Wedding Cake Prices
Weddingstar Stylish Embrace Cake Topper
20" 3 TIER FAKE WEDDING CAKE Fake FoodHortense B. Hewitt Wedding Accessories Cake Top, Seaside Jewels, 6-Inch
Weddingstar Stylish Embrace Cake Topper
20" 3 TIER FAKE WEDDING CAKE Fake Food
Hortense B. Hewitt Wedding Accessories Cake Top, Seaside Jewels, 6-Inch
Weddingstar Kissing Couple Cake Topper
How to Price Your Wedding Cakes
By Lynda Moultry Belcher
Weddings are big business and if you have a wedding-related talent, there is no reason not to cash in. Wedding cakes, in particular, require a certain type of skill -- you must know how to make the cake tasty and attractive. When setting up a wedding-cake company, pricing is just one consideration; however, it may be among the most important, as profit ensures continued success.
Instructions
1. Research other wedding cake providers in your community. Get a range of what other bakeries are charging for wedding cakes of various sizes. This gives you a range of what you can offer; be competitive with your pricing and try to fall within the same range as other bakeries in your area. If you charge too much compared to other wedding-cake businesses, you are not likely to sell many cakes. According to Entrepreneur.com, wedding cakes can run a bride as much as $500 or more, as of December 2010.
2. Factor in the cost of materials and tools used to bake the cake. There is no particular industry standard in terms of the cost of materials. This is because wedding cakes are about more than just the materials used to make them; when pricing your creations, determine what your time is worth. Determine the annual salary for a professional baker in your area. Then, plug that information into a time-management calculator to get an hourly rate. Adjust and incorporate your hourly rate accordingly. Once your rate is set, you can apply it consistently to all of your orders.
3. Include the cost of your overhead when pricing your wedding cakes. The time it takes to bake the cake varies according to the cake size and type of decoration. Baking time is generally not more than a few hours; however, intricate designs can add significantly to the total time it takes to make a wedding cake -- up to 30 hours or more for a two-tiered wedding cake. During this time, you are using your electricity, your dishes and baking pans and possibly the assistance of another person to bake your cakes. Include these expenses in the cost of making your cakes. If you offer delivery, charge for the service.
4. Set a price per serving of cake instead of by the entire cake. According to Cakeboss.com, there are two standard cutting guidelines in the wedding cake industry: Wilton's and Earlene's. Both recommend cutting slices about 1-inch wide, 2 inches in length and two layers high. With this in mind, you can then set a price per slice, drawing from average market rates. According to CostHelper, low-end offerings include small-tiered cakes done in simple chocolate or vanilla flavors in a sheet-design priced at an average of $1.50 per slice. Two- to three-tiered cakes -- with slightly more flavor options and a small amount of fondant -- may run about $5 per slice. A high-end cake with several tiers and more elaborate fondant may run $10 per slice. Additional fondants and fillings may add $1 per slice, and a cake-cutting fee may add $1 to the per-slice cost. All prices are as of December 2010.