hi all:

Just wondering what everyone thought of my idea:

I have been baking forever, love it, and want to start doing more of it. I am thinking to start offering about 5 choices, then bake them, take photos for promotional flyers, business cards, etc.
I am thinking of the following since they have been hits already:

- Pumpkin Bread or cupcakes or Carrot Cake with Cream cheese glaze or Sourcream Coffee Cake
- Strawberry Shortcake
- Chocolate layer cake (not sure which recipe to try yet but sure to be in the list)
- Red Velvet Cake - very popular as well
- Vanilla Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream (for fancier cakes)
- Cupcakes in variety flavors (not sure yet what)

am thinking of a cheesecake, etc

Any thoughts? I want to start practicing to master the recipes, I’ve yet to try many of Rose’s recipes!

thanks all

I suggest you do some market research, because what will fly in one part of the country/world wouldn’t even get a nod elsewhere. At the same time, you don’t want to copy everybody else. What you bring to the equation is your own unique touch and the kind of baked goods you like to make.

Still there’s nothing like checking out the competition to get a baker thinking in real world terms. No, scratch that. It helps. But what really lands you in a reality check is to price your ingredients and see what you’d have to charge just to recover costs on one of your favourite recipes. Not counting anything for your time and trouble. Then see what other people in your area are charging for something similar.

You can go online, too, to check out bakeries as far afield as you like, to see what different kinds of bakeries offer. Looks like you want to specialize in cake. Lots of business models out there. Check them out. Learn all you can It’s not the easiest industry to succeed in. People always think their Aunt Sally can make something as good or better for less money. And she probably can, because she’d donate her time! 

So yes, practice your craft and put together some promotional materials, but do your business research first. Or at the same time. In other words,  target your efforts, and then you’ll be more likely to realize your dream. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Good luck! Keep us posted.

Hi, good luck with your venture. I did the same thing a little over a year ago. Currently doing a couple of cakes a month without trying too hard to market. I also have a full-time job so I have to be careful not to over-commit myself. Doing my first “real” wedding cake in June so that should be interesting!

I have a website at http://www.lauriebakes.com, would love to hear any feedback.

Would love to hear how your experience goes. You can email me direct at lauriegood at mac.com

Good luck!

Laurie

Also, if you’re offering cakes for sale to the public, in many cities/towns in the USA, you have to work out of a licensed and inspected facility. There are MANY health departments that are very strict about this and will not allow food to be sold publicly from a residential kitchen. You’re gonna have to do your research on this. The last thing you want is to get into serious trouble w/ your health department. If you live in or near a larger city, you could probably find a licensed commissary kitchen that basically rents kitchen space to small business owners. We have one here in Denver, and it’s a boon for all of the city’s food cart vendors and small operators. A friend of mine rents space there for her quiche business, which she sells at the local farmers markets.

Good Luck!