The bride, (a friend of a friend) contacts me in May for her Aug 29th wedding. I quote her a price of $4.50/serving for a fondant cake decorated like the magazine photo she liked. She wants her cake delivered 2 hours away, I calculated mileage based on the IRS reimbursement rate, it came to $115. She agreed to that in mid-May. Today, just 2 weeks before her wedding (she was too busy to meet with me any sooner), when I explain that I need payment before I begin purchasing ingredients, she freaks out about the price, which came to $620. Mind you, she had her bachelorette party in Cabo San Lucas (one of her 2 bachelorette parties, by the way), they are renting out the top of a very prominent ski resort for their ceremony/reception, and they are both very well-paid attorneys....Money isn't exactly tight in their household. She told me, "we figured we'd spend no more than $300 for the cake"!! WTF?! She agreed to all prices months ago. Good luck finding some other sucker to do all that work and deliver it 2 hrs away for $300! Sure isn't going to be me!!
Once again amazed at the nerve of some people...why in the world do I still do this??
Once again amazed at the nerve of some people...why in the world do I still do this??
Because you love it. 
That has to be why we all do it and put up with craziness. There is no other sane explanantion!
well, i wonder how fast she is gonna come back crying to you for a cake. Cause who else is she going to find on such short notice. OR she already had someone else and just forgot about you until you called, then she was like well i'm not paying that much for a cake.
Good for you .ONE thing that I learned here on CC is never sell your self short. I either make it for free for GOOD friends or charge what is the right amount for my time and effort. Yesterday out Air conditioner was running continuously. so I called up a the service people .The guy came in ,saw my unit ,switched off the main circuit and switched it on. And charged me $280 .They could have told me to do that on phone ,but did they?????? he got that much just for his time which was around not mare then few min .
She probably spent to much money on everything else, like the parties you mentioned and figures you would do it anyway, just for the money.
I just can't wait to have these problems when I open!!!!!
Some people
I'm with Jamie.... there should have been some red flags before now!! Unless you're really trusting, a 50% deposit should have been made long before now!
I don't even know what to say, but there are a lot of brides that go all out for everything, but then want to go cheap on the cake. Next time please get your 50% nonrefundable deposit up front, that way you don't lose out on the date.
Come on now--our OP gets huge points for having a nice straight solid back bone and did not back down to a Lawyer!
Round of applause here, guys!!!!
Sure a fine point to whittle away at would be more payment in advance and retainer fee etc but in the meantime, drum roll please...
YOU GO, GIRL!!!
Oh, please don't get me wrong ladies, I didn't hold the date for her....(wouldn't dare without any money). I simply don't have any other orders. She was in full planning-mode in May and ready to schedule a tasting, etc. All was great. She was just too busy to ever meet with me or schedule an appt. If I had another paying order, she would have been out of luck. BUT, I didn't...and I really want to buy myself a kayak, so I was hoping to use the money from this one on something fun.
My friend warned me that she might be "a little challenging" to work with. Did I mention she's wearing a Vera Wang gown? Clearly she's a bride on a budget who cannot possibly afford more than $1.85 per serving! Bride is supposed to talk with her fiance and get back to me...can't wait...this should be good!
In addition to dkelly's rush fee, you should add on a "pushy lawyer" fee so you can hire someone to paddle that expensive kayak for you!
For delivery, you should charge a fuel charge, and your wages, you are spending four hours delivering. If you normally deliver within say, a half hour from your business, then you are adding three hours to your normal delivery. I think your delivery fee should be more like $200.
You don't only have to calculate the gas costs, but also the fact that in those three hours, you could have made another cake that would be XYZ$. That's money you are virtually losing because of the delivery, so delivery charges should cover that.
I once asked my hairdresser a quote for a simple "updo". The amount she quoted me was astronomical, and I asked why a couple of pins and hair spray would cost so much. Well, because in the meanwhile she wouldn't be able to do other things, like highlights and whatnot, which would generate a lot of money, and I had to "cover" that "lost income".
It's been so long, I forgot to update. For anyone still following this thread, the bride decided to pay the full price in two separate checks, which both cleared just fine. I delivered the cake (in my gallery, the one with the blue circles). It had a bit of wear from the road, but I was able to repair it just fine on site. She even left a thank you card with a gratuity with one of the bridesmaids for me.
Guess she had a change of heart! See, sometimes these stories end up just fine in the end!!
it came out lovely!! So now after the event and the exciting yet arduous delivery do you think you should have charged more for the delivery? Did you have to pay the tram fees, bus fees too out of pocket?? just curious
No, no additonal fees on my part. Bride and groom had the tram and shuttle busses rented for the event. In hindsight, I suppose I could have charged more for delivery. I rarely deliver that far, so I wasn't sure how much to charge. I think it turned out ok after all was said and done.
Now, about that kayak......
wow! I am so jealous that you can charge that much for that cake! It's a pretty simple design. I will give it to you that you had to deliver two hours away but still....... I want to live in california!
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