If you are an artisan baker, or pastry chef, there is a good chance that this choice of profession was dictated by a strong taste for desserts and the joy they bring to others. The happiness brought by a beautiful cake to a couple on their wedding day or to a child on their birthday is an integral part of what makes this profession rewarding.
However, even if being complimented for your work is nice, it is not enough: you can also make a good living from it. Here are some things to consider when setting your prices if you are new to baking.
What to Consider When Estimating the Selling Price of a Cake
Let’s say you’ve just had a loyal customer on the phone who wants you to make their wedding cake. While you normally only sell pies, this person has been a customer for years and is curious if you would be willing to try your hand at a cake for their wedding day.
Bakery products rely on variable prices because they do not all require the same ingredients, the same expertise or the same manufacturing time. Before you agree on the price of a wedding cake, here are a few things to consider.
If you’ve been to several weddings, you know that cakes can range from one tier to several, for example, and that it depends on the number of guests. Customers looking for wedding cakes will often give you the number of guests they are expecting to determine the number of tiers needed .
Once you have determined the number of floors, you need to set a base cost for each floor. Although there are other things to consider before setting a final price, starting with a standard price for a single tier cake, a double tier cake, etc. will guarantee a base price, regardless of its complexity.
You will find a quick guide to sizes based on the number of shares on Zola.com . Many pastry chefs start by pricing their cakes based on the number of slices, then add to this base price the decoration desired by the customer as well as the difficulty factor.
When you take an order for a cake, you will likely already have examples or designs of cakes to offer. For example, chocolate cake, vanilla cake, marble cake, fruit cake… but what if a customer asks you for something different, such as a peach and cream cake? Even trickier, what if peaches weren’t in season?
This will affect your costs. Icing can also have a significant impact on the cost of a cake. Traditional buttercream is often less expensive than a full marzipan decoration.
Basic ingredients. These are ingredients such as flour, sugar, vanilla and eggs that you will use in all your cakes. You can buy them in bulk, and their cost should be standard for each of your cake orders. So, for example, if your monthly supply of base ingredients costs you $500 and you plan to bake 20 cakes that month, the minimum amount you should include for
Specific ingredients. This is where the more sophisticated varieties of cakes come into play. If you are creating a three-tier cake with fresh berries between each layer, add the cost of fresh fruit to that cake. Make a note of all the specific ingredients you use for each cake. Even if you have these ingredients in your stockpile, since they are not base ingredients, they cost more and you should charge more for them.
Once you’ve determined how much the cake will cost based on the ingredients and its size, it’s time to estimate what you’ll need to do to achieve the design. If you have ever been interested in pastry decoration, you probably know that some pastry chefs are capable of feats! When you add chocolate sculptures, sugar decorations or marzipan decorations, the cost of your cake can quickly increase.
Some people are so excited about getting the perfect cake for their event that they wildly underestimate the time and skill required. Only you (and maybe an assistant, if you’re lucky) will know exactly how much time and effort will go into making their dream cake.
If your client balks at the amount you charge them, they probably don’t understand how much time and effort goes into the requested design. It is important to be firm on the cost of your work; if you accept a lower price, you will probably be tempted to save money – and ultimately produce a lower quality cake.
Just as you need to consider the skills required to make this cake, it’s important to consider the time it will take to bring it to life. So back to that phone call.
for their wedding next weekend . Sure, it won’t take you more than a week to make the cake, but you have five other large pies to make and the client has given you little
Before politely refusing to make this cake on such short notice, think about the price that would be correct given the deadlines. Of course, if there is absolutely no way to achieve this, you will have to refuse. But in some cases, you may be able to discuss with your client how much additional workload is in the short term and find common ground.
