Wedding cake prices are usually higher than party cake prices. It can seem like bakers are taking advantage of the fact that brides often have a 'healthy' budget to spend on their wedding cake.
In reality, Wedding cakes cost more to produce. how can that be? It's just cake right?
Let's take a look at what contributes to the higher cost of a wedding cake.
Level of service
Meetings
Often a consultation will be offered before the wedding cake order is taken.
A baker can spend an extra 1-3 hours of their time baking the tasting samples and taking the meeting. The ingredients for the samples and any refreshment costs also need to be covered.
Delivery and set up
Bakers often personally deliver the cake and set it up at a specific time and location at the wedding venue. They may also need to consult with staff at the venue, wedding planners or the couple’s florist prior to the big day to make arrangements. The extra time spent organizing, delivering, setting up and fuel cost add to the price of the cake.
Design
After taking the couple’s wishes into consideration, the baker will sometimes provide sketches of the cake design for approval. Beautifully drawings made to help communicate design intent are time consuming.
In comparison, when designing a birthday cake, a baker will often only make a quick sketch for their own information and give a brief verbal or written indication of how the cake will look to their clients.
Material costs
Size
Wedding cakes are usually bigger than birthday cakes. Cake ingredients are expensive so larger cakes can be costly in materials. A 100 portion cake can easily cost €100-200 just in ingredients.
(If you're starting a bakery, grab the free baking cost calculator to find the cake cost for your home business here)
Structure
Wedding cakes are often multi-tiered which means they need internal structures to support the cake, making it stable for display and for transportation. This uses extra time, tools and materials.
If the cake is more than two tiers, it will need an internal support running through the centre of all the tiers. This can involve drilling, sawing, sanding and gluing. A lot more work than grabbing a cake card and popping the cake onto it.
Each tier will also be supported with dowels inside to carry the weight of the cake tiers above. These all need to be individually cut to the exact same height so the cake stays straight.
For weddings an extra sturdy cake board (cake drum) is usually chosen. This is either necessary to carry the weight of the cake or an aesthetic choice. It is finished in fondant and a ribbon coloured to match the design. The cost and time to add these extra materials and finishings increase the price.
Flavour
Bakers may offer a wider choice of filling and sponge flavours to wedding couples. These could include handmade additions such as curds and compotes, and more luxurious and unique ingredients. I offered twice as many flavour options for wedding cakes in my business and they were all made to order.
Decoration
Wedding cakes often feature real flowers which need to be individually washed, wired, taped and made food safe with a protective barrier before being inserted into a cake. Collecting and preparing the flowers can take upward of 2 hours.
Comparison with Birthday cakes
Wedding cakes usually cost more to produce than birthday cakes due to the size, choice of ingredients and level of service provided.
The level of service is usually the biggest factor contributing to the higher price and this becomes clearer when you consider how much involvement is needed for a typical birthday cake order.
With a birthday cake, the customer will often fill in an online order form, giving the baker all the details they need to prepare a quote, so the baker does not need to meet with the client.
There is usually no tasting offered.
The baker prepares a quote and takes full payment up front. No time is spent organising deposits or following up on final payments.
The baker will often have little or no further contact with the customer until the day the cake is ready.
On the day of the event, the customer often collects the cake from the baker. The baker's time is limited to opening their door and handing the cake box to their customer with no travel or set up needed.
The transaction is simple and relatively quick for the baker so they can charge less for this product and service.
Conclusion
Why are wedding cakes so expensive?
Wedding cakes generally cost more than party cakes because of:
Time: The higher level of service offered; tastings, sketches, delivery, set up, take up more of the bakers time.
Size: Wedding cakes generally feed more guests than party cakes. A larger cake uses more ingredients.
Structure: A tiered cake takes with internal support structures takes extra time, materials and tools to construct.
Flavour: Some bakers offer a wider range of more luxurious flavours and fillings to wedding couples.
Decoration: The type and level of decoration chosen for wedding cakes can often cost more in terms of time and materials.
If you are getting married, I hope this gives you a better understanding of the amount of work that goes into making your dream cake a reality for your big day. This luxury service results in a wedding cake cost that is higher than a party cake.
Also, I'll let you in on a secret. I've yet to meet a single baker who sets out to fleece couples the moment they hear the word 'wedding'. On the other hand, I have come across many bakers who are concerned about how they can reduce their costs and provide value at 'reasonable' price, even to the extent that they underpay themselves.
If you are a baker, please don’t feel guilty for charging more for wedding cakes, they are much more expensive and time consuming for you to produce.
The higher price you need to charge to cover your time and costs is a direct reflection of the value and level of service you are providing.
Wedding cake prices
If you're a baker and need help defining your prices for both wedding and party cakes, I have a guide that you are going to love.
It not only walks you through the exact steps to price your cakes and includes a cake cost calculator, but it also helps you design a sustainable and profitable cake business.
Find out how it can help you here.
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