labour ratio...for dividing costs etc

[joko]

me and my friend are thinking of getting together and making bespoke fancy cakes to sell.

we are not starting a business, just going to make a few for fun and hopefully sell a few as an when... they will be pretty elaborate and have a very artistic sculptural element to them...

however, i am the arty one and my friend is a good cook...so basically she will bake the cake and do any fillings etc, and i will decorate it...

i know the sculpted elements will take a while as i want to do proper models - not the simple blocky sort of cartoon ones you usually see...

so i'm wondering how we would go about spiltting the price etc...i cant see the labour being evenly spilt...she bakes a cake and i spend hours designing and modelling etc...however she will have electricity costs to add to the outgoings, they will be minimal but expenses nonetheless, and i will deliver it as i have a car.

so how do we split this up? do we split cost of materials we evenly? consumables and cake tins etc

or would i be better just paying her a standard fee for each cake she makes, and i keep the sale fee, and pay for all materials etc?

or we both pay for everything needed for 'our bit'? - such as she buys all flour, eggs, flavourings, dirty icing, flat icing and trim, and any equipment she needs, and i pay for modeling icing, colourings, trimimgs, adornments, brushes and equipment i need etc

any ideas what would be best? i dont want her to feel its unfair or anything.

as it seems like id have the more complex, time consuming job so not sure we should split it all evenly... she may be able to decorate the cake fully though, dont know yet, then i will just have to add a centrepiece or any particularly arty additions...

thanks

[bimbo123456]

You will probably find the the cost of the icing and any colouring/ribbon etc will far outweigh the cost of the cake itself. Have you tried discussing this with your friend? With the cost of ready iced cakes being so cheap in the shops it is really a labour of love. BTW what is dirty icing????

If you are starting a proper business you will have to consider health and safety and will need an inspection of both your kitchens. Good luck!!

[boxtops]

why don't you split the cost of all the materials 50-50 between you, then work out how long it takes her to make the cake, and how long it takes you to decorate it, and each of you take the same hourly rate as pay according to how long your part takes? That is then your cost of cake, and you then add your profit. You will need to consider public liability insurance too, just in case someone tries to claim from you if the cake makes them ill (sorry, but we have to look at worst case scenario when assessing risks!). Remember the WI too, you may need a Health & Safety certificate and different equipment etc for your kitchens- and possibly overalls etc.

[joko]

cheers.

dirty icing is cream icing put on first to make the rolled icing stick