Would you expect a price break?

[DaniR1968]

My nephew and his girlfriend are having a baby. I offered to buy the cake for the baby shower. I did not realize she wanted something pretty unusual. I could not find a baker in my area or surrounding area that can make this cake. She tells me her cousin is a baker. I contact cousin and discuss what mother to be wants and she says she can make it. Hurrah!

Well, cousin is charging full price for the cake. I did ask if she could give me a break on the price since this is for her cousin. She declined siting expenses of making the cake and her time in making it and setting it up. She's going to be there anyway but, okay.

It really kind of rubs me the wrong way since I and anyone in my family would do it for cost or nothing if we knew how to make cakes.

I will admit to having some reservations that she can actually make the cake since some very highly recommended bakeries can't make it. Hopefully she can.

[Danaus29]

Sounds like you got set up and the cake (although will be just what the mother-to-be wants) will be not what you expect.

[Work horse]

Maybe she has already purchased a shower gift and can't afford to give the cake, too?

And just curious, if she gave you the cake "at cost" or for really cheap, would you present it to the mom-to-be as a gift from yourself??

[Laura Zone 5]

Sounds like a scam.
What happened to good old fashioned "thank you" for whatever cake you show up with?
I don't get it?

[Danaus29]

I did want to add, having decorated cakes myself and seeing all the work that goes into putting them together I can see where she would want to get paid for the materials and her time. I just think it's a little unreasonable for the mom-2-b to demand what type of cake she wants.

ETA: especially since someone else is buying it.

[DaniR1968]

I have no problem getting the mother to be what she wants. It's her day.

[DaniR1968]

Originally Posted by Work horse

Maybe she has already purchased a shower gift and can't afford to give the cake, too?

And just curious, if she gave you the cake "at cost" or for really cheap, would you present it to the mom-to-be as a gift from yourself??

No, I would not present it as a gift from myself. As for her having already purchased a gift, I don't know. She sited cost of making it and her time making it and setting it up.

[Oggie]

Is it a special waterproof cake?

[DaniR1968]

Originally Posted by Laura Zone 5

Sounds like a scam.
What happened to good old fashioned "thank you" for whatever cake you show up with?
I don't get it?

I did not know the MTB didn't get to pick. And she is the type to not be very gracious if she doesn't get what she wants.

Just so you know, she wants a cake that looks like a diaper cake. Not sort of like it but could pass as a diaper cake from a distance.

Thanks for your input. I expected to be told I was rude and selfish which is kind of how I feel over this whole thing and really regretting offering to get the cake. It's really been a headache.

[DaniR1968]

Originally Posted by Oggie

Is it a special waterproof cake?

She wants a real cake made to look like a diaper cake. I had never even heard of a diaper cake before this.

[Smalltowngirl]

I decorate cakes and I personally wouldn't give someone else a discount for a cake they ordered just because the recipient was one of my cousins.
If I had wanted to give my cousin a decorated cake, I would have done so.

Business is business, sad to say but in today's economy money is tight and decorated cakes take a lot of time & money. You agreed to buy the cake the girl wanted before realizing the price so either you'll have to tell her you can't afford the one her cousin is selling or just pay the going rate. Would you haggle with a bakery over the price of the same cake if they could have made it??

[TxHorseMom]

I would just bite the bullet and pay for it. You'll know better next time.

[Laura Zone 5]

Originally Posted by DaniR1968

I have no problem getting the mother to be what she wants. It's her day.

Then be ready to pay for it!

My daughter made a 3 tier wedding cake.
Took 3 days. About 16 hours total.
Ingredients ALONE, with coupons and on sale, was 140.00.
Hardware (pans, rods, etc) 60.00.
She hand made all of the daisies with sugar paste.
When she presented the "nice lady" who the bride to be asked to get the cake (IE pay for it) with the receipts.....this woman about laid an egg.
She gave my daughter, begrudgingly, a check for 250.00.
Really.
50.00 for 16 hours of work.
3.13 an hour for her labor.



The bride was elated. Everyone raved how delicious it was.
And the 'nice lady' has not spoken to my daughter since.
My daughter was told by the nice lady to 'make what the bride wants'.
And she did.
EVEN with the receipts in hand, the nice lady simply can't believe that a cake costs that much to make.
It does.

So for 3.15 an hour.....my daughter made the above cake.
That does not include the cost of electricity, the gasoline it took for my daughter to DELIVER IT, and it surely was NOT worth her time.

A lot goes into making a specialty cake.
I don't think you are rude and selfish. I think most folks have no clue how much it costs in raw materials to make a specialty cake, and then the hours and creativity that goes into making it 'special'.

[happy@home]

I would not expect a price break but I would be happy if one was offered.

It sounds like the cousin knows better than to offer to bake a cake for this mother. It's business not personal. If she did not bake this particular cake she could use her time to bake a cake for a paying customer.

[DaniR1968]

Smalltowngirl, I did not know what she wanted before agreeing to get the cake but had an idea of price. I did think when the cousin turned out to be the only one who could make it I would get a price break. Mostly because I would not charge for my services for family.

I train horses for money but never charge for helping friends or family. It would just never occur to me.

[Oggie]

Originally Posted by DaniR1968

She wants a real cake made to look like a diaper cake. I had never even heard of a diaper cake before this.

Then, it won't last long in the shower.

And, if I were to be an overly judgmental geezerly poot, I'll add that hopefully this will be one of the last times the new mother makes a big stink out of having things exactly her way.

A baby tends to change that.

And, if it doesn't, I pity the baby.


(Oh, and it's "cite" or "citing" in this case, not "site" or "siting" (or even sight or sighting). When we won the fight for independence from the English, we should have demanded that they fix their language if we were going to continue using it.)

[DaniR1968]

Don't worry guys! I'm paying! Just curious what you thought.

My mother used to bake cakes so I do have some idea what goes into it. She even offered to try to make it. She hasn't made a cake in over 10 years so we didn't want to chance her not getting it right.

[AngieM2]

do make sure that you and the baker have a clear understanding what constitutes a cake that "looks like a diaper cake". If she does not deliver, I would wonder about paying the price.

As to the beautiful wedding cake shown, I would not expect to pay for the hardware (except what is in only that cake) for making a cake as that is the cost of doing business and should be factored into the labor cost or in to the price of the materials.

I find it hard to believe a cake is that much in ingredients, but that does not make me right about it, just astonished.
The labor, I see cost in that cause those little flowers take some time. Especially the nice ones.

Out of curiousity, how many people is this cake suppose to feed and if you don't mind telling, at least roughly - how much for a cake such as this? What is it a white cake with frosting or fondant?

I'm totally curious.


ETA: found a link of actual diaper cakes: some really outlandish prices, but the ones near the bottom , are somewhat more basic, pretty and not so embelished. http://www.lilbabycakes.com/babycakes.htm

[DaniR1968]

Oggie, dangit, I know that about cite and site. Just typing too fast and not paying enough attention.

MTB is high maintenance. Maybe the baby will cure that. Don't know. She seems to think right now things will go back to normal after he comes.

[DaniR1968]

Originally Posted by AngieM2

do make sure that you and the baker have a clear understanding what constitutes a cake that "looks like a diaper cake". If she does not deliver, I would wonder about paying the price.

As to the beautiful wedding cake shown, I would not expect to pay for the hardware (except what is in only that cake) for making a cake as that is the cost of doing business and should be factored into the labor cost or in to the price of the materials.

I find it hard to believe a cake is that much in ingredients, but that does not make me right about it, just astonished.
The labor, I see cost in that cause those little flowers take some time. Especially the nice ones.

Out of curiousity, how many people is this cake suppose to feed and if you don't mind telling, at least roughly - how much for a cake such as this? What is it a white cake with frosting or fondant?

I'm totally curious.

I sent cousin a picture and went on about how no baker in the area could do it and make it look like the picture. She assures me she can. It is going to be a 2-tier cake to feed about 75 people. Marble cake with fondant. Price is $150 which is the same price the one place that says they think they can make it would charge. Of course they aren't going to deliver and set up!