What is the cost of a luxury wedding cake, and why?

This is probably a blog post on most cake makers websites and the topic of much debate from both sides of the coin.

Let me first say that I completely get that the wedding cake isn’t that important to everyone, nor does everyone have a huge budget (or would want to spend that much if they did) – but there is room for designers that want to push the limits and create beautiful work, and clients that want to commission such work. There is a market, and room for all levels.

I recently had an enquiry from a lady wanting an incredibly detailed cake with around 12 characters, structural elements, possibly a two tier etc etc – budget? £120.

My immediate thought of course is ‘are you taking the you know what’ but, to be fair unless you actually make cakes I don’t suppose you have any fathoming of how a cake is made and the time it takes. I certainly didn’t before I started.

Pricing of a cake is a mixture of any amount of factors.

Complexity of design & time

Some sugar work takes longer than other sugar work. As an example the small blossoms on my ‘Lilacs’ cake took me 3 plus days for a relatively small cake. Large peonies to cover the same area take less time. What is true for all sugar flowers however is that this is expert work, not just cut out and stuck on – I wire most of my petals for a more realistic look and movement. It looks great but it takes time and care, a lot of it. Same with modelling on custom cakes, all hand crafted and hand painted – it takes creativity, problem solving, patience, skill.

Is a cake more expensive just because it’s for a wedding? Well, yes, but not because we are out to exploit. A wedding is a one off day not to be repeated, it is a lot more pressure and fundamentally it requires a larger margin of error in terms of time. If I have wedding order on, I will not take anything else on to ensure that your cake is as perfect as possible and this time does have to be accounted for. As a client I would not have it any other way.

Originality and aesthetic

I aim to create unique design, I am very much a designer rather than a cake maker. This holds value as the essence of the end result, but it is inherently unquantifiable. An understanding of this elevates the scope of work you can create for a client and offers a diverse choice and creative freedom for the designer. Original isn’t something that is churned out, it’s taken time to create.

Expertise

That quote that gets everywhere ‘you are not paying for the *cake* you are paying for the 10 years it has taken me to get to this point’ (or words to that effect…) It is very true. It takes dedication to become the best you can be at something, and this should be recognised in the pricing. Expertise and originality are those difficult to quantify elements that trip up many a maker in any creative field when it comes to prcing.

Fixed costs

It’s not just flour and eggs (which are themselves extortionate now).

Cake making involves two kitchens worth of equipment – edibles, wires, colours, pastes, moulds, dummies, specialist modelling equipment – anything you can imagine we will at some point need it. Heavier kitchen kit such as the ovens, mixers, fondant sheeters.

Utilities, sundries – hygiene products, cling film, laundry, boards, boxes (this list is pretty endless)

Rental or upkeep of premises, vehicles, websites, insurance, promotion and marketing products, computers, photography equipment…. At least three years sat on social media trying to fathom the latest change, benchmarking, research - it all adds up.

Engaging with his does place me in the luxury cake price point and it does involve a huge amount of expense – to make enough on each cake for an actual living just does mean a high price point, but I appreciate it is a niche market.

There are tweaks that can be made if you really want a certain designers cake but are working to a budget - maybe a smaller cake to cut then source ‘kitchen’ cake to serve, less sugar work or be creative with placement to keep time down, larger more stylised blooms that offer more efficient coverage etc. Do always ask what a designer can offer, but please don’t insult!

I absolutely love doing what I do – I look forward to sugar work (the more mind bendingly intricate the better), but even now it is sometimes a struggle to compete. Like a lot of wedding vendors and creatives, imposter syndrome does affect how you value your own work and worth - it is so important to do this. I can be a little more flexible as I don’t have a London studio and a lot of staff, but I do need to have a word with myself sometimes when it comes to quoting! My ADHD makes this more difficult for me and many others in creative industries, and it has taken me a long time to place my work, and be confident in doing so.

I hope that even if you still think it’s not worth it, (and that’s fine!) that this gives a little understanding into the processes and skill that make up the cost of a luxury cake.