Charge For Private Lessons?

Business By kakeladi Updated 9 Sep 2014 , 10:07pm by kakeladi

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kakeladi Posted 8 Sep 2014 , 12:15am
post #1 of 16

Not sure if this is the right section for this ?, but I've been asked to teach someone privately.  Rather than have her come to me I find it easier to go to her - a drive of over 1 hr.  This was any equipment needed is at hand since I don't have much left anymore.

Sooooooo how much would you charge for a 2 or 3 hour session?  She is paying for my gas.

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Rfisher Posted 8 Sep 2014 , 12:49am
post #2 of 16

AWhat's your time worth? Only you can answer that. What was an average hourly wage for you when you were working? That's a good starting point. Are you teaching very basic skills or something specific, detailed, and custom? Are you teaching them on the finished product they need to have done? Are you a good teacher, is it something you enjoy? Is this a one time favor type deal, or something you are maybe looking to repeat? Skip the gas payment, and include that transit time in what you are paid. Getting "gas money"short changes you. Also, be aware of the possibility part of that 2-3 hour session may be taken up with you familiarizing yourself with the customers set up, space, tools and such or lack of. Best of luck to you. I hope it turns out well for you and you find it fulfilling.

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-K8memphis Posted 8 Sep 2014 , 1:34am
post #3 of 16

how about $25 - $30 an hour -- plus the transportation --

 

my quickbooks advisor charged me all her travel time-- just started the meter from wherever she was before she got to my place -- and she was more than thirty bucks an hour too -- i didn't call her out too often -- i liked the remote login thing best -- hahaha

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kakeladi Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 2:35am
post #4 of 16

Thanks for your insight.

........What was an average hourly wage for you when you were working?.......

Hey, it's been some 15-20 yrs since I worked!

.........teaching very basic skills or something specific, detailed, and custom? Are you teaching them on the finished product they need to have done........

It will be specific, detailed and done to finish a cake she wants to give to a friend for b'day.

.........you a good teacher, is it something you enjoy?........

Yes,  I tend to think I'm a good teacher :)  I taught Wilton for some 8 yrs. then wrote & taught my own classes.

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icer101 Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 2:57am
post #5 of 16

kakeladi, as much advice as I have seen you give on this site, ever since I have been on here, you  certainly can charge 30 dollars an hour plus your gas. I have a past student(taught wilton 8 yrs. also up until june of this year. She wants to come here and let me teach her. I haven,t given her an answer yet. Ive been baking and decorating 21 yrs. and have spent thousands of dollars on learning from the best. I am sure you have too. good luck. hope all goes well.

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-K8memphis Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 3:19am
post #6 of 16

AAs an hourly wage decorator i think i got $16 an hour or was it $14 -- but i think i got the delivery fee too $35 a pop at that time for each of my deliveries -- maybe factoring in the delivery fee it went to $16 an hour -- can't remember it's been quite a while ago for me too -- somewhere around there though --

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Rfisher Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 4:50am
post #7 of 16

ASo..alrighty then. This thread should read just like any other 'what do I charge question' on here. You should either do it for free, or charge it so it is more than worth your time/while. Free advice ( or YouTube for that matter) is one thing. Educating yourself on a craft is an investment. Hands on, private tutoring is a luxury. This person, if they truly want to pay you, should in no way expect to get this cake done for cheaper than what they should pay market value from a bakery. To me, getting $7.95 for gas, possibly getting served lunch, and getting handed $20 " for my time" would be no more than a slap in the face. Not every one is a good teacher. One normally does not know until they try. That is why I brought it up.

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Snowflakebunny23 Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 2:00pm
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You have to look at it in the sense of what are you not being permitted to do as well.  I price for training courses all the time for my day job and while it is in a very different field, the concept is the same.

 

You have to charge travel time (it is time you could be working).  You should also charge any prep time (time you spend to prepare - emails, working out schedules, shopping for stuff, writing instructions).  That is all on top of your actual costs (remember as well that fuel is not your only cost - you have to charge for wear and tear to the car, make sure your insurance covers what you are doing and pay any extras).  I would always add a percentage extra (around 15-25%) for incidentals and over-run if you are really getting into it.  You also probably want to be making a profit as opposed to just covering a wage.  A cake shop near where I used to live offered private tuition and that was nearly £300 for a half day and nearly £600 for a full day...and you still had to go to them.

 

If you are talking them through making a cake as well for an event, I can imagine that you could even charge double as you are in some ways shooting yourself in the foot and loosing an order potentially...

 

If you can do it, it sounds like a great opportunity but I would be very wary of under charging.  For one, she may come back and want more and she may spread the word around that you do it as well...could be good but less so if you are only charging 20 dollars an hour!  Personally, I would not expect change from £100 per hour from someone to come to my home and teach me...

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-K8memphis Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 5:06pm
post #9 of 16

lynne, maybe i lowballed this -- idk -- hope you get more than i said

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-K8memphis Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 5:19pm
post #10 of 16

but a few years ago, i paid $250 for an all day class with bronwen webber and that came out to $30 an hour give or take -- it was a full classroom of people though and she is much more expensive now but she provided everything including two additional teachers -- and we all walked out with a 2-foot tall sculpture that at that time she would have charged $850 for in her shop -- so maybe i just need to adjust for cola aka cost of living -- 

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cakesbycathy Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 5:37pm
post #11 of 16

I have to pay $50 an hour for private music lessons for my kids.  Plus, I take them to the lesson. 

 

IMO that's not unreasonable for private decorating lessons either.  Plus charge for your travel expenses.

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AZCouture Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 6:17pm
post #12 of 16

AI recently held a cake decorating "class", I say "class" because it was basically letting six little girls go at their own little four inch cake with cutters, spray can color, sprinkles, and edible markers for a couple hours. I bought a few packs of markers and some premade bright colored royal icing blossoms, and a few cans of spray color. Iced six individual four inch cakes, covered in fondant, and boxed them up in cute windowed boxes. Packed up all my stuff, went to the birthday girls' home, and basically put a big cheesy grin on for two hours while they decorated their cakes. I also took a three tier, 4, 6, 8, iced simply in my watercolor technique for the family to stick candles on later and enjoy.

I charged a grand, and that wasn't teaching trade secrets to potential competitors or anything difficult. Soooo, teaching highly skilled techniques, things you've honed for years, and generally just being a highly skilled professional, certainly merits a good chunk of change.

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AZCouture Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 6:19pm
post #13 of 16

AOh, and got to eat the most incredible lunch I could recall in years.

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-K8memphis Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 7:00pm
post #14 of 16

ASo less the supplies, the six cakes and tier cake how much does that come out per hour?

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-K8memphis Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 7:49pm
post #15 of 16

my bad -- i remember now that i once priced it out for myself although i've never hung out my shingle at this price point-- i determined $75 an hour for two students and $100 an hour for one -- took me a while to find this dusty old file in my vintage cranium -- so to add to that maybe $65 an hour for three --

 

somewhere between zero and a million -- big help i am  :lol: 

 

i'm just excited for you that you've got some classes!

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kakeladi Posted 9 Sep 2014 , 10:07pm
post #16 of 16

Thanks everyone for your help.  I'm leaning towards $30 p/hr plus the gas - these days that is about $25-30 per trip.

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