This is probably a mad idea but I'd welcome your opinions...

[lovecat]

At dd's party I was asked by 3 separate people if I made cakes for a living (pic of dd's butterfly cake on my profile). I was also asked this last week by a woman at church who had won my Christmas cake in the raffle and wanted a similar one for her mum's 100th birthday. I don't, but I do love making cake and without wishing to sound big-headed, so far (swiftly crosses fingers) the taste of my cakes is always raved about.

Now, this has kind of got me thinking...hmmm... maybe I should look into this as a business idea? We could do with the money and it's something I really enjoy doing... I already work part time and am not about to give that up to leap into full on cake-making, but is there much of a market out there for home-made, non-industrially decorated occasion cakes? I'd have assumed that most people who care about whether a cake is home-made or not would probably want to make their own, to be honest...

I've googled various things and there isn't a great deal out there about how you go about setting up a business like this and the food safety requirements (I'm assuming I'd need a food hygiene cert and certain 'proper' equipment?) and I'd want to go on a sugarcraft course before I set up, to make sure I knew what I was doing (my icing is the thing that lets my cakes down, tbh), but having googled home-made and hand-made cake, there isn't a huge amount of competition out there - which leads me to think there's not actually that much demand?

What do you reckon? Has anyone else gone down this route and did it work for you?

Call your local council and I expect they'll be ableot tellyou th elegal aspects.

Call your local council and I expect they'll be ableot tellyou th elegal aspects.

I remember hearing something along the lines of: if you want to go into the foodie/cake making business, and set it up as an independent business, then you need a separate, full H&S inspected professional kitchen (you know, like you see in hotels/restaurants etc - all steel...) You cannot make the cakes in your own home kitchen. I think it is this that probably puts a lot of people off from pursuing it as a viable business.

I might be wrong though, and am willing to be corrected...

No I think some people actually would buy them (personally I like my slightly cack-handed homemade cakes best )

here's a google search so you can eye up what others are doing

I'd start with commissions for friends to be honest but be sure thta what you are charging covers the costs / time .. tbh whenever I've been asked to do stuff for other people I've found it difficult to actually make enough and end up getting about 50p an hour after costs .. but then it was stuff I did for my pleasure

Friend of mine used to do cakes for people, but it was all unofficial.
He was a chef, and people would ask him to do children's birthday cakes, etc., but he never went official because it would be very complicated, so it was all "doing a favour for a friend of a friend" type thing.
Maybe try out the idea by doing some for friends only and see how you get on first, before you invest in specialist equipment etc.

Ahhhh, that's probably it, CS! Thanks littlerach, I've looked up the Food Safety guidelines and will contact the local council if I decide to take it further.

Actually, we do have a separate outbuilding in the back garden which I kind of had ear-marked for my kiln (the pottery is deffo a hobby, no-one in their right minds would pay good money for my cack-handed chubby dragons and carthorse unicorns!) but which could easily do as a kitchen... but then you're into CGT when you move, aren't you? I shall have to investigate further...

Ta for the links, Twig, I know what you mean about costs and overheads, I need to go and research it in a lot more detail before tis anything more than an idle daydream and I commit to anything. This was more of a 'is there actually anyone out there who would pay for one of my wobbly yet delicious cakes?' kind of thing!

well how much would you charge?
you'd have to charge proper money, taking in to account cost of ingredients, fuel - cooking fuel and petrol if you deliver, your time and your skill.

I used to have as mall catering business and I never did cakes although I was asked because people didn't want to pay proper money for anything other than wedding cakes and I had no skill in that area.

I think youare on the right track with the hygiene cert etc, you would also need buisness insurance and I think it would be beneficial doing some market research in the form of laminating some pictures of your cakes and stopping people in the street and asking them how much they would pay for one of them. Or what about a stall at a craft fair, that oculd get you a customer base or even some retailers or caterers needing a cake supplier

You should find out what your basic ingredients would cost bought in bulk and check ou ahve enough storage space - you will need to have dry ingredients in plastic bins, and would you need a new oven or work space etc.

good luck

also, what would be your USP? Why buy a cake from you and not M&S? I am thinking it woudl have to be the bespoke/versatility/specialist aspect, and you should charge for that.

You know if I was doing it all again, I would find a couple of local caterers and approach them and try and get them to sell your produce as part of their whole package, of course they'd make a mark up on it but you wouldn't have to do the donkey work of dealing with the very fickle and stingy general public and you would have bookings way in advance which is vital for the small business person

Thanks suzy and potoftea (sorry, I must have xposted with you, wasn't ignoring you!).

If (big if) I went into it properly, I was thinking of taking a stall at the local monthly Farmer's Market for the 'ordinary' cakes (LDC, Brownies, Choc fudge, cupcakes etc)and having a display book with photos of the fancier ones (plus some sample slices to taste), for orders, then maybe some local news ads and word of mouth. The catering idea is a very good one, I hadn't thought of that!

I need to go away and do some serious costings... but thank you very much for your input!

you sound like you've got a very realistic grasp on it all

good luck

don't forget you will need LOTS of cake boxes and baseboards - I used to have a fabulous shop in a Land That Time Forgot aka Bounds Green that sold all sorts of paper goods, even some goldy coloured paper baking tins IYSWIM that you could present in as well as bake in .... mmmmm happy days

best of luck and let me know how you get on

btw as I'm sure you know I am the Brownie Queen and one can't cut corners with their ingredients therefore you have to really watch you put on a mark up consistent with your other produce unless you want to push them as a taster and a loss -leader.

I think people would buy them but I think you may have more of a market for things like wedding cakes, in which case you would definitely need to know your stuff re icing.

I believe that you can use your own kitchen, but that it had to comply with certain standards, so as part of your food hygiene cert your kitchen would be inspected to ensure that it complies with the necessary standards.

I've thought about doing this, not professional cakes as my icing skills are crap, but little cakes/biscuits/brownies etc which I know are good, but tbh I don't know if I could find a market for them. But your idea of having a stall at farmer's market has just made me think again.

My sister used to do this. She went on an evening sugarcraft course and then on a college course (which was more in depth and advised on legalities etc.).

She really enjoyed it and her cakes were fabulous but it was very time-consuming. She gave it up after a while because she found it was too time consuming for what she made money-wise from doing it.

One thing I would say is work out all your costs in full before you think about prices...it's not just ingredients, there's also the electricity and your time (there's lots of little bits that are easy to forget about like cake boards, etc.)

i would love a home made cake for my dds birthday but i am rubbish i would pay for a lovely home made one but i have to be honest i wouldnt pay more than £40 x

Thanks all for your comments and input - wannabe, that's interesting to know about doing it from your own kitchen, will investigate further.

One thing I forgot to put re. Suzy's comment on my USP is that, thanks to my 4 years of Atkinsising, I can make bleddy lovely carb-free choc muffins and other cakes which are also suitable for diabetics, and after dd's early gluten intolerance issues, I can do pretty good gluten-free cakes as well - so that's something else I can advertise...

twospecialgirls - thanks, that's worth knowing - I will go away and cost dd's birthday cake and see how much I would have to charge to cover costs and overheads!

I think home made cakes/tray bakes at the farmer's market yes, but 'fancy' birthday cakes no.

I make cakes (have done sugarcraft courses etc) but only for my own children and close friends - normally for cost of ingredients only.

A really ornate cake (eg my DD's sleeping beauty castle cake or copy of close friends veg garden) could take 4 plus hours to ice (individual flowers, leaves, carrots or courgettes etc) plus time to bake and cost of ingredients (up to £20 as I no longer make my own fondant icing and good coloured fondant is £2-3 per 500g, I may use 4 packs for a big cake).

With the quality of the mass produced ones nowadays people are unwilling to pay what it would really cost to make these when they can buy one for Waitrose etc for £20.

I am happy to give 4 hours of my time for free but would be insulted if anyone thought that was only worth £20.

Lovecat - my local greengrocer sells home-made cakes, they are the sort you would have for coffee etc.

Could you see if a loacle shop would sell your cakes on a commision basis.

I think all mty dd2 birthday cakes have come from the supermarket sorry - but it is quick and easy to pop in and buy one rather than order one.

if though I could pop to the greengrocer and get one then I would.

If my milk man was deliviering them then I would!!

Thanks, mms, useful to know.

(I have to say, I know I'm probably a very limited and niche market here but I have an absolute horror of fondant (taste, texture, everything about it!) and so I don't use it, so I can't make those sorts of cakes - royal, buttercream or nothing with me! )

Your garden cake sounds wonderful, though

Farmers markets might be the way to go & as you say have "portfoliio" for bespoke occasion cakes which folk don't mind paying for.

Re the Environmental health angle. As long as you can prove your kitchen is spotless no dogs allowed during cooking & have a seperate fridge you CAN get away with it - but a seperate kitchen would be better. A friend of mine tried to do the same as you & that's what they advised.

Our EHO was great when I wanted advice before setting up my nursery & came & gave us an advisory visit. It helps to know what they require in terms of tiling/splashbacks/ventilation so it can be built into your costings.

Shouldn't impact on your CGT when selling your house I would have thought as long as it is clearly for business use & not residential purpposes. Might even be a selling point with so many people working from home these days!! Could you ask a local estate agent out of interest?

Good Luck.

Thanks BB.

PS - Marmaduke Scarlet - I meant to say, wonderful nickname! The Little White Horse was my favourite book when I was a child

Thanks lovecat, I wanted to be MariaMerryweather but it was already taken. I loved TLWH as a child and my DD has just read it for the first time and went as MM to bookday.

I hope you don't think my post was too negative, fwiw I loath the taste of fondant too, I wish you all the best with your venture.

I admired your cake on the birthday thread but have name changed as I was boring myself!