I have this "challenging" customer who was had me searching for dessert recipes that use whole wheat, natural sweeteners, fruit, and only a little chocolate (her husband is a chocoholic). They also have to be non-dairy. She wants to order a dessert for every Shabbos, which would be great.
So today I went over some ideas and basically we agreed to try alternating desserts. One week a chocolate dessert, the following week a non-chocolate dessert. I'm hoping that I can help her husband see that there are other yummy desserts besides chocolate, but it also allows him to have a full fledged chocolate dessert on "off" weeks. So far so good.
Next, she tells me that she really liked having individual desserts last week, because it was easier for them to control their portions, could I make all the desserts I make for them into individual portions? 
So, she wants nice, somewhat fancy desserts, but wants them in individual portions. If I'm going to make miniature cakes and decorate them nicely, etc., then I want to charge extra for the hassle, but I feel guilty. Am I wrong?
Thanks,
Kathi
I definitely don't see anything wrong with it at all. After all, it takes more time, product, etc. The more demanding your customer is, the more they should expect to pay for their specific requests. You can find out just how "important" it is by asking more for that kind of work. Suddenly, it may not be as important as it was before. The worst mistake a baker can make is undercharging for their time. Once they get used to getting it "cheap", then they seem to request more each time and it's harder later to up your prices.
Portion controlled items always cost more.
Think warehouse clubs; you save because you buy in bulk and use that way or repackage into more manageable size containers yourself.
When discussing mini-cakes, indydebi has said anything 1/4 of the normal size costs 4 x normal price. (Because mini's are so labor intensive and time consuming.)
As a consumer, I would expect to pay more for individually packaged items - so you're within reason to charge more. 
Thanks everyone. I'm going to price out two different desserts both as a "normal" cake that they have to cut and as individual portions and go over them with her before her next order, so she understands the price and time difference. We'll see what happens! 
These week it's individual (parve) cheesecakes. At least I have a pan for that! 
Thanks,
Kathi
double ditto...I recall other posts you have made about this woman (I am assuming this is the same lady...unless *insert ominous music* there are two of them 
) and personally I'd put a 20% surcharge to all her orders just because she is such a pain in the keister
Without a doubt. It does take extra time. Another thing I thought of - if you have to buy special ingredients are you going to me stuck with leftover that you may never use again?
in the manufacturing world, it's called "scrap factor" and it's figured into the cost. If it's bought special for her, she pays for all of it, whether she actually uses all of it or not. Common business practice.
I had the home baker in mind.
the principal is the same -- home baker or business
customer pays in full for all the ingredients needed even if there will be leftovers.
example:
recently did a cake where I needed just 4 pretzel rods.
can't buy just 4 -- have to buy a full bag.
customer paid for the full bag -- 4 rods went on the cake -- and the rest were for me to use for whatever I wanted.
You guys are too funny! Yes, I adherre to the scrap factor principle. I think it is even more important for the home baker. We have less room to store special ingredients and less likelihood that we will need them for another customer. The parve cheesecakes are an example. If she would have ordered a full size cheesecake, then I wouldn't have leftover batter, topping, etc. But instead she wants 12 individual cheescakes. It takes less batter, crust, topping, etc, but only about 1/3 less. That isn't enough for me to make another full batch to sell and I certainly don't want to constantly be eating the leftovers. I'll make the 3 or four extra minis and take them to a potential client.
A home baker is a custom baker and we need to train our customers to understand that. Custom = money. They want custom baked, we get custom priced. 
Kathi
A home baker is a custom baker and we need to train our customers to understand that. Custom = money. They want custom baked, we get custom priced.
Kathi
I am not shy about explaining these types of things to brides. If they mention "I read about dummy cakes because they're cheaper....", I lean back in my chair, fold my arms across my chest, get that "because I'm the Mom, THAT'S why!" look on my face and tell them flat out, "Let me tell you why that's not true."
My philosophy is "you are spending a lot of money for this event and you need to understand what you are paying for and why." Some would say I over-explain some things, but when they lay their money down, they know why they are paying it.
A home baker is a custom baker and we need to train our customers to understand that. Custom = money. They want custom baked, we get custom priced.
Kathi
I am not shy about explaining these types of things to brides. If they mention "I read about dummy cakes because they're cheaper....", I lean back in my chair, fold my arms across my chest, get that "because I'm the Mom, THAT'S why!" look on my face and tell them flat out, "Let me tell you why that's not true."
My philosophy is "you are spending a lot of money for this event and you need to understand what you are paying for and why." Some would say I over-explain some things, but when they lay their money down, they know why they are paying it.
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