HOW TO ACCURATELY PRICE YOUR CAKES || Friday Fixes Episode 2

[@doloresjonusas2947]

Great information - I also add the cost of cake boards, ribbons, boxes, etc. That is definitely part of a baker's out of pocket cost. Be proud of your work - if someone tells you "But, it's only cake" - explain that when they hire you, they are not just hiring someone who makes a box cake, they are hiring a professional who has been trained, either formally or through experience, and who will make their event much sweeter. When you put it that way... customers usually backtrack and agree to give you the order. If they don't - well... there's always the grocery store cakes.

[@JaniesSweets]

Absolutely! Well put!

[@genesisfernandez7481]

agree 100%

[@DoubleDHomestead]

Also cost of running the oven.

[@rosannepaige2621]

I also add an additional $10 - $20 for my gas and/or for the time I may have used going out to pick up special requested items to make cake.

[@jessecherney2801]

I know someone who works at a grocery store bakery and everything arrives frozen and the frosting is pre made. great for sheet cakes but as far as the wow factor people should understand that takes time and skill.

[@mercedesaschenbrenner9352]

What a smart lady! I don’t bake cakes for business but this is very important info! May the Lord bless your business for sharing your knowledge with generosity! 👍🙏

[@JaniesSweets]

Aww that's very sweet of you thank you! 😘

[@Elubial]

True a lot of people are so selfish with their information. Thanks so much for helping others.

[@mcomeslast]

Thank you! This is also extremely helpful for those relatives that don’t understand why you can’t “ just whip something up” and why ingredients aren’t free.

[@JaniesSweets]

mcomeslast lolol I swear people think we have a magic wand that we just wave and proof here's a cake

[@mcomeslast]

Lol! Yeah, the cake fairy didn’t just drop this off last night. Put the numbers in front of them, different story.

[@JaniesSweets]

mcomeslast lolol yup

[@Phyllistinegm]

Don't forget your ACTUAL SHOPPING and STUDYING times!

[@jessicapeyton5444]

It takes me days if not weeks to conceptualize the cake gather the recipes and plan how to do it. My family usually gives me an idea of the flavors they want (they can sometimes be unconventional) and then I have to create something edible out of it 😭😂 But if I started a business I would probably have a set of flavors I would plan beforehand.

[@leslielelaind4997]

Amazing as usual...I’m a 44yro slow learner🤷🏽‍♀️ so I need to watch this about ten before it clicks, but it did make sense and need to brush up on my computer skills...(embarrassing), however I’m determined to share my creations with the world so I’ll just keep praying and letting God open doors like he did with you👏🏽

[@JaniesSweets]

Amen! Absolutely!! God will open MANY doors for you 😘 keep on pushing and you got this!

[@genesisfernandez7481]

I love this so much! I've been struggling with pricing my work for so long that it has become crippling and doesn't give me room to grow my business. This is great information! and to those of you who feel like the price is too big or too small-- simply make modifications to the hourly wage segment that feels right for you. it becomes fair for you and fair for your customer :)

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching and your kind words 😘 I'm really glad you found it helpful

[@greetingsfellowfoodfreaks1262]

Thank you so much! I'm horrible at costing and keeping track of costs in general! I just purchased your costing download and am excited to finally get organized!

[@JaniesSweets]

Woohoo!!! I’m so excited you were able to find it helpful 😊 good luck getting organized now 😉

[@thecrayolaeffect7]

Literally what I’m doing right now. I’m kind of guesstimating pricing based on my experience in a formal bakery but since I make mine from scratch I’m starting to price and measure everything as I make orders (cause it can be expensive to do when baking just for fun). There were times when I spent so much money and made almost no profit. Thankfully it’s starting to turn around and business is picking up regardless of the costs for inventory and labor. Thank you for sharing the excel document. I’ve just been adding notes on my phone but this motivates me to organize my notes formally for my eventual brick and mortar location 😊

[@JaniesSweets]

Awesome!! I'm so glad this was helpful to you... it does take time to get it down to a science but once you do it's pretty much smooth sailing from there 💃🏾

[@anne-mariemalan4862]

Hi there from South Africa. Just came across your channel when you appeared on Sweet Dreams Cake Shoppe. Going to be following you, but just want to say you are beautiful and your presentation is great. Blessings 💜

[@marisarazo5300]

I like the clarity of your explanation , thank you;

[@gourmetsoulfoodsdelightful807]

I Didn't Have A Clear Way To Even Start Pricing My Food & Desserts. You Give Me A Lot Of Information To Go On. This Is So Helpful For Me, I Truly Do Appreciate It. Thankyou So Much. ❤😊

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘 I'm glad you found it helpful

[@KingdomLifeDec]

You dont have enough subscribers for all you do and inform! Thank you! I saved one of your videos about 2 motnhs ago, just came back to watching it BECAUSE PRICING IS HARD THING. ANYWHO! THANK YOU.

[@JaniesSweets]

Hahaha aww ☺️ thank youuuuu 🙏 and yay I’m glad you’re finding the videos helpful 😊

[@junehelus2299]

not to forget clean up time as well the supplies...hot water, dw liquids, paper towels, laundry of kitchen towel, all those little details add up...and are as important as the teaspoons of flavor extracts...( which some can be very costly ), for many years I have baked for family... birthdays, special occassions, love doing it, never asking nor wanting, never accepting a penny, and reading all the comments...got me to thinking...wow..it would be difficult to establish a fair cost, I fear I would go broke...and the first over looked expense I would have had...would have been clean up expenses. My hats off to all... sharing in the spirit of helping one another to succeed!!!!

[@JaniesSweets]

It can get super confusing I feel you 🤪 but I add these to my costs of running the business instead… each month I put money aside from my income and I allocate to that.. check out my what you should pay yourself video…

[@tpsweetshop]

Hello! My Tiera Pryor, I own a bakery at home, Confection Perfection Bakeshop and I just Subscribed to your channel! This video is so helpful because I knew I wasn't the only one with this problem with pricing. The only thing I'm trying to do is to grow my business and I'm going to watch your video on how to do so. Thanks again for this helpful video!

[@t.linellehuston9814]

Your bakery name is AMAZING! I’m giddy just saying it!

[@deannajohnson3933]

That's awesome. Very easy to work out. I'll have to come back to this video later on. Awesome, love this.

[@JaniesSweets]

Woohoo!!! Awesome I’m so happy you found it helpful 😊

[@kimberlymarshall5260]

You did well and I believe this way is best because you had to put everything in to determine the cost yes it take some time but it's the best thing to do thank you .

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching!!!☺️

[@svetlanavukolic8242]

Great tip you shared. It totally makes sense for a basic. My experience is the most costful part of the cake is the icing and definitely the decoration which takes so much time. And time is money :) Eggs, flour, sugar and similar inhredients are really minor part in comparison to the price of real butter and good quality chocolate. Also fondant is not cheap in my country. To get the smoothest and easiest to work with I always buy it. And with all the paint, glitter, shimmer, satin ribbons, cardboards, support straws, and so much more....it comes to a big amount that customers don't understand. Everybody should try to make just 1 3-tiered cake. I bet they,ll change their mind :) Thanks for your help, have a nice day and looking forward to your next video and all the previous ones as I just stumbled into your channel and was lucky to have seen this one as my first :)

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘 and yes you are right if people really knew what went into it they'd be surprised lolol

[@ericnjende7158]

Thank you so much,this helped me a lot especially now I've my own Calculator.🙏🙏

[@shravyakoppala5113]

You have no idea how much this video helped me. I was going crazy right now. I was asking people how much should I charge for my cakes and chocolates and everyone said different things to me. It was very confusing. But you totally made everything clear to me. Thank you so much..

[@JaniesSweets]

shravya koppala you're very welcome love 😘 I definitely learned the hard way not to do that anymore lolllol... I'm glad I could help! Good luck on your cake journey 🤗😘

[@robertaterry4965]

Girl, you got it goin' on. Best pricing calculator I've ever seen. Thank you for sharing.

[@JaniesSweets]

Roberta Terry thank you love 😘 I'm glad you found it helpful 🤗

[@pounksreyrichardson4442]

Do we pay for the calculator

[@claralaps]

I'm planning to do the same way but I'm having a hard time figuring out with my calculations and now you made it easier for me! Thankies

[@JaniesSweets]

Woop woop 🙌 I’m so glad u found it helpful!

[@irsyaddilsyukri3938]

Thank you for your extremely useful video. Through this video you have convince my sister that her art cake with beautiful icing is deserve for more expensive than that she usually sells. Thank you

[@JaniesSweets]

Awesome!!! That's what I like to hear

[@rosanorman7244]

Thank you very much for your video. I haven’t have anyone explained it as well as you did. Great job!!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Yayyy so glad you enjoyed it!!

[@mykrazylilstuffannie]

Oh my gosh.. this video was so helpful.. I'm planning to set a home bakery business next year but I figured I should have at least the basic knowledge of what to know and expect.. this wasn't on my list until I saw your video... So smart..

[@JaniesSweets]

I’m so happy you found it helpful 🥰 good luck on your business

[@greenlifegardenhomediy3414]

Hi there! I love your knowledge on this topic. In regards to ingredients cost, are you entering the total amount for the cost of say eggs? Or are you calculating what it would cost to use 2 eggs out of a dozen?

[@Minxisphinx]

What a fantastic video! Thank you so much for sharing your process!

[@DS-lp1te]

Thank you so much! I'm so grateful for you for posting this! Amazing video. You did a whole excel page.

[@JaniesSweets]

You’re welcome 😊 I’m glad you liked it

[@naturalista1017]

You are a life saver. I can’t thank you enough. I am just starting out in the cake business. This is valuable information. Thanks

[@JaniesSweets]

You're welcome 😘 thank you for watching

[@rachelw.7453]

Absolute great information on pricing and your spreadsheet is extremely helpful. I'm so glad I came across your channel. I've recently started baking and have been feeling that my cake pricing is a bit high & could be part of the reason why I don't get as many sales on the larger cakes & sell mostly minis. I did want to know if you also factor inflation when ingredient prices increase?

[@Racine85]

you were able to download the spreadsheet?

[@505giraffe]

Just found your channel. I’m just starting out. Thank you for your videos, really helpful.

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching them 😊 I’m glad your enjoying

[@faithcraig9195]

Thank you. This was very helpful

[@KelPrazeres]

Thank you for this video! Pricing is always an issue for me. My God! It is so hard! I often used to low my price because I wasn't so confident, you know? And no matter what they always think it is overpriced. That's life, right?! Now I know better! Haha And I love doing what I do. Anyway. Thanks again. I am loving your videos.

[@JaniesSweets]

Raquel Prazeres you're welcome hun... I'm going to post s part 2 tonight that addresses what you are talking about so stay tuned

[@mikhail114]

Great tips! I used to make cakes and this would have been so helpful. Now i make handmade cards so I’m going to try to work with this formula for that. Thanks for sharing.

[@JaniesSweets]

mikhail114 awesome! The good thing about the calculator is you can honestly use it for ANYTHING and it will work... 🤗 I'm glad you found it helpful...

[@Cher64Liv]

I started off doing a spread sheet so this video just confirmed it for me, thank you. Very detailed and helpful. New subbie!

[@JaniesSweets]

Cher64Liv 😘😘 thank you for watching

[@Stantalentz]

Wowww you are an angel for sharing your wisdom thank you!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Awww thank you for watching 😘

[@JoJo-xb9fv]

Hi Janie Thanks for sharing. Great video!!! Could you do a part two to this video, listing more ingredients, for a vanilla sponge or chocolate cake made from scratch? Thx

[@JaniesSweets]

Jo G hey love thanks for the compliment 😘😘 that would be a bit hard to do given that every recipe is sooo different.... But you really would use the same concept... Let's take flour for example... Let's say you have a bag of flour that has 20 cups of flour and you paid 20$ for it... if for you're recipe you use 2 cups of flour you already know that it cost you 2$ to make a batch... you kinda just use the math to say ok if 20 cups cost 20$ 1 cup cost 1$ so if I need 2 cups it will be 2$... that's how I do it for every ingredient... I hope that helped 😘

[@JoJo-xb9fv]

Hi Janie Thanks for getting back, to me. I understand how to calculate the cost, for the flour and sugar, but I'm having problems, working out the cost, for Vanilla extract, or baking soda. This is measured by spoons. Much appreciated :)

[@JaniesSweets]

Jo G I see what you mean... It's for the ingredients that you use so little of right? I actually calculate it the same. Like my vanilla for example is super expensive cuz it's imported and I use 2 tablespoons per batch... I look to see how many fluid ounces are in the bottle, see how much the bottle costs n divide it that way... I know that 1 table spoon is 0.5 fluid ounces and so I do the math that way... I really broke it down to the very last drop of ingredients I used... It's extremely tedious and you may need to convert some things from grams to ounces or from cups to grams etc... But that's how I did it... i have some things on my ingredient list that only cost me 8cents but i add it there because i want to be super accurate... then once you do it for one batch it's now just a matter of multiplying it from there... now that's if you want to be accurate to the T. You can also just round which I did at 1st... example if something cost me 75 cents I may just put down 1$ ... It's up to you and how accurate you want to get... But to answer your question I do the exact same thing for every single ingredient, from the eggs to the cake board, to the milk to the water (EVERYTHING) i just see how much comes in a packaging, how much dud the packaging cost then how much of it i use to make a batch and figure out the price that way... things that are irrelevant you may choose to leave out like if you paid 1$ for a huge box of salt n you use a pinch of salt there's no need to add that in... But you'll have to decide for yourself what's relevent and what's not you see... for me like I said vanilla is super expensive so I spend the time to factor in that cost but salt on the other hand is not so I don't include that in my cost breakdown... I hope that helped if anything let me know 😁😁

[@charisewilliams4006]

This was SUPER helpful! Thank you!

[@JaniesSweets]

I’m glad you found it helpful 😘

[@maryamlabnotes]

Thank you soo much Jenie. I'm a newbie in baking business. before this im baking as a hobby only. This really help me a lot.

[@JaniesSweets]

Maryam Syahidah Azalan thank you for watching 😘 I'm glad it was helpful to you!

[@whitehotmind]

You are such a darling for providing this tool! Thank you so much!! Will definitely be using it! May God continue to bless you and your business :)

[@JaniesSweets]

Thabk you for watching! 😘 God bless you too 🤗

[@poeticbeauty7]

You’re amazing! Thank you for sharing this! I am definitely planning on purchasing your PDF!

[@JaniesSweets]

poeticbeauty7 awww you’re so sweet thank you so much!

[@tiffanyk768]

This is fantastic! You made this so easy. Thank you!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘

[@mimissweetandsavorylife3294]

This was phenomenal information! Today is the day I’d decided to try my hand at making money doing this. Since I deal with Scleroderma and other rare autoimmune diseases, along with chronic fatigue, I feel like my wage should be lower since things take me longer than healthier folks. We use 5 times more energy to do the same tasks as others. Not sure what my wage should be.

[@Wendy_Tang]

Hi Janie! Thanks for your sharing! It is a great tutorial and I like your presentation! Awesome!

[@JaniesSweets]

Wan Yee Tang thank you love 😘😘😘

[@aboutbusinessknowledge5675]

This video is so helpful - thank you so much!🤗

[@JaniesSweets]

❤️ 😘

[@akalizanattabi6053]

You look amazing and your making a lot of sense. Thank you so much!!!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching ❤️

[@sheilamalone3453]

Awesome video and explaination and tools! Thanks!

[@JaniesSweets]

Sheila Diuguid thank you for watching 😘😘

[@Maggiebze2024]

First time seeing your video. I liked it👍🏽 Subscribed and looking forward to more. Thank you for sharing.

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘 welcome to the family!

[@quatriciajohnson858]

wow thank you I just started baking as a hobby and I have suddenly became "famous" this help me out a lot!!

[@JaniesSweets]

You’re very welcome I’m glad I could help 😘

[@janechiu370]

Thank you so much! This is amazing!!!

[@sm52092]

This is mind blowing....THANKYOU

[@JaniesSweets]

You’re welcome thank you for watching

[@talimavargas4719]

Great video! Thank you! I have one question though. How about the overheads like electricity, water, or rent? Hope you will notice my question. Thank you!

[@JoJo-xb9fv]

Thanks for explaining so well. I understand now. God Bless xx

[@JaniesSweets]

Jo G you're welcome anytime 😘😘

[@crystalzone20]

Perfect tutorial. Thank you so much for helping me out

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching I’m glad you found it helpful

[@audreyscakes]

super cool, will be purchasing to save me some time. This is a great tool.

[@JaniesSweets]

Awesome 😊 thank you so much for watching 😘

[@lindyannfarrier8463]

I'm so glad I came across you video .. I need to watch it a few more times. I'm at crossroad n maybe this was the push or conviction I need... thanks to you.. btw I didn't see the pdf or link

[@kellymyers8831]

Keep the videos coming.. I need your help lol and I love how you explain everything!

[@JaniesSweets]

Kelly Myers thank you! as long as you guys keep watching I'll keep posting 😘

[@sacredtendrils7159]

Just got the calculator thank you so much for sharing and creating such a helpful tool

[@JaniesSweets]

Woohoo!! So happy you found it helpful!

[@sorangelcruz621]

Hey, Great video! Thank you so much for sharing, very helpful and interest specially for us who are just starting 👍🏼😊 can u please tell me where can I find the form u used in this video it will help me a lot? Lol God Bless

[@JaniesSweets]

Hey love thank you for the compliment. Check out the description box for the direct link i created an excel and a pdf version on my website.

[@aubreyacebu3501]

hey! Just discovered your channel❣ i just started my business at home and named it Brey Sweets kinda same with your yt name🤗 yay twinning. Love your advice btw😊

[@JaniesSweets]

Yayyy twinning 💃🏾😘 thank you for the compliment and best of luck with your cake business 😘

[@samanthadesouza2284]

Omg !! Thank you so much for sharing this 😍😍 I have just started being more serious about selling and I really hate to do this part the coating part and your methods and excel will for sure help me 😭❤️ thank u!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Yayy awesome I’m glad you found it helpful 😘

[@Jonsey1030]

Hi Janie I loved the video and thanks for doing this video. I purchased your calculator also yay. I don’t see the PDF link for the form you just did

[@JaniesSweets]

Thanks so much for your purchase hope you’re enjoying it… I no longer have the pdf available I did at the time I had recorded the video but now I just sell the actual excel document

[@Jonsey1030]

@@JaniesSweets I wasn’t able to use the calculator because when I click on the link it goes to ZOOM asking for a code to join. So I tried emailing you and it was coming back invalid email😕. I searched my App Store and came across CakeCost where you put your cake information in along with your hourly rate, labour, overheads, etc and it breaks down everything with the servings and batches telling you how much you should charge for that cake.

[@shaheeras.treats]

Wow thanks so much. I've made a tall cake that took me hours to make and only charge £35...this really makes sense thanks x

[@JaniesSweets]

I’m so happy you found this helpful 😊 😘

[@344amme]

Really liked this video and super helpful. I'm going to rewatch but, were overhead costs included? I need to do a lot of math to figure this out hopefully I do this right. Thanks!!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you 😁😘 I personally didn't include overheard cost only because I bake at home and it would have been a little hard to determine that's why

[@opulentElephant11]

You’re awesome. Thank you!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 🥰

[@My101WaysOfArt]

Wow..... I loved loved this video. You help me out alot. Thanks

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching I'm glad I could help

[@feliciar6311]

omg, this was so helpful!! Ty

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘

[@janbonfiglio1156]

A nice starting place, but you missed a few things. This may seem trivial, but you need to add your energy costs. Electric, gas and sewer bill. Plus wear and tear on your equipment. Stand mixers, cake pans, spatulas, offset spatulas etc. A misc column, wax and parchment paper, food coloring, vanilla etc. If these items are not figured in you could, unfortunately, be making less than minimum wage.

[@JaniesSweets]

Absolutely! Thank you for sharing 😘 you should definitely include these to be as precise as possible... I should have mentioned this is based on me making 1 or 2 cakes a week... it wasn't worth including depreciation of my equipment as it would take soooooo long to depreciate that its wouldnt event cost a dollar per cake... or like my water n electricity as this would be almost impossible to know what's for baking or household use... if it was something you do for a living you should deff include these though as the amount would be significantly more... thanks so much for mentioning this 😘

[@danyedouard9116]

Jan Bonfiglio : not to mention cake box for transportation, cake plates. Dowels and stuff they too cost money. But I love her brake down

[@shanellarabess6160]

Also the cost of dishwashing liquid and the cost of the decorations like the fondant, luster dust etc.

[@deeso5040]

Awesome! I have to try this! Thank you

[@JaniesSweets]

Awesome... let me know how it works 😊

[@mandyjarvis7960]

Janie, thank you so much for making this video! I'm just about to launch my home cake business and pricing is one thing I've been putting off (though I know it has to get done before I "open the doors"). After an insane amount of research, I'd actually decided on the same pricing structure you described in this video (the per serving idea has never sat well with me either); but I had yet to figure out an 'easy' way to actually perform the calculations for the various sizes - overwhelm definitely set in. Being an Excel person myself (I'm also in accounting by day), this format is SO perfect! THANK YOU again!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Mandy Jarvis awesome!!! I'm glad you found it helpful 🤗🤗 welcome to the fam and good luck on your cake journey 😘

[@Racine85]

Hi i know this is an old video but is it possible for you to send me the spreadsheet, it says its not available for download. this is the only spreadsheet i've seen that makes sense. Thank you so much for how you broke everything down

[@missashley8]

This was so helpful, thank you!

[@JaniesSweets]

I’m glad you liked it thank you for watching ❤️

[@lesliegeorges1075]

Hey Janie, could you include how you’ve grown your clientele in your next Friday Fixes? People automatically think to go to a bakery when they need a cake lol.. how did you get the word out that you’re an independent baker?

[@JaniesSweets]

leslie georges that's a good question... I definitely will

[@lcrread]

I'm not a baker, but if I want to start, I would create a Social Media page (more is better), and post the image of your cakes and/or cookies you've created and have people place their orders, or a gallery of what you've made. I would start locally, so people can pick them up. Check out some local clubs, businesses, schools, and other organizations whom they might be interested in ordering cookies. Perhaps start on special occasions such as Secretary Day, Boss Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Halloween, Christmas, Birthday's, Garden Clubs, Book Clubs, School Sports, etc. It would be a great idea to create a portfolio of all your work, so they can see the quality as well as pick and choose something you've already made. Also, you should have a CUSTOM MADE sheet to sit down and doddle the design with your customers. Eventually, you can add to your portfolio too. Good Luck Bakers!

[@JaniesSweets]

@@lcrread very well said 😘 thank you for sharing

[@matthorsey2198]

cool! can u also make a video of making mouth melting brownies..i hv been cravingg for some and want to know how to make them! thanks :)

[@JaniesSweets]

I sure can 😊

[@matthorsey2198]

@@JaniesSweets thanks ..il b waiting for it :)

[@MarylinIsaacs]

Thank you! How do I figure out for small stuff such as a teaspoon of vanilla extract or luster dust. Also do you recommend that we show something part of the costing to customer because most of them just come up and say - this is just a cake. It's fine to not worry about it if you're established in the market but what about if you're new?

[@JaniesSweets]

Hi sorry I just saw this message thats why I'm answering so late... in regards to your 2nd question you can if you want to but honestly I dont think you have to... i feel like they will have to just understand that your price is your price and trust that you are not cheating them out of their money 🤷🏾‍♀️ but if it makes you feel a little more confident especially with those hard to work with clients then absolutely... go right ahead 😁 now for your 1st question what I do is I just say 50 cents of 1$ for those annoying little things lol i used to actually break it down to but who has time for that lolol and fresh stuff that I can't save like a carton of strawberries even if I used half of it I charge for the whole thing cuz it's most likely gonna go bad and I cant save it for the next cake... thank you for your questions... I hope that helped 😘

[@cecestyme7142]

Wow! This was great 😄 information. Thanks for sharing 😍😘🤗👏......

[@linnettefletcher8699]

This is my first time watching your Channel I didn't quite get it but I'll get it eventually you're very pretty lady much blessings thanks for sharing

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching the 😘

[@jessiewandja6518]

Thank you very much for this video, it's a must watch. I will definitely use your document. Just a couple of questions, how do you account for depreciation on your equipment and charges like gas, electricity...

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you so much for watching 🤗 I'm glad you found it helpful... I didn't do it myself but what I have seen people do is add 10% of the final cost to it to account for depreciation etc... hope that helps

[@jessiewandja6518]

@@JaniesSweets thank you once for sharing your experience

[@OM-dd9yu]

Hi! First of all thank you for your video and excel calculator. Great job! I like the way you pricing the cake, but there is one question. For example - the cost of the cake itself is $40, that is how much all ingredients cost you to make a cake. Then, you just count your time, fondant/icing cost and add it to the cake cost. But in order to make a cake, you have to drive to the store buy products for it, bake it, wash your dishes etc, which increase your monthly bills. So finally the cake will cost you more than just $40. I think you should add your gas, electric, water etc. to the cake cost, because $40 is just for the products that you buy to bake the cake. And all you charge is basically $10 per hour for your work. It is unfair, especially when you have a lot of orders and your bills can grow crazy. So, your cake cost you $40 to make. It is just for the products. I think we should double the cost (or *1,5, depends on you) so you would have a profit from making the cake, otherwise, why would you need to bake something and charge just for your time? It is like all restaurants, they make food, they double charge for products plus cooking (this includes bills, rent, employees hourly wage, license etc). same with your cake. You double the cost of your cake, then you add your time spending on decoration. So, saying about this example, it would be $40*2=$80+$40 (4 hours, that took you to decorate). Total: $120. If you multiply by 1,5 it would be $100. According to your video, you would charge $80 for this cake. What do you think about it?

[@JaniesSweets]

Hi love 👋🏾 than you so much for this comment 😁 very detailed and makes alot of sence... I absolutely agree and that's how I would do it too if I were making a lot of cakes... I should have specified maybe that this is for people who do this on the side like 1 or 2 cakes a week... I do still work a corporate job and only make a few cakes here and there that's why it wasn't worth it to factor in all these costs... for example I grab my supplies while I'm doing my food shopping so counting gas is meh... I dont have a separate meter for my gas, water and electricity so it's hard to know what was used for baking or just for regular household use... especially with only doing 1 or 2 cakes max a week you see... and then theres alao depreciation of your machines like your mixer etc but my mixer will probably last me for the next 10 + years with how little it gets used lol... but your explanation was definitely on point and I'll use your comment in an updated version for people who do this on a grander scale 😘

[@MegaMaridee]

Will this work in iMac? Good thinking Dolores I forgot those trimmings. How about the delivery. how do you make how much to charge them. Thank you so much Janie. Such an informative way on how to determine to work out how to price a custom made cake.

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching... I blv I mac automatically transforms excel documents into their equivalent so it should work if not shoot me an email and we'll figure it out. For delivery I do a dollar a mile but some people do a flat rate for a certain amount of miles it's up to you really see what would work best for you... hope that helps 😁

[@alockedupsituation19]

I love your trainer I'm also a mom starting a home based bakeshop. Can u please do a video showing how you package your products or LAble them.

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you... ok I'll work on a video

[@aleashadavis8978]

Thank you so much for this video 🤗🙌🏽🙌🏽 Does this method also work for other treats such as chocolate covered treats or candy apples?

[@JaniesSweets]

You’re very welcome and yes absolutely!

[@aleashadavis8978]

Awesome 🥰

[@tracyjasmine9180]

I love how you explained it. Especially for me that I’m visual and math it not my favorite subject lol. Basic explained. Thank you!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thanks so much for watching I'm glad I could help 😘

[@florenceboakye7143]

Hello Janie thanks for sharing, I will use your method

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching😘 I'm glad you found it helpful

[@truesongstress]

GREAT JOB, JANIE!!!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for 😘 thank you for watching

[@whatitbelikefresh6945]

Hi. Great video very very informative. You just opened my eyes up to how to finally get my pricing down. I understand the concept but where do I get the cake calculator program

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you!! 🤗 check out the description box for a link to where you can find the documents

[@TastySeasons1]

Thanks, this was helpful. But there isn't anymore the link to the Excel/PDF for the cake costing. Pls, I will like to have it. Thank you👍

[@CHERYLChocolateDiamondHARBOUR]

Interesting indeed

[@JaniesSweets]

☺️

[@lisasandison8844]

Great video -I am just starting out. Question: should the labor on baking the cake vs decorating the cake: should they be different?

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you 😘 Yes I include both

[@ashleeunderhill4436]

thank you so much you explained it really well!

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 🥰

[@Enviouscustomtreats]

Janie This Method Was Very Very Helpful It Totally Gives Us A Idea Where To Start!!👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽🙂🙂.. Yes Please Talk About Deposits And Cake Contracts🙂

[@JaniesSweets]

Creative Sweets By Catina awesome!!! I'm glad you liked it love 😚 I will definitely make that video for you next week 😃

[@realpinkmonkey]

this was a little confusing. do you make good money for your cakes? please answer. this is a genuine question. i want to go into business to be successful and get paid great money for doing what i love. after taking a year to really research cake prices, i FINALLY came up with prices im comfortable with. however, now im feeling like maybe im going a little too high with my prices. (well, i dont think its too high, but i guess i think i could go lower). BUT, i feel like if i go ANY lower i wont make money or any profit. so im curious, when you do it your prices that way, are you making good profit from it? like, what about your utilities?? the videos that really helped me understand pricing were from youtube as well. i like your videos too. thank you for the tips :) i hope to hear from you

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching... yes I do make enough to cover my costs and pay myself in the end... my hourly wage is 30$ an hour so however long It takes to make the cake I've paid myself for plus I covered the cost of the ingredients... as far as utilities I dont make nearly enough cakes to justify calculating how much more my gas and water bill is from making 1 or 2 cakes a week... if I were making more cakes like if this was my full time job I'd factor that in as well... and never feel that your prices are too high your method might work best for you and if your customers are willing to pay your prices that's actually even better so dont feel that you need to lower it... the reason why I use this method is because for the accountant in me the numbers need to make sence lolol... I was very confused when people said they charge 5$ a serving for example I would always ask well how did you come up with that price? And they wouldnt know they would just say well that's what they charge in the industry... so I decided to do the math and figure it out numerically... hope that helps 😁

[@realpinkmonkey]

@@JaniesSweets wow! Thanks for responding. But in this example from the excel sheet did u add the $30/hour? If so I missed it. Thank u so much for responding. Do u add the $210 plus your hourly rate?

[@JaniesSweets]

@@realpinkmonkey sure no problem... no this is just an example for the sake of the video... I said lets assume the person is using a box mix which I dont and that they charge 10$ an hour which i charge 30 an hr... hope that helps...

[@realpinkmonkey]

@@JaniesSweets thank you 😊

[@JaniesSweets]

@@realpinkmonkey you're welcome 😘

[@TiffannyDoll]

Bravo for the video. Thanks so much

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😘

[@brittblessed]

Thank you, very informative

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching 😊

[@pgreen9292]

Hi Jani, thanks so much for your video. I don't see the link for the Excel or PDF file you mentioned. Also, I'd love to bake and sell something like a cheesecake, however my thoughts are the ingredients alone would cost over $30, then to add baking and decorating time, say another $15; profit would be little and who would pay $50 for a cheesecake when they could buy one at the store for $15

[@JaniesSweets]

Oh trust me ppl who want a better cheesecake thss as n the store brand will pay for it... it’s very weird to think but trust me if your stuff is good which I’m sure it will be they will get it... I’m sure people can buy a purse at Walmart but they chose Michael kors... why do you think that is?!? Because people pay for quality! Focus on making sure that your stuff is better than the grocery store stuff and people will see the value of it

[@pgreen9292]

@@JaniesSweets Thank you :-)

[@vvkelly97]

The one this you forgot is your profit. Your time is part of the ingredients needed to make the cake, but your time is not your profit.

[@MyScalpingStrategy]

Hi Ma'am...How about Power Consumption Cost, Will not be charged?? I mean like we have to use an oven to bake a sponge as well as Kitchen Aid..

[@JaniesSweets]

Hi there great question... a couple people have asked you can definitely calculate overhead cost... someone suggested 10% of the total price... however for me because I baked at home i didn't find it necessary to do... but feel free to add that in 😁

[@kimberlysandoval993]

Your video is so informational, I would love to know about deposit

[@JaniesSweets]

Kimberly Sandoval thank you love... I sure will 😘

[@kmydesire12]

Hi Janie! So do I just sit down with a written expense of everything spent on cakes them add labor to that? For example if someone wants. 5 layer 9inch rainbow cake. I’m guessing starting price $50 plus if they want customized theme such as LOL dolls with a drip icing now where taking about $75? This includes the ganache for the drip, toppers and any other design work needed. Please let me know if I’m over or underestimating the price? Keep in my mind experience is a beginner, but let’s suppose it came out look 5star quality..🧐

[@JaniesSweets]

Hey.. you're right just add up the cost +labor that's your price... you can also take it a step further and add another amount that you would call profit but I usually dont I stick to cost + labor...

[@rubyc.4311]

Thanks for sharing this video. I’m just wondering tho, is it really ok to use boxed cake mix? Wouldn’t ppl tell the difference?

[@JaniesSweets]

You’re welcome thank you for watching! 😊 you can absolutely use it... in my experience, unless someone eats cake constantly they can rarely tell the difference. People who make cake can but the general public who has cake once every year or longer cannot...

[@bakeslay743]

hello Janie! i know this video is soo old but i was wondering how can i gain access to the excel sheet? I tried clicking on the link :( Thanks in advance for your help! Great video xoxo

[@JaniesSweets]

Thank you for watching… I’m making some changes to the excel doc but if you still want the old one just shoot me an email or 😉

[@mandyjarvis7960]

Hi again, Janie, Quick question about pricing and flavors (for scratch recipes). I'm going back and forth between costing out all of my cake flavors, taking an average cost of all flavors and then listing my prices as 'a 6" round basic/minimal decorations = $X', etc. - regardless of the flavor they choose. Versus pricing each flavor separately. In this case, I'd be listing my prices as '6" starting at $X', etc. and the exact cost will be determined by the specific flavor they order, in addition to the design choices. The caveat with the average cost method being that, if I decide to add a new flavor option that requires more ingredients/more expensive ingredients, the base price of all of my cakes goes up. The second option, however would make it more difficult to price cupcakes at standard price per dozen. I've also considered using an average price method for a set of 'basic flavors' and then having a set of 'premium flavors' that would be priced a bit higher based on the more complex ingredient list. I want to keep pricing as simple as possible, but also as fair as possible to both myself and my customers. Do you have any suggestions for this? Thank you! Mandy

[@JaniesSweets]

Mandy Jarvis hi mandy I understand what you mean and I've done the same... I have a basic price n a premium price... check out my website under pricing you'll see what I mean... so what I would suggest to make your life easier just do an average price for cakes that are similar in price and another for cakes that's have a bit more stuff in it... but a word of advice that I learned the hard way... dont offer too many complicated flavors unless you are a "dessert cake" maker... I'll talk about this more in dept in a Friday fixes soon

[@mandyjarvis7960]

Janie's Sweets Thanks Janie! I am planning to offer a selection of "dessert" cakes in addition to my custom cakes - they will be priced separately with a limited number of size options and flavor combinations. I do know what you mean about not offering too many complex flavors for custom cakes though, as too many choices can sometimes be worse than not enough. And some of the recipes may not be great for stacking! I plan to offer only about 7-8 flavors for my custom cakes (a few of which being just variations on 'standards' - e.g. Funfetti = standard white cake with sprinkles added in; chocolate vs dark chocolate, etc.). But I would like to have a few "fancier" flavors within those 7-8, such as caramel and mocha. You're videos are super helpful! Keep them coming!!