Hi all! 

So I’m a decorator in a big chain grocery store. I make all of our display cake and I usually do them in buttercream since the royal icing never wants to play nice. I’ve had an ongoing issue that after I’ve let the buttercream harden and placed them on display, customers will press their fingers into the cake (leaving an indent) or they will pick at the icing with their nails. Is there anything I can spray onto the cakes to garden them and prevent this from happening? I have a sign that says “do not touch” but people don’t care. I don’t want them to keep getting ruined less than a week after I put them up. Thank you in advance! 

I don't know of any way you can get it to harden quickly to the point that rude customers could not damage it.  I have heard of people decorating display cakes with dry wall mud / spackling.  By golly, it would dry hard and how funny would it be to see some jerk try to eat it, lol!

I suggest setting the cake out of reach.

I have used spackling in the past and 2 things I remember about it.  Yes, it dried very hard to prevent what you are experiencing but it has an off smell and a slightly grayish color.  It is thick and hard to pipe with.  I used to thin it some w/water. 

https://www.cakecentral.com/gallery/i/1330216/hearts-aflutter   If I remember right this is one I did w/spackling.

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I’d probably do a 50/50 buttercream and royal icing. Easier to cover, smooth and pipe. And the royal icing will help keep your icing rock hard. Therefore preventing those nasty finger marks.

This made me laugh.  There was a display wedding cake at the bakery in our Alaska town that was there for almost the whole 40 years that I lived there.

I'm guessing that it was made with spackle.  It was yellowed and dusty. 

MBalaska

Ooo, yuk 40 years. That’s pretty gross!!  My first job I worked above a well known bakery. My boss and I would pop in at lunchtime to get baps or cookies.  I remember well the wedding cakes in the window and on display on high shelves behind the counter. Don’t know if the cakes were ever changed up. 

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I took lessons at a shop that *never!* changed or cleaned their displays :(  Yes, I know so well that yellow, dusty look.

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you need to put them where they can't touch them -- you could go to the hardware store and get a few sheets of thin plexiglas -- using some nice wide clear tape you can neatly tape two of them together and they will stand on your counter and protect the cakes -- remove the "don't touch" sign it's an invitation -- maybe the store could have some shelves put up -- 

you could add some corn starch or milk powder to your buttercream recipe and see if that helps some