How much would you pay for a cake?

We often hear our clients questioning how a cake is priced. Why do independent bakers charge £35 for a chocolate cake when supermarkets only charge £10? Why are wedding cakes over £200? Many of our bakers get faced with this question all the time so we thought we’d highlight a few things that contribute to the pricing of a cake.

1. Ingredients

While factories have large amounts of storage and can buy the core ingredients (flour, eggs, butter, sugar) in bulk, independent bakers don’t have the luxury of buying huge bags/boxes as they cannot guarantee that all their ingredients will be used before the expiry, nor do they have the space to store these ingredients (imagine kilos of flour and sugar in your kitchen).

Better-quality ingredients mean a better-quality cake! Sure, to keep prices down, one can use margarine instead of good quality butter, one can use cheap chocolate instead of good quality Belgian chocolate but our bakers want the best for our customers and that means the finest ingredients, which does come at a premium.

2. Time & Labour  

This is what most customers overlook and forget to price in. Our bakers pride themselves on making completely bespoke cakes, so each cake is carefully designed, baked and decorated. All of which takes time. A large elaborate wedding cake will take weeks if not months of planning as different requirements for the cake may require different tools, techniques, ingredients etc. Sugar flowers are extremely time consuming to make so having a floral cascade on a 3 to 4 tier cake can take a few days to prepare! 

3. Experience

Within our community, different bakers will price their hourly rate differently, based on their level of experience and professional certification. A more senior baker, one with years of experience will likely charge more than one who is new to the industry. Just look at your hairdressers, you pay almost double for a senior stylist compared to a trainee! You are paying for the years and years of experience and experimentation in recipes honed into the baker’s craftsmanship which makes their work that much more unique and valuable.

4. Operating Costs

Just like any other, baking businesses also have overhead costs. Rent, electricity, gas, water, mixers, equipment and maintenance all need to be covered in order for a baker to sustain their ongoing business.

5. Packaging and Delivery

After spending hours and hours preparing, constructing and decorating a cake, the last bit is the presentation to the client, the “wow” moment when the cake is revealed. Cakes are extremely delicate products so it’s a baker’s nightmare to have the product of days of work to be ruined by the indelicate hands of a courier! Bakers trust themselves and opt to deliver personally to ensure their pieces of art are shipped to the customer in pristine condition. This means more time to be covered, petrol and even car hire!

The cake industry is a competitive one and while not every client will understand the pricing of a bespoke cake, we aim to provide the best quality cakes at the best possible prices that is fair to our bakers as well as our customers. 

Are you planning a special occasion and looking to order a bespoke cake? Visit our website to create your bake!