I have been trying to create a pricing matrix but feel that my pricing is coming out higher than it should be. Does anyone have a suggestion/format that they use? Also, I am not a licensed baker - I do it out of my home, but how do you reserve a name for the purpose of business cards etc and just where do I start if I want to become liscensed?

Pricing is VERY simple if you're not licensed. It's ZERO.

First things to look at:
zoning - can you have a biz in your home?
HOA/deed restrictions/covenents - can you have a biz in your home?
Health Department /Depart of Ag for licensing requirements and inspections
Class in safe food handling is likely gong to be required
Incorporate
Buy liability insurance

And don't forget to write business plan.

• 
  
• first worry - get licensed
  
  
  • 
    
  • call county health department to find out regulations - they may or may not be in charge and will tell you who is (in NC it's the State Dept of Agriculture)
    
    
  • call appropriate local business licensing authority (city or county or may be both) for their requirements
    
    
  • check zoning regulations with local zoning board
    
    
  • set up your location to required standards of the above
    
    
  • get name registered (usually a county clerk)
    
    
  • reserve name on internet
    
    
  • get tax ID with state if required to collect sales tax (call the state Dept of Revenue)
    
    
  • get food handlers/ServSafe certification if required (good idea regardless)
    
    
  • get inspected by whoever is in charge
    
    
  • get business cards, stationary etc.
    
    
  • advertise and sell.
    
    
  
  
  
• Pricing
  
  • 
    
  • you are not competing with the grocery and similar bakeries -- you will be higher than them -- in fact double or more most likely
    
    
  • yours is a CUSTOM product and should be priced accordingly
    
    
  • its NOT just the ingredients (the flour, the butter, the sugar, the cakeboards, the support system, etc.) -- it's also:
    
    
    • 
      
    • utilities: phone, gas, water, electric, sewer, garbage, internet (CC!, email, website)
      
      
    • equipment - every piece! pans, spatulas, measuring cups/spoons, scale, sifter, fancy cake stands, every little tool, the computer and it's software used to run business (yes, deduct Excel!).
      
      
    • rent (or part of mortgage if home based)
      
      
    • taxes: personal or business income depending upon how you set up your business, registration tax, licensing tax, etc. (oh the gov can stick it too you here!
      
      
    • insurance!!!!! for business and vehicles
      
      
    • promotional expenses - direct advertising, freebies, charitable donations, etc.
      
      
    • your TIME -- you are at least worth $15/hour -- don't pay yourself "minimum wage"!
      
      
    • cost of professional help: attorney and accountant at the very minimum (do stop in at www.sba.gov -- the Small Business Administrations website for valuable advice and many templates to use to figure your startup costs and write the kind of documents the banks will want to see if you ask for a loan.



a product to consider for business use is CakeBoss -- just click on the ad you see here on CC. Kelly is a valued CC member and give a discount to CC members. The software will help you with properly costing your cakes and a whole bunch more too.

Thank you for your responses, I did find them very helpful. I currently do cakes for family and friends and don't charge for them (i've only charged for 2 cakes I've ever done) but I have been putting together a pricing sheet in excel as research and development. So DOUG, I appreciate your thoughts about pricing, I did not take into consideration all the other stuff aside from raw ingredients. So, it gave me a better perspective and I think i will look into Cake Boss for the future. I currently hold a ServeSafe Certification as I have worked in kitchens for several years so that is a bonus! LEAH, I appreciate your response but as email can be taken in many ways, I think it came off a little harsh but no worries. I appreciate both your responses and thanks for giving me a direction to start!!

That's the last straw for me.

You will notice my new screen name.

GBCCC.

??? Why did Leah leave? Anyone know?

I think maybe she got tired of being criticized for bringing up the licensing thing all the time and being considered mean. Maybe? Shrug.

Well that's a shame.

I'm still trying to figure out how leahs comments could be construed as "harsh"? She gave pretty much the same advice as Doug did.

Well, again, I don't know. But if I had to guess, I'd say it was entirely the use of capitals in the first sentence. That can be construed as shouting or aggression on the internet since there is no other body language and what not to go by. Doug's response was constructed in a more helpful and gentle sounding way even though the general information was the same.

I only notice this stuff because I used to get called harsh from forum postings all the time and I couldn't understand why neutrality was always mistaken for harshness. I worked on it a lot, though, 'cause I got tired of not really getting along with people. I'm not saying anyone else necessarily should - just that it's the route I took. So now I try to be more mindful of how I come across and phrase things in a more positive way without adding a bunch of flowery language, empty compliments, and extraneous emoticons or exclamation points. I have not, however, managed to tame the rambling.

I'm thinking this thread got "cleaned up" by a moderator because it just doesn't make sense as is.

Yeah, something is definitely a little odd, just doesn't flow.

When I checked this thread a little while ago - was it not onto 2 pages??? Now, it isn't?? Or am I imagining things? That made me wonder too about why it reads like this....

For what it's worth, nothing in this thread has changed since I first posted my original reply and if anything changed about the posts after my last reply, I wouldn't have seen it. I do believe the "dust off" comment was referring to another thread which I also happened to read by chance. That one did actually get a little tense. This one, not so much - at least as far as I saw.

I agree with one of the posts earlier that I think the all caps is what could have been taken as harsh. Other than that I think it is just information being shared, which is what this website is about. What as the other thread that got a little tense? I can't see how the comment made here would have been strong enough to make someone leave the site??