I had a friend of my daughters, (10 years ago) they really haven't kept in contact, but anyway. She called asking me if I could make her 175 cupcakes for her wedding. Plus a cake for the top of the cupcake tower. I said I would give her a good deal, and charge her 100.00 she said fine. She emailed me a few days later saying she could buy sheet cakes at costco for 17.99 that would feed 48 people or she could get cupcakes for 3.99 a dozen. She thought she would go that route. She still wants me to make a small 2 tiered cake for them to cut. I guess what I'm saying is I feel like she is thinking I was trying to overprice her. especially after I said I would give her a good deal. And now I have to give her a price on the 2 tiered cake, I don't know what to say, its just that people see what a grocery store can charge and they don't understand why we can't match there prices. I know this has been discussed to death, she told me she doesn't even like cake, so quality doesn't really matter to her, its all about the cost. Even if I say half of what I normally charge, she is going to think its too much, she's just to nice to say so.

I've seen your cakes and with the quality of your beautiful creations, I don't see why you should lower your price. Those cake are jaw dropping. If she thinks its too much then too bad for her.

I would have charged $380 for 175 cupcakes and a 6" cake. $100 for that order is far too little to begin with. Wow.

You put all that love in the cakes that can't be there when you buy in bulk and then pull out of the freezer for the 15 minutes of decorating allowed!

Tell her...I would normally charge X, but because of your friendship...I could do it for Y.

[quote="cathyscakes"] She still wants me to make a small 2 tiered cake for them to cut./quote]

Uh.... no

let Costco do it

And to answer your question, their cakes and icings are mass produced using pretty ordinary ingredients. You can't get that economy of scale. Your cakes are not the same as mass produced store cakes. If that's what they want, fine. But it's not a custom cake.

I honestly would not take the job. even though shes your friend but for her to even try to say cosco is cheaper thats kinda insulting hun. but good luck with you decision. Your cakes are great by the way!!!

Sometime ago, a fellow CC'er who worked in a grocery bakery (walmart, costco or sams') said they get their sheet cakes shipped in, baked, iced and frozen, and the cost is about 50 cents a cake.

I also saw a show on the food channel once about a place that mass produced these cakes for large volume customers (i.e. walmart and sam's type of places) ..... good lord, sheet cakes were coming off the assembly line and pretty much getting 'spray painted' with icing. A cake off the end of the assembly line every 5 or 6 second.

If you can bake and ice a cake for 50 cents, then you can meet their pricing. If you can mass produce a sheet cake every 5 or 6 seconds, then yuo can meet their pricing.

Until then, you tell these folks that costco will be able to take good care of what they need with what they want to spend. Thanks for thinking of me. See ya 'round.

When I make cakes, I make sure it is in the contract that MY cake is the only cake served. Think of the difference in taste between costco or whatever versus yours. I don't want anyone to be confused as to what cake is mine. Just a thought. Jen

I would tell her that since quality and taste are not important to her that she'd be much better off getting the entire order at Costco as you cannot compete with their wholesale pricing.

Don't people know that guests can tell when its a grocery store cake? All it takes is one bite and I don't eat anymore. I've had a few brides tell me "I don't care what flavor you make it I don't even like cake" I can't help but think to myself "even if you don't care for cake what about the people you invited to share this day with you"?

I was thinking the same thing, even though she doesn't care for cake, what about the guests, alot of people can't wait for the cake, and then its a sheet cake that they could have at any time, I don't understand there logic. I mean I was doing it dirt cheap to begin with, oh well, I'm making a scratch carrot cake for her, everone else gets plain old white sheet cake.