Please Help Unsure Where To Begin...
Business By Steelgoddess Updated 12 Nov 2009 , 6:21pm by Steelgoddess
I started making cakes years ago but recently started experimenting with fondant...
Id REALLY like to start a home business but i am clueless on how to start and what to charge!!
I have done about 4 cakes now (see my gallery). Im NOT trained so my cakes are not perfect but what do I do about charging??
ANY help advice would be gratefully appreciated
P.s I live in the UK
xxxxx
I think the first thing you should do is call you health department, cause they will let you know if it's leagl in your state/county. If they don't know, they can dirset you were to go. So if you can do it legally at home, call your county clerk's office, tehy will let you know if you need a a business license. Some places don't, cuase they base it off how much money you will bring in a year. Lower incomes don't require a license. Call & see about insurance. Figure out your cost & profit factors to help you figure out pticing. Come up with a contract. And since you say you new to decorating, get some dummies to practice on & build your portfolio. DO NOT sell cakes at a cheaper price cause you feel since your "new" you shouldn't charge full price. You run the risk of being know as the cheap cake lady and when it comes time to raise your prices appropiately, people will complain about the price increase and be more reluctant to pay your prices. Good Luck! 
Gosh I was typing so fast my spelling is really bad. I hope you understand what I wrote. 
eggsellent advice!!! That is the right place to start. Hello,
In the UK you need to contact your local council's Environmental Health Dept. They are usually pretty good, as they say we a very low risk. That is unless you are using fresh cream. You will need to have at least a 1 1/2 bowl sink, and ideally they like your washing machine to be in a different room, they also like you to keep a daily log of your fridge temperature. You should also contact the Food Standards Agency as they will send you out a pack called Safer Food Better Business. It's very helpful. Obviously you will need insurance and if you have a mortgage you need to tell your lender.
Pricing depends on where in the UK you are, have a look at what others are charging in your area for a similar standard. Just as a pointer, you cannot legally sell any design that has a copywrite or trademark i.e. no In the Night Garden, Thomas the Tank engine, iPod etc
HTH!
Hello,
In the UK you need to contact your local council's Environmental Health Dept. They are usually pretty good, as they say we a very low risk. That is unless you are using fresh cream. You will need to have at least a 1 1/2 bowl sink, and ideally they like your washing machine to be in a different room, they also like you to keep a daily log of your fridge temperature. You should also contact the Food Standards Agency as they will send you out a pack called Safer Food Better Business. It's very helpful. Obviously you will need insurance and if you have a mortgage you need to tell your lender.
Pricing depends on where in the UK you are, have a look at what others are charging in your area for a similar standard. Just as a pointer, you cannot legally sell any design that has a copywrite or trademark i.e. no In the Night Garden, Thomas the Tank engine, iPod etc
HTH!
I don't understand, people sell those cakes everyday...?
What are you not understanding? Are you referring to selling trade marked cahracter cakes? If thats what it is, then let me tell you, NO, you may NOT SELL trademarked characters. For example, your daughter wants a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, no problem. Someone offers you $300 to do a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, NO you can't. You can style a cake like that were they can then turn aroundand put a Strawberry Shortcake toy on their themselves, but you CAN NOT make a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake & sell it. It doesn't matter if you make one once a year or one every day. No trademarked character cakes unless you get permission first.
What are you not understanding? Are you referring to selling trade marked cahracter cakes? If thats what it is, then let me tell you, NO, you may NOT SELL trademarked characters. For example, your daughter wants a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, no problem. Someone offers you $300 to do a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, NO you can't. You can style a cake like that were they can then turn aroundand put a Strawberry Shortcake toy on their themselves, but you CAN NOT make a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake & sell it. It doesn't matter if you make one once a year or one every day. No trademarked character cakes unless you get permission first.
What I meant is I know loads of people who will make a character themed cake and sell them...
i can see where you're coming from though, its like me sewing a Strawberry cake doll and selling it right?
Are the laws in the states stricter?? If you look all over the internet people make AND sell ipod, Mario bros cakes... i doubt they got permission...
(sorry not being rude just got me thinking tis all)
EXACTLY what you said! It's like making the doll & selling it. What a great way to explain that. I will be using it again. 
And I know people sell them every day from their homes, but they are also probably selling cakes out their home illegally as well. And as far as the ipod goes, you can do an iPod, but not do the whole apple thing. Thats the copyright part. The Apple logo and name. Mario brothers is a no, no. But let me tell you. You can contact some of these places and they will allow you a one time right to use their name/character. not everyone, but some companies will. I don't think it's any stricter state side, maybe we're just made more aware of it. I'm sure it's just as illegal every where else. It seems like it is in the U.K. as well.
I did some research into this. With a lot of companies they get another company to deal with all the licences. There is even a dedicated exhibition in London every year where you can go and do the deals.
Just as an example, to make anything with a Chelsea FC logo, we would have to pay £10,000 per year plus 8% of all sales that included that logo. They would also have to check whether you could keep the standard they require in reproducing the image, if they don't think you can it doesn't matter how much money you are willing to pay them!
It's BIG business, just think how much more perfume is sold just because some celeb puts their name on it. We've been very lucky and had some very high profile customers and they have let us use their logo but only for what we were making them, and even then there was lots of legal stuff to deal with. No one is saying you can't do it, just you can't do it legally and you need to know the risks and make a choice.
I suppose you could sell a trademarked item... providing you are willing to get a multi-thousand$ (or pound) fine and/or serve jail time for doing so.
Many people do illegal things, it's their risk - they do the crime, they do the time.
I'm not willing to do either.
What are you not understanding? Are you referring to selling trade marked cahracter cakes? If thats what it is, then let me tell you, NO, you may NOT SELL trademarked characters. For example, your daughter wants a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, no problem. Someone offers you $300 to do a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake, NO you can't. You can style a cake like that were they can then turn aroundand put a Strawberry Shortcake toy on their themselves, but you CAN NOT make a Strawberry Shortcake themed cake & sell it. It doesn't matter if you make one once a year or one every day. No trademarked character cakes unless you get permission first.
Not totally correct. If you purchase a kit from Decopac or Bakery Crafts you CAN sell it.
I think this is a bit ott...
Im making a cake for a lady I know and she is offering to pay for it... I am NOT a large store...
I know over 5 different people who do the same thing in the uk (by know not all by person just generally companies).
Im not copying a movie, or a cd and selling it im making a childs birthday cake and a few of you need to calm down!!
If I was selling to the general public in a shop it would be a different case!
I think this is a bit ott...
Im making a cake for a lady I know and she is offering to pay for it... I am NOT a large store...
I know over 5 different people who do the same thing in the uk (by know not all by person just generally companies).
Im not copying a movie, or a cd and selling it im making a childs birthday cake and a few of you need to calm down!!
If I was selling to the general public in a shop it would be a different case!
It doesn't matter who you're selling it to or how big a business you are, if you sell a copyrighted image it's illegal if you don't have licensing permission.
Other people doing it isn't a justification, I tell my kids that everday!
I think this is a bit ott...
Im making a cake for a lady I know and she is offering to pay for it... I am NOT a large store...
I know over 5 different people who do the same thing in the uk (by know not all by person just generally companies).
Im not copying a movie, or a cd and selling it im making a childs birthday cake and a few of you need to calm down!!
If I was selling to the general public in a shop it would be a different case!
It doesn't matter who you're selling it to or how big a business you are, if you sell a copyrighted image it's illegal if you don't have licensing permission.
Other people doing it isn't a justification, I tell my kids that everday!
ok
I think this is a bit ott...
Im making a cake for a lady I know and she is offering to pay for it... I am NOT a large store...
I know over 5 different people who do the same thing in the uk (by know not all by person just generally companies).
Im not copying a movie, or a cd and selling it im making a childs birthday cake and a few of you need to calm down!!
If I was selling to the general public in a shop it would be a different case!
It doesn't matter who you're selling it to or how big a business you are, if you sell a copyrighted image it's illegal if you don't have licensing permission.
Other people doing it isn't a justification, I tell my kids that everday!
ok
You could do a cake in the colors of whatever it is she wants, then she could put a little toy on it ro something like that. As long as you're not selling the toy or copying the images that are copyrighted you'd be fine.
We're NOT trying to pick on you, really...
We want you safe and legal. 
Companies like Disney actually have people go around to little cake places and try to buy a Disney cake. If they get it, they sue.
If the police did it, it would be entrapment; but it is perfectly legal for companies to do that to make certain no one uses their trademarks.
Not a lie, not an exaggeration - the truth.
sorry, rereading my comments I sound a little rude and I apoligise...
Im going to make the cake will be very weary of this in the future, i dont want to be the illegal cake seller...
Im sure it would be ok to do something similar, im not going to have THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE on it or anything, (knowing my modeling skills it prob wont look like thomas either...)
Fwiw the Ipod and ITNG cake I did were not sold they were for free...
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