I would really like to know which cake designer said they liked brides to haggle over the price? Colette Peters? Sylvia Weinstock? Heck when you are charging $15-$30 or more per serving, maybe you can have a price reality check. When it comes to people baking in the real world that is just bad advice.

I seriously think we should all raise our minimum price to at least $15.00 a serving. Then we could haggle down to maybe $10.00 a serving. That would be a 33% discount and most of us would still be charging more than we normally do.

That is pretty much what Buddy ws suggesting...that there be like a union of cake bakeries, where there is a set price for cakes and people would be more realistic what to expect. Wouldnt THAT be nice!

We need a union! That's it! Where's Norma Rae when you need her?

Here, this is an idea for you.

"Well, I like that cake, but $300 just isn't in my budget. I can afford half that."

"Absolutely no problem!! I can totally do it for that price. Now, here's the list of ingredients you'll need to have stocked in your kitchen when I come to make it... and I hope you have a decent mixer because I can't do it with one of those hand held jobbies... and I'm going to need a nice lunch... I don't like sandwiches... I'm thinking tuna steak and fois gras. And man, just so you know, you'd better get a good night's sleep the night before because you are going to be cleaning your @ss off when I'm done! But hey, I'm kinda low on gas, so I'm gonna need you to pick me up that day..." Of course, by that point you'll be speaking to an empty chair.

Not only are magazines are giving people all this unrealistic and ridiculous âadviceâ, but people seem to be out of touch when it comes to cake prices.

A co-worker asked me to do a cake for her husband (a three tier tupsy turby), when I emailed her the price, with a huge discount, she almost fainted, and she
asked me if I was serious and asked âwho pays THAT for a cake?â....I said, âwell, all my customers do, thatâs how I stay in businessâ.
First she was hoping to pay âgrocery storeâ pricesâ¦(ha ha ha!!!) and then she wanted a cake for only 60 guests but based on the picture she
sent me the cake would serve 120â¦so of course my quote was for 120 servings (I quoted her $300.00â¦.50% discount!!!).

I work in a big office with not cubicles so this other co-worker asked me how much I would normally for a cake like that, like $60.00 -$70.00 he said.
I laughed like mad woman (on purpose) I said no⦠âfor that cake I charge $5.00/ serving, so easily that would go for $600.00 totalâ....so I proceed to give my speech: âIâm not âGrocery store nameâ, I donât mass produce my cakes and I donât get huge discounts on my ingredients, I do everything hand made, everything is made from scratch, everything is freshâ¦and that cake would take me 10-15 hrs to makeâ¦and no, I donât pay myself minimum wageâ¦plus if you go to a restaurant and order a slice of cake you will be charge at least $6.00 for a slice of undecorated cakeâ¦have YOU noticed that???â

Yes, I took it all out of my systemâ¦and it feels greatâ¦no more special pricing for anybodyâ¦Iâm done!

You go girl!
And Melvira, I think you should be our Norma!!
I think we should make a home video for our customers called "what goes into a cake" so that they can see what happens. Kinda like a reality show but more info then you would get on Ace of Cakes or Amazing Wedding Cakes on WE. From time of meeting with a client to shopping & ordering supplies and making all the flowers, then baking and construction. It would probably have to be a three disc set to fit all of it.
Just something so we can turn around and say "Ok, do you think Im charging you to much NOW???!!!"

I took a wonderful class from the amazing Browen Weber last spring. She was explaining what she charged for her "Lady Chef" cake. It was $800-$1000 as I recall and served about 20. Then she looked up at everyone and pointed her knife at us and said. "People! Charge for your cakes!"

We should do what contractors do, give them the time & materials option or per slice option, of course they would have to buy the whole bottle of vanilla it's too difficult to break that out.

Let's see...time & materials for a small 3 tier job maybe serving 100...numbers are approx.

20lbs of satin ice fondant w/ shipping=$80.00
butter 8lbs $4.00lb (they want the good stuff right?)=$32.00
Flour 5lbs=$3.49
sugar c&h 5lbs=5.99
baking powder=$2.69
baking soda=$1.49
Eggs dozen:$3.50
Milk=$2.00
Cocoa Ghirardelli Unsweetened=$5.98
Vanilla McCorrmick brand=$5.89
Cakebase 1/2" thick wilton large=$10.00 each
cardboard cake base 3 = 4.00
sps stacking system including shipping =30.00
Gumpaste 2lbs including shipping= $18.00
petal dust 3 colors w/S&H = $15
Luster dust w s/h: $5.00
royal icing 2lbs: p. sugar $2.39, wilton meringue powder $5.29=$7.68
Piping tips 3=$5.00
Piping bags disposible=$5.00
food coloring=$5.00
gas to run round town and buy all this stuff=$20.00
===================================
Ok that's $267.71
Add on decorating tools and oven / shop/ kitchen rental or in my case babysitter=$200
Add on labor 35 hours @ a very reasonable $10 per hour=350.00
Kitchen clean up=$20.00
===========================================
"That's will be $837.71 if you please.....or we can go with the per slice method and save you some money....lol"

Preach on!!! And that is for a cake that only serves 100.

lol at tiny goose.

so true... so true.

This is why I don't sell cakes ... I got so sick of people gaping at the (already rock-bottom) price I'd quote and saying, "For a cake?!?" Now I just bake for my kids, for fun and for charity. I have the luxury of doing that because it's not my job.

Speaking of ... I had a thought:
I work for a newspaper. I'm a columnist and former reporter. I know how to write in U.S. newspaper style. I'm actually tempted to interview a bunch of you via e-mail, etc. and write an article pointing out all these fallacies and why they don't make sense.

Then those of you with Web sites could post it if you wanted. I'd consider it a contribution to the sanity of cake decorators everywhere.

Plus I think it'd be fun to write. So many of you have such a wonderful way with words!

Jillk-- Put me down as a willing participant in any cake fallacy interview you want to write! PM me with any questions you can think of!

jillk The more ammo the better! I'm in!

Count me in, please, Jill! Hey, a humble thought for your column. What if you got some cakers' opinions from different parts of the country for diversity? Would that help or hurt our cause? lol!

JillK, I'm all over that one!!! I'd contribute if you wanted me to! That would be so wonderful to have a chance for us to fire back. Too bad one of those gutless turds at the wedding mags wouldn't have the nerve to publish it.

Well shoot, fire, and matches, you KNOW i'm in on a project like that!

PM me, email me, call me, or just pull whatever you need from my FAQ page. And I will HAPPILY link that article!!!!!!!!

I think using viewpoints from all over the country would be a good thing ... no one could use the "yeah, that works over THERE, but in our area (insert any silly excuse you've ever heard here)." I mean, I get so tired of reading how they do things in New York City and L.A., which is so different from Indianapolis, Baton Rouge, Des Moines and Chapel Hill.

Perhaps instead of submitting it to bridal magazines, you might have more luck with online referral sites. They get their business from people like us - so wouldn't they be more likely to "publish" (post online) an article such as this?

I'm a member of about a dozen of these referral sites and could offer up some names.

Asorry about late writ lauged a lot haaaa ha ha ha why not sell the dummy cake for same price and call it "totally calorie free - just remove the decorations and fondan), totally Vegan, Totally vegetarian, totally gluten and sugar free - all YOU need young lady is a very hot serated knife that will cut the slices. ANd, to boot, use it in your pool afterwards as a belly buoy - enjoy!