hello all...to those that have legal home based bakeries, how do you answer clients questions about your location, etc, without sounding unprofessional? A friend suggested I say that I rent/lease space from a bakery.(since on your taxes, you write off that space, etc). I am fully licensed, inspected and incorporated in the state of NC. The first question I always get is "where are you located?" when I give the shpiel about being licensed, etc, it makes me feel somewhat "unprofessional", since I don't have a retail store front, it's just "on the side". NOT the image I want to portray! I have a custom company, everything is scratch baked to order, blah blah and delivered. I currently design birthday/occasion cakes, but hope to expand soon to wedding cakes as well. where to meet for consultations/tastings?? home by appointment? or a "neutral" spot as a friend suggested? HELP!! I am in a "hoity toity " area and it seems to be important where my "shoppe" is located. and could be a "potential turnoff" to clients if they know it's home based??thanks for all your advice!

Would you mind letting me know what it takes to be legal in NC?

The one and only meeting I've had--to do a cake which was purchased at a benefit auction--was at Bear Rock Cafe---and we weren't the only ones conducting business--it was the only idea I could come up with--if there's a future, I just don't know

hi, welcome to cake central! first, contact the NC dept. of the secretary of state to register your business. you should also call your county/city/town for licensing info, as all county's have different requirements. most importantly, you must be inspected to sell ANY food item to the public, wholesale or retail. call the NC department of agriculture, they will send you a list of requirements. Such as, but not limited to NO INDOOR PETS, Separate storage/ work area from your residential items, thermometer for fridge and oven, appropriate cleaning/sanitizing methods/solutions, etc. dept. of agr. is very helpful and friendly, don't be intimidated. they want to help you, not put you out of business. Sorry I don't have the links to websites, etc but if you "google" it, you should get the info. hope this helps! BTW.........BUMP PLEASE! I could really use the advice!

I tell people that I am a web-based company and that I don't have a storefront. I happily meet them in their homes or at a restaurant for wedding consultations. They think they are special! I send pictures back and forth by email. I take other orders by email, website, or phone. I do delivery only. No one has questioned this or even seemed concerned about where I bake. I don't bring up being home-based and neither do they usually.

thanks for the input, I appreciate the advice, I am working on my website right now, unfortunately, I haven't found a reasonable "webmaster" yet I have "godaddy.com" but don't care for the templates) that's a great reply though, "I have a web based co" BTW... Jenn123..your cakes are beautiful! any more advice out there?? could use all the help I can get!

You might have to become a webmaster yourself! I did.

I am my own webmaster too. It is easy and pretty fun designing it yourself. Then if you need to make an update or post a new pic to the gallery you can do it yourself. I am a Mac-guru so I used a very simple, but really nice program called "Pages." (I think it was embedded in iLife.) I'm sure that there are easy Windows programs out there too if you prefer the PC.

LOVE MY MAC!

I am by no means web savy either (I did take a course in college tho). I recently stumbled on Homestead.com and LOVE IT!! I have done my husband's business's website with no problem. I would definitely check them out.

I have a similar problem, I sub-let a licensed kitchen, but do not have a suitable place to meet, I always suggest the coffee shop in the complex where the kitchen is, and like wise this can be a smart area and everyone wants to know where you are located etc. I know I have lost orders because of this and have yet to find a good solution

When I was looking for someone to do my wedding cake I didn't really see the difference between home based or store front. I knew there were only a couple of storefronts in the city so naturally I assumed that the rest were homebased. I suppose there are some customers who may care but I didn't.

But if you were worried about being unprofessional, the idea of being a web based company sounds really good.

I have found if I just say "I have a licensed kitchen in my home" it is enough. The less you try to justify your business, the less an issue it seems.

Yep, I meet with folks at Starbucks, as I rent space from someone else's kitchen. (Home-based is not legal in my state whatsoever.) If they are driling you, I'd say, yes, that I have a fully-licensed kitchen in my home, where I specialize in home-made scratch-baked cakes. And say it not apologetically, but confidently!
If they are too snooty, then you are better of without that order!

I say "oh, well I don't have a store-front location but I do work out of a commercial kitchen. Its not particularly comfortable for meetings, so I like to meet at Borders" I can also direct them to my site for visuals. As far as I know, I haven't lost a customer to this yet

Let's list a few people who started from their homes...
Martha Stewart;
Paula Deen;
Kate Sullivan;
You...

I also use Homestead for my web page. They have a really user-friendly web page design program and a reasonable monthly fee. You could start as low as $4.99/month.

I say that I work out of a commercial kitchen that isn't equipped for visitors and I'm more than happy to come to them. The reaction has been wonderful - they feel that they are getting an extra service (AND most of the time, I meet them in their home - so it gives me an extra sense of their style and personality.)