That is the question many people ask…specifically, can you make a full-time salary making custom cakes? The short answer is, yes, I absolutely believe you can but you have to put a few things in place. Cakes are in demand. They are used in many events and are a tradition that goes back centuries. This all works in our favor, as bakers, and cakes are one of the most popular items served at bakeries.

I will forever be grateful to cake because it is what really got me to where I am with my business today. I’ve been baking and decorating cakes for over 30 years and even have a cake course I offer. It is my signature baked item and I love everything about it…baking it, designing it, eating it. But before I ramble further, let me be completely transparent and share that I no longer take custom cake orders. That’s not because I believe that custom cakes can’t be profitable, it’s just that my business has gone in a different direction.  

Here’s what I think every baker should focus on if they are placing custom cakes at the forefront of their business and want to earn a full-time salary:

1. The baker must be fast: Time is the fastest way to cut into your profits. If a custom cake is taking you a great deal of time, then your hourly wage will be severely impacted. On a positive note, you DO get much faster as you practice so if custom cakes is really where your passion lies…keep going and refining because you will be able to knock them out much faster with each and every cake!

2. The baker must make delicious cakes: Okay, this is not a hard and fast rule but I have found it to be true. As much as I love designing cakes, I was receiving a consistent stream of custom cake orders because my cake tasted good. My word of mouth cake requests almost always mentioned how yummy my cake was at the last event the customer was at. I’m sure there are some people who are only interested in receiving a beautiful cake but most want both…beautiful and tasty. Cake is always in demand and my recipe was really nothing fancy or difficult (I share it on my Instagram subscription group and in my cake course linked above) but if you can combine a yummy cake recipe with solid cake decorating skills, then it will be very likely that the orders will start rolling in for you. 

3. The baker must live in an area where paying for a high priced cake is the norm OR have a strategic plan for addressing this: Okay, #3 is the one factor that made it difficult for me. I do not live in an area where paying for a $500+ cake is a typical practice. A “high” priced cake in my area typically goes for about $60-$120. This would be for a standard event (birthday, shower, etc.) and not a wedding. There is a small market in my area for event cakes that are more than $200 but that customer base would be very limited. So, what I was finding is that I, and most other bakers, were somewhat forced to bring down their prices to what was competitive and appropriate while the time involved to make a custom cake remained the same. Trust me, you do not want to bring down your prices.

So what are your options if you are really hoping to make custom cakes your niche but #3 is your reality? Below are some possible options:

1. Be Willing to Travel: You might be able to travel a bit of distance to an area where demand for higher priced custom cakes is greater. For me, if I were to market my business to a few cities about an hour away, I would have a larger pool of customers because the cost of living is higher in these cities and many of these customers would likely be willing to pay a fair delivery fee.

2. Charge Appropriately and Supplement: You could also charge appropriately for your custom cakes and develop a plan to supplement with other items to make up the difference for the lower quantity of orders due to your higher price point. For instance, you might be able to charge $250 or more for a 6-8 inch cake and be comfortable with only receiving 2-3 orders per month because your other items are also providing revenue. My website has a lot of suggestions for how to supplement your baking business as do a lot of other websites. So google some ideas and you might be able to create a business plan in which custom cakes are only one component of a very lucrative baking business.

3. Offer an In-Between Option: You could offer several signature, basic cakes that you’ve perfected and can create fast. These are your base package cakes and they are priced in a manner in which most can afford. If a customer wants fondant characters or edible images or a beach scene cake, then those custom additions are at an additional (and possibly significant additional) cost. The reason why this is a good plan is because 1.) your cakes will be accessible to everyone, 2.) you won’t be spending hours upon hours fulfilling custom requests without appropriate compensation and 3.) you will very likely be able to perfect your basic signature cakes to a point where you can knock them out super fast. Win win! 

Okay, I am sure there are even more great ideas! Remember, you can figure out everything and create a plan that enables you to meet your goals but please, please, please do not undercharge. Your time is valuable and you deserve to be compensated appropriately. Excited for those of you who are currently taking on, or planning to take on, the custom cake world!