What Are Your Tips For Those Insanely Busy Stressful Times?
Business By MBoyd Updated 1 Oct 2007 , 4:12am by ValMommytoDanny
What do you do when you've stretched yourself a little too thin, you've pulled 3 all nighters in a row and you just want to lie down and cry???
I'm not saying that's the status quo around here, but I wonder how other people do it.
Additionally, when you're just starting out, how do you know when its time (or if you can afford to) hire someone???
Hire someone to help. Even if it's just a 12 year old to make icing. That's what I did.
The second thing you need to do is start charging more for your cakes.
I charged about $2.50 per slice for wedding cakes. I quit the business because I was burned out.
The other day I walked down the street to a little cake shop. They were charging SEVEN dollars/slice for a dinky little cake.
People were coming in the shop, ooohhing and aaaahhhing over the cakes.
Boy did that make me sick! I could have baked ONE cake for every THREE I'd done and made as much money with so much less work!
~C
My top 5 tips for handling the work. I've employed these while working for both other people and for myself.
1. Schedule, schedule, schedule. I force myself to write out a production schedule, complete with the time each task requires. When I see it on paper, I have a realistic view of the the tasks I have and the time I'll need to complete them. I can't keep everything in my head. If I write it down and really schedule it out, then I don't have to. It also gives me the opportunity to re-prioritize at a glance if a wrench is thrown into the works.
2. Assign a monetary value to every single task. In practical terms, I pay myself a wage for every task I complete. If I have say, 100 pans to grease and paper and it takes me 2 hours to do it ( totally hypothetical) and I cost $20 an hour, that costs $40. If I pay someone $6 an hour to grease and paper my pans, that same task now costs only $12.
NO job in the kitchen is beneath me, heaven knows I've cleaned out my share of grease traps, but I cost way too much to do tasks like shredding carrots, cracking eggs, and greasing pans. If my time is taken up doing those things, then I have less time to do what I'm really getting paid to do....decorate cakes.
3. Take a serious look at what you charge. Higher prices sometimes drive away some customers, but there is a strange psychological association between the cost and the value of everything. Think about it, when you go to a discount store and buy a $25, no brand pair of sneakers, you don't care if they get dirty. There is an absolute assumption that it's ok if they get ruined. If you buy a $100 pair of Nikes, you are more likely to wipe them off, not wear them to mow the lawn, etc because they cost more. So, in the consumer mind, higher cost MUST equal higher value, even though they are really the same thing: a pair of sneakers
If I typically sold a 10" cake for $25 (which I don't), people would never say my cakes are worth $75. But if I always sold it for $75, people would not be shocked if I sold one for $100. No offense to the $25 customer, but I don't want them. I want a $100 customer. I have to have four $25 customers to equal one $100 customer. I don't know anyone who would prefer doing 4 times the work for the same amount of money.
4. Train your customers to value your time. Don't be afraid to turn business down. I will turn down a last minute cake OR charge a premium for it. I have no problem saying "I really can't fit it in for this week", or " I can squeeze it in, but it will have to be in my personal time so I'll have to charge more". I don't want anyone to think that they can call me whenever, like I am standing by the phone waiting for a cake order to come in. "If she's THAT busy, she MUST be worth it." See #3
5. Sounds silly, but keep yourself healthy. No more all-nighters. You HAVE to sleep, eat and rest. You will burn out if you don't allow yourself some down time. Caffeine is not a substitute for rest. Cake scraps do not equal dinner and the single, 2 minute bathroom break is not 'sitting down' 
This is what works for me. I hope it's helpful to you! Take it easy!
Sharon
....NO job in the kitchen is beneath me, heaven knows I've cleaned out my share of grease traps, but I cost way too much to do tasks like shredding carrots, cracking eggs, and greasing pans. If my time is taken up doing those things, then I have less time to do what I'm really getting paid to do....decorate cakes.
Abso-freaking-lutely!!!
Hubby figured out a long time ago that my time has a value of over $100 per hour. I'm almost to the point where I may stop going out on caterings at all (ALMOST!! The control-freak in me is still winning that one!). I have good people working for me that can do a great job. I don't HAVE to be there. I can pay them $10/hour to handle it ..... For under $250, I can staff an entire reception from start to finish and that is WAY cheaper than me being there at all.
As hubby pointed out to me, "You think if you're doing it, then you're saving money. you're not! You're the head bazookas! You're the most expensive part of your business."
Just because you're not writing yourself a payroll check, doesn't mean you're not incurring an expense.
ALL of Sharon's advice is right-on. Start thinking assembly line. Start actually figuring out how long something will take you and plan for that time.
(Brings to mind another thread in which the bride wanted all 300 guest names on the cake. Debi did the math and figured it would take anywhere from 5 hours (assuming 1 minute per name) to 15 hours (assuming 3 minutes per name) to do this.
What eats up your time is the stop-n-start's of the process. When you have to stop to make another batch of icing, it slows you down. When you have to stop to cut a cardboard down to size, it slows you down. Get all of that out of the way.
You've seen it on shows on the food channel.....prep time. No one walks into a restaurant and starts serving customers right away. They spend hours prepping the foods so it takes the least amount of time to cook the meal.
I totally agree with everyone else, but knowing exactly what you mean... BE ORGANIZED! This is the understatement of the decade. I always start with a list for the week also and stick to it. You need to decide how long (appx. of course) each cake will take you. Some weeks you may be able to take 12 orders if they are all basic, but other weeks you should only take 4 because they are more complex designs. I also have lots of pans in the sizes I use the most so I don't waste time between baking waiting on the pans to cool, get washed, etc. Also go through everything at the beginning of the week and see what specialty things you may need to buy or make ahead of time so you're aren't scrambling for anything during the crush of the end of the week. And trust me, it's hard to gauge, but if you're not getting to bed for 3 days straight, I'm pretty sure you're ready to hire some help. Even if it's just making icing and washing your dishes, you will not believe how much time that saves you! I did it completely on my own in my storefront for almost 6 years and it completely wore me out! I hired a full time girl a year and a half ago and haven't looked back. She makes icing, washes dishes, cleans the floors, waits on the customers, and has learned how to roll and cut out cookies which saves me a TON of time. She has been a God-send, even more than I ever dreamed! Take a nap, get through the week and think it over when you're awake! -Lori
I try to plan and get things coordinated way ahead of time. I list everything, get additional help on board, and delegate simple tasks. It still is stressful but it helps to have a plan. Even if the plan doesn't happen, if helps to feel like you have one. hehe
Good luck!
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