How do you handle an order when someone wants a character cake with a pan that you don't have? Do you tack the price of the pan on the order or do you eat the cost and charge them a normal fee?

You eat the cost. You're buying equipment for your business. You don't charge brides for buying round pans ... you just add them to your inventory. If you don't want to end up with a bunch of pans you'll never use again, you'll need to decide which cakes you're going to say "no" to because you don't have the proper equipment to make that cake. As a client, if you charged me for the purchase of the pan, I'd expect you to give me the pan.

Do you mean like Micky Mouse or Whinny the Pooh? If so you can not legally sale cakes using those pans (or with any other home made decorations on it).

Those pans are labeled for home use only.

Well, I personally add a little extra on to cover the pan fee, usually $5-7 extra. I do usually end up eating most of the cost though, but I figure eventually someone else will use that pan as well! I might be doing this wrong compared to some, but this is the solution I have found for this! HTH!

Don't buy the pan, I doubt you'll ever use it again. Maybe you can offer them a FBCT or fondant characters or something else that fits the theme. Those cakes are more special, anyway.

Up here we have a chain of stores called Bulk Barn that will rent character pans for about $1.45 a day. I've heard some bakeries or cake supply places will do the same. I would look into it if you are in a major city.

I HATE CHARACTER PANS!!! I wont do them. I always tell people that I would rather teach them to do it themselves. Like many of us, I have carpal tunnel and those 2 million stars are a pain...figurativly and literally.

But as for your question, you should eat the cost.

Unless it was a pan I really wanted I would offer to come up with an alternative like a chocolate transfer on a sheet cake. Most of the shaped pans aren't something you're going to use very often.

Now if it's something like the 3D train or duck you might want to get it if you are willing to do shaped pans because those themes will never go out of style and can be used over and over.

If it was Winnie the Pooh or something I would NOT be willing to make a cake for someone else with it because of copyright issues.

Copyright doesn't just apply to Wilton, FBCT and such of copyrighted characters is also infringement.

However, I'm not that uptight about copyright law. The day the cake police show up at my door, I'll just eat the evidence. Heh.

I would also prefer to offer a FBCT or mold fondant characters, I think it isa much nicer effect and you aren't getting stuck with a pan you might not use ever again. If you are going to offer the pan though, I would say you need to eat the cost or, if you are a home baker I think you can say that you don't offer specific character pans because that type of equipment is too taste specific to be a good investment for your business but that if she would like to loan you her pan, you are happy to make the cake for $xx (your regular decorated per serving price). Do be careful of the copyright laws, but I would be willing to bet that if don't own a shop and you arent' advertising that you offer this or posting the pics on your website you might be okay there (just a guess though).

wow. I am glad I asked. I never thought of the character pan being a waste and the copyright laws as a factor. Would this mean doing any form of character on a sheet cake as well or just the full shape pan being an issue?

I recently was having this conversation with a fellow baker who has been in this biz for decades and has more credentials after her name than I can ever dream of having. It was an issue about an event planner wanting a carved cake of a copyrighted character. This baker told me to tell the event planner it was a $16,000 fine. I don't know where this number comes from, but this woman has extremely high credibility with me and I don't question anything she tells me.

I'm not willing to chance a $16,000 fine for anybody.

It has always been my understanding that copyright issues are with non edible things that will be around, not edible items. I deal alot with copyright because of where I am located and have been told as long as it's edible your fine.

Polekitten-Please call when the cake police show up-I will bring my fork!

Isn't it also illegal to make chocolate transfers and make fondant characters for a cake? That's what I was told!!

I wish I knew the link to it but some yrs back there was an article published *in a mag I believe* (there was a link on the internet to it) where this guy wanted to order a cake for his kid and all the problems w/copyrights he went thru.
Basically, if someone were to hold up a cake (actually **any item!** in a courtroom and anyone identifies it as "Micky" or "Garfield" or who/whatever you lose.
And Debi.......I have heard figures of up to $20,000 & $30,000 for the 1st offence..... I did read of a decorator who had a couple of shops who got fined but can't remember what the fine was.