Say No, Or Explain It At Least
Decorating By SugarBakerz Updated 1 Sep 2007 , 11:21pm by SugarBakerz
a customer wants a small cake to feed 8 people simple and chocolate....we all know this isn't really worth the time (now that the kitchen is claiming taxes) to make because of it's size and costs factor, what do you do, say no or just say $20
If you're not making ANY money off of a cake order that small you should set a minimum order amount and let the customer know what it is and explain that you have bills and it wouldn't be in your best interest to make a $20 cake......who knows.......maybe she'll want a bigger one or maybe she'll understand and be okay paying more or maybe she'll tell you never mind!! Either way you'll either get paid enough to make it worth it or you won't have to bother with it at all!
it just seems like now that I am actually having to account for supplies, energy, time, and all of that and it isn't a hobby any longer, it is income..... it is harder to accept a $10 or $15 cake order when I know it takes more than that when you consider time, product energy, boxes, boards, delivery.... I want to earn their biz because they found me off of a cc bouquet and some petits a co-worker had ordered last week..... but she spend plenty on that and it was worth turning the oven on, just wondered if any of you have a minimum oven turning on fee?
I've been to a lot of cake sites (people selling cakes) and lots of them have minimum orders of like $50.........hey, you have to make a profit.....I mean people DO understand (at least most) that this IS a job and you deserve to be paid for it!
What they don't understand is that you are not a big box, full production bakery .... you dont' spend hours baking cakes just to throw them in the freezer in the hopes that someone someday wants to buy one of them.
They don't understand payroll. They only know that it takes them about an hour to make a cake. ("That's not very long!") Well, for every $10 per hour that I have to pay my employee, I'm actually putting out about $11.25 when you add in the payroll taxes the employer has to pay. SoI've got over $11 in the cake and I haven't even turned on the oven yet!!
KHalstead is right in that this is not uncommon. There is a very large caterer in town who has it right on their website they will not accept weddings for under 200 during May-August. Parties for 50 need not apply!
I just tell them that my smallest cake is a 9x13 sheet cake or a 9" rd and what the price is. I have never had a customer not want the cake.
The general public just does not understand how we small bakeries work. I suggest that you put either a $ minimum...for me, it's at least $25. I also have a minimum of how many dozen of cupcakes, cookies, candy, etc. Just my two cents....and best wishes to you. 
I had a lady once who wanted to buy 16 brownies (one batch of my brownies does make 16), and I asked her which kind she wanted. She then asked.... well how many different kinds do you make? I said, well, right now I have about 18-20 different recipes that I vary.
I'll take one of each, she says.
She absolutely refused to 'get' that she had to buy the same kind! I asked her, if I make 16 different kinds of brownies and you buy one of each, what am I going to do with the other 240 brownies that are left over?
I guess my first thought is why is price of that cake $20, if you aren't making any money by charging $20. For me it's not really an issue of setting a "smallest cake size" or "minimum price of a cake" but making sure that your prices on all the cakes are reflecting the materials AND time involved in producing that size cake. You might charge $100 for a full sheet cake but if it cost you $75 to make it and it takes you 3 hours to bake, etc. then you aren't making any money even though it might be over your "minimum price of a cake". I know a lot of places just don't offer smaller cakes because they don't find them profitable, if that is the case for you, I agree with everyone else, just politely say "I appreciate your interest, but my round cake sizes are 10" and are $xxx." That way you aren't resentful of making a small cake. Or charge more than $20 for an 8" round!
Just my 2 cents worth! -Lori
Thanks for the talk ladies... she never called back so she must have finally understood... I make a killing on my CC bouquets because they PM on those are so cheap, and I don't charge a lot for them and people would PAY for them because of they way they look and the oooohhhhsss and aaaahhhhhhss you get when you see them. I just wanted to know I wasn't the only cheap skate out there hehehehehe.... when I said $20 I was just throwing a price out there... now saying I have something that low.... just saying $20... but hey we all start somewhere..... and right now like some of you say something is better than nothing.... I can't BELIEVE the response I have gotten in 3 short weeks in this small town, I just hope it keeps up and the good Lord keeps me above water
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