I don't think I have laughed this hard in a LONG time!!!!!! I've been choking on my breakfast to snippets such as "Cake Nazi." 
I'm feeling much better about things this morning!!!!
You should have asked the lady at the auction if she had every be to a wedding and eaten the cake, they sit there for over three hours at times and are very fresh. Hang in there your price is just what I charge.
Can she even bake, cool, ice and decorate a cake inside of three hours??
The whole idea of fresh=just-baked is ridiculous. Anyone who knows anything about food knows that some things taste best after they sit a little while. I think cake tastes best the day after it's baked (provided it doesn't dry out). Icing is there partly for flavor, and partly to seal the cake and keep it fresh! Silly women!
What! That's a man for you--no sense whatsoever!
Hey, hey, hey!! While I understand the sentiment behind this statement, please keep in mind that there ARE men here on cc with us, who share our passion for cake, and who ARE educated and aware of the time, money, and effort that go into decorating cakes.
I made an lua cake for a graduation and had to travel with it for 40 miles. The palm trees fell over (I made them twice already because they kept bending over), so I had to make repairs at the home. The cake was 11X15, double layers with strawberry filling. I also made a Hula girl, and personalized the cake. The cake was multiple colors on the top (sky, water, and sand) and had a 2-color border. The cake split when I layered them, but held together until I transported it. Then, the split opened up. I fixed all this, and the lady seemed satisfied. I charged $35 and the grandfather said I should take $5 off because of the split. I ignored him, and the lady paid me. Later, her son (works with me and had already ordered cakes for his boy's bday parties) mentioned that his grandfather gave me a hard time. He said everyone loved the cake, and he dis not notice the repairs I made. I was wondering if the grandfather and the lady really expected me to take $5 off. I think I was way too cheap, anyway. Thanks for listening -- just sounding off.
I think I would have charged $75 for that cake. IMHO you were already WWWAAAYYY too cheap on that cake to take money off. However, if it is your reputation at stake... ?
It doesn't sound like it hurt your business though. Good for you to stand firm.
Did you put pics of the cake on here? Sounds SSOOO cool!
Remember you are NOT IN COMPETITION WITH WALMART. Two completely different consumer profiles. One consumer is shopping for price, the other is shopping for custom quality. Nothing wrong with either. Find them an example if you feel compelled to explain the difference, custom made furniture vs assemble yourself; Lexus vs Honda. Lots of examples to choose from. Two different markets, two different consumer profiles. Kindly explain the diff (if you rEALLY feel compelled to) or just nicely suggest if they're on a budget, Walmart has some (insert fake smile here) cakes more in their price range.
simply treat it like someone is just stopping you on the street for directions. They're not your potential customer- in other words you have nothing invested in trying to defend your product or its price to them, and therefore if you handle those particular people with that mindset, you will not get aggravated. Takes a bit of practice. But it works.
And thumbs up for speaking up and giving the ladies at the auction food for thought. If you choose the right words, you can save yourself the stress but also give people a lesson in marketing.
Thanks for the comments. Would you have taken $5 off the price?
Snoobles is my cat. My granddaughter named her when she was in kindergarten.
The trees ended up being dowel rods covered in fondant triangles. I tried fondant/gumpaste, but they could not withstand the weight of the leaves. Learned a lot about leaves -- make them in one piece! Still, a good experience.
My fiance is an MBA grad, and he always tells me I don't charge enough for my cakes. We're not chain store bakeries whipping out a 100+ cakes a week, and we bake and decorate to order, which puts us at another level entirely. Anything custom made should not be priced alongside a chain store item. It amazes me that people think that because cake is edible, is should be cheap. Cake decorating is art and should be priced acordingly.
My finace also says that you can't compete with Walmart on price, they have the best system and the best prices, so other stores have to adapt. Look at Target, they can't compete with Walmart on price, so they have inventory that is more designer/stylish but still reasonable. They may cost more, but they've put themselves a step up. So don't worry about competing with Walmart, be a Target!
.....We're not chain store bakeries whipping out a 100+ cakes a week, and we bake and decorate to order, which puts us at another level entirely. Anything custom made should not be priced alongside a chain store item. It amazes me that people think that because cake is edible, is should be cheap. Cake decorating is art and should be priced acordingly.
My finace also says that you can't compete with Walmart on price, they have the best system and the best prices, so other stores have to adapt. Look at Target, they can't compete with Walmart on price, so they have inventory that is more designer/stylish but still reasonable. They may cost more, but they've put themselves a step up. So don't worry about competing with Walmart, be a Target!
BlueRoseCakes, I totally agree with you and your fiance, we provide a good tasting treat that is appealing to the eye, because we care about our artwork. 
If we did not we would not be taking such care in design and execution and trying to make our cakes for the individual instead of for the mass market which is what Walmart appeals to and sells to.
Pleople who are looking for something different or extra quality will come to us, they will not even step into walmart for comparison. Those are the customers we want and should cherish, and have them do our marketing! 
snoobles, I love the luau cake and it was worth way more than the $35 you charged. Grand-pa was just looking at it from his older point of view.
Or like the saying goes: "Grandpa's off his rocker!" (did I write that)!
Dont worry about him. You gave them an awesome deal.
Not everyone knows how much you can pay for a piece of cake, I bet you he is one of those people who will not order desert in a restaurant, because he does not want to pay the $5 for it. So many people will by that piece of cake but still dont think our prices are cheap enough, even though in my opinion our cakes are way better, go figure. 
Good Luck.
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