AIBU to ask if you’d buy this considering the situation?

[chocolatetreats21]

I have a new business idea, I want to make chocolate covered treats from home and sell them. I just don’t know if people would buy it considering the whole COVID situation? What do you think?

[chocolatetreats21]

@flowerpotsandrain did you really mean to say "all the huns"? 😂😂😂

[GroundAlmonds]

I know what she means. It’s the same people who sell personalised vodka bottles and glittery twigs on FB. Those ads get shared here every Christmas. They all call each other “hun” incessantly.

[GammyLeg]

I'd buy some as a gift for someone. They look amazing! But it will all depend on how you market them/get the word out.

[chocolatetreats21]

Here's some Halloween ones 🎃

[chocolatetreats21]

And here's some Christmas cakesicles, I know I'm getting carried away 😂 they just look so pretty

[YerAWizardHarry]

My cake lady made an absolute fortune during lockdown making homemade "munchie boxes" that she delivered. They were sold out in literally minutes each week. She has now opened an actual premises selling cakes and sweet treats so must have been doing okay. People were desperate for cheese boxes/cupcakes etc during lockdown here; support local and all that.

[user127819]

Some of the photos you've posted do look lovely and I might buy that kind of thing from a bakery/confectioners but not from people selling from home. I'm sorry, it's nothing personal. Lots of people are selling homemade food on Facebook at the moment, but I'm not sure how much they're making. It's hard if not impossible to sell food at competitive prices and still make a profit on such a small scale.

But of course there's no reason you can't try, to see what the market is like, if your work is good enough. Don't let us put you off. I think you might need a food hygiene certificate first though.

[Graphista]

the council would do a kitchen inspection before I start

I think you're massively unaware of the regulations around a business like you're suggesting, which I suspected as soon as I read op

https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/starting-a-food-business-from-home

While it's "guidance" only most councils won't register a food business unless:

The person in charge has at least a basic food hygiene certificate

Has liability insurance

Has an appropriately clean and well equipped kitchen they're working out of. They're generally not fans of open plan set ups.

And if you THINK your kitchen is clean in most cases it won't be up to standard. They can and do pull out your fridge etc to check EVERYWHERE is absolutely spotless.

There are numerous laws now regarding cross contamination, allergens, labelling, traceability...

I have 3 friends who are bakers/confectioners who started off doing so at home. One of whom now has 2 shops.

It was a painstaking and lengthy process setting up the original businesses.

Then you have to factor in to your product costs (unless you're happy to basically give stuff away):

Cleaning and maintenance costs

Maintenance of all the admin side (certification, registration, insurance etc)

Equipment including replacement costs (a lot of people who THINK they know what they're doing setting up businesses like this use domestic grade blenders etc which simply aren't up to the frequent use and quickly bust)

Ingredients of course (and you won't have the the ability to buy in bulk like the major manufacturers can of course)

Packaging, advertising, transport if you're delivering, postage or courier costs if not (I can't imagine they'll last well just bunged in the post)

Additional electric/gas for cooking and lighting etc

Costs of stationery

Also agree that there's a LOT of competition with this type of business as loads of people THINK they can just buy a load of ingredients, set up a Facebook page and away you go!

I am in a SMALL town (15k) and just having a quick look via just eat and Facebook local pages there's at least a dozen such businesses in my town alone. Some new some have been around ages and so are more trusted especially at this time.

I mean like these, haven't seen anyone on just eat or Facebook selling them?

There will be good reasons experienced, professional confectioners won't be doing those.

As per pp straight away the main issue is if it's fresh fruit it doesn't keep very well. So you're either going to have to risk not buying a lot in and possibly not having the ingredients when needed OR buying loads in and if you don't get enough orders you're going to have a LOT of wastage - and another issue if you do that depending on the amounts concerned is you may find you fall foul of your councils rules on domestic waste disposal and having to pay commercial council tax rates.

there's a lot more that goes in to it. It's the glitter, edible decorations, fondant etc

Exactly!

And how much is all that initial outlay going to cost you if you don't get the orders? If you don't even get registration?

And don't be tempted to do it on the fly as there are HUGE fines if caught.

See if I even can make it as good as on the pictures

You've never even made such things?! These are pictures of other people's work?!

You're utterly delusional! It takes dedicated professionals YEARS of training and experience

Personally I would not buy from a new, home based food business at the moment. Wouldn't chance it at all.

[CuppaZa]

No I wouldn’t

[Ponoka7]

The cake maker that our family use is still as busy. So are others on fb. Her order book fills up quickly. She doesn't make a lot from it. She's a SAHM, a former Police woman. She started doing postal boxes of brownies and blondies, to make her money up.

The cakesicles are popular and I've seen people asking for the Strawberries. But unless part of a bigger order, decorated cake etc, it isn't worth her time. She also does matching cookies. People go for themes.

Price up, because unless you've just got time on your hands and enjoy doing them, you might only make a few pound. Start looking at wrapping/boxes and feasibility.

[FlatandFabulous]

They all look super cute but I'm afraid I wouldn't buy if prepared in anything other than a full commercial kitchen, not just in Covid times.

[Italiangreyhound]

chocolatetreats21 they look amazing.

I might buy things but to be honest at this moment in time I really would be more cautious.

[Italiangreyhound]

Are these pictures your own work?

If you are doing this to make money I would be careful as a new business can eat money.

If you were doing this for friends for a long time and the demand was there then you could maybe move into a business, while still hanging onto your day job.

Please just be careful. Your customers would most likely be locals to where you live not people from miles away

[HerRoyalNotness]

Do you have the skills to make these? Popular here in the states are paint your own sugar cookies, decorate your own and decorated sugar cookies for the holidays, birthdays, special order, corporate events. Like so.... this lady has also started
Designing and making her own cookie cutters

[HerRoyalNotness]

Decorate your own kits

[FortunesFave]

Cookies like HerRoyal just posted ...those I'd buy. Chocolate covered strawberries? Nope.

I could dip fruit in chocolate myself.....

[Mummyoflittledragon]

Chocolate covered fruit sounds like an add on to me. It goes off incredibly fast. You really want to be selling something with a longer shelf life imo and strawberries are ever so expensive. I don’t think I’d buy that sort of things as a stand alone product.

[Nikori]

Have you actually tried making them, OP?

They are actually really hard to make and look as nice as that. I think it's a better idea to start as a hobby and see how it goes. I know a few people who have gone into the cake making business, but they had been baking and decorating cakes for years and are really good at it.

[MerchantOfVenom]

Are the photos you’re sharing your creations, or the person’s you saw on tik tok?

How are you going to transport them to people, or will you only be hand delivering?

[Goatinthegarden]

I want to say something supportive, but I just wouldn’t buy food from an unknown person selling out of their home, even pre-Covid.

I think the success might depend on where you live; I live in a big city with lots of bakeries, dessert cafes, etc. and I don’t think it’s common to order from home food businesses. However, I have several friends who live in a small, rural town where lots of SAHMs seem to have little businesses selling cakes and sweets on the side and it appears on Facebook that they all seem to order from each other other - maybe because they all know one another, but also there are less local options available.

I’m afraid I have no idea if it’s profitable or not.

[perfumeistooexpensive]

No. I wouldn't buy these homemade treats during a pandemic.

[minipilling]

Are you already skilled in making these, OP? Or good at baking etc? Because you'll need to do a lot of practicing and learning if not, perhaps take a course. The pics you posted are very professional and look lovely but it can take years to gain that kind of standard. I have a friend who runs a local chocolate, cookie and brownie shop. She is very popular and her goods always sell out, but she has been training for years to get here. She sold online initially but it wasn't that sustainable until she got a physical premises and separate commercial kitchen.

It's a nice idea but the market is also quite saturated especially selling online. You would need talent and your own personal niche/style that people would see as unique.

[minipilling]

I forgot to say, Covid may put people off or they would want to know how safe your kitchen is, but either way the points in my previous post should be considered first.

[AdriannaP]

I wouldn’t.

As others have said there are tons of similar products on Facebook. I never buy any of them - they are usually overpriced rubbish.

[Elsewyre]

@chocolatetreats21

I have a new business idea, I want to make chocolate covered treats from home and sell them. I just don’t know if people would buy it considering the whole COVID situation? What do you think?

If you want to do any tempered chocolate (the stuff that snaps/is a normal chocolate bar chocolate


It's an absolute shut cunt to do in a house especially in winter humidity fucks it.