My apologies if this has been asked before. I tried to research, and I found a lot of "how much do you charge", but nothing really covered the percentage of reusable supplies. 

When pricing out my desserts, I have currently been taking 1/5th (20%) of the supply to factor into my total supply cost. For example, if a cake utilizes a cake pan that costs a total of $10.00, I have been inserting $2.00 in to my calculations.

It seems a bit high to me, but I was wondering what amount others factor in for these items to come up with their "total cost". Since these items can be reused many times, and are not disposable (one time use), I haven't been able to come up with a industry standard for these supplies.

I appreciate your help!

Hey Mfc11,

I don't include the cost of supplies like cake pans, spatula's, cooling racks, etc., when pricing out my desserts.  For me, that is included in "operating expenses" under "durable supplies".  In other words, you can deduct that as a one time expense when you pay your taxes - they add up so keep those receipts and you will be glad when tax time comes around.

For pricing out dessert cost, I include cake ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, oil, baking soda, eggs, milk, etc.), cake decorations (fondant, ganache, sprinkles, edible images, etc.), packaging (cake boards, support system, boxes, etc.), overhead (insurance, utilities, etc.), and hourly wage.  I may be forgetting something, others can chime in.   Also, you can hold aside 10% - 20%, or even more, so that you are not overwhelmed when tax time comes around.  In the beginning, it may not matter because there is generally an overall loss, but when your business starts making a decent profit, you will be happy to have that money set aside.

I know there are other discussions on this topic, because I learned about it here at Cake Central - I just can't remember where it is.  Hope this helps.

Nancy

Thank you so much for your help Nancy, it is greatly appreciated! That makes much more sense, than including a percentage of those supplies! I think I was getting so hyper focused...I was about to figure out the kwH on my equipment haha!

Thank you again!

That's funny ... but I can definitely relate.  When you're in the middle of setting everything up, that's all you think about and nothing seems beyond consideration.  

Glad I could help.