Cupcake business

[fabcakes 10]

it will take a while before you get up & running

you will usually find once people have

ordered off you if they like what they taste

& also in looks etc they will come back to you if they

think its good value for money

& will also put the word round about you as well

people can go to tesco's for cupcakes etc because

they are cheaper but their isn't as much love & care

gone into them as what we put into them

[pete_jim 10]

Whoopee pies - the new cupcakes.

[Ian Thompson 10]

I would suggest sending free samples to users of this page -mines chocolate please!

[indizine 10]

Chocolate orange for me please! with glitter!!

[bebe234 10]

thankyou everyone for the fab advice.think i will be looking at repricing as you all said its the quality of the product not the price thanks

[Ron Burgundy 10]

thankyou everyone for the fab advice.think i will be looking at repricing as you all said its the quality of the product not the price thanks

 

Good idea. The quality will add to the taste and general experience that your customers have.

 

There seems to be a few cupcake businesses around- Fancy being the obvious, but I've noticed a couple of other businesses appear last year, as well as internet only.

 

I would do some Mystery Shopping to get a feel for the other offers, then position yourself accordingly. For example, if you have a small budget, don't dive into opening a shop. Can you sell via the web, or via other retail outlets? Who's your target market- can you do a tasting session aimed at these people?

 

I'm no expert on cupcakes, but does that have to be the only part of your offer? Muffins, large cakes, pop-cakes (??look like cupcakes on lollipop sticks??) I've seen all these things around.

 

Ask yourself and everyone you meet the question "what would encourage you to buy from me? What flavours would you like? What's missing from my offer?" Questions like this, and don't ask leading ones- let people give you their opinion.

 

Above all, make sure you can afford to fail. Not in a negative way, but a protective way. Can you survive the first year with little/ no money? If not, then maybe now is not the time, or you need to re-adjust your strategy.

 

Here endeth the sermon! (sorry) Good Luck whatever your decision

[indizine 10]

Could you design them with our business name/logos on them? That would be good if you could. I'd buy some of those. I already have some personalsied chocolates for clients as little handouts, but designer personalised cup cakes would go down well on some occasions too.

[ledgerkeeper 10]

The big trend in the US has now moved from cupcakes to pies, we do seem to follow the us in retail things so just a thought. What about the kind of things SPRUNGLI do with their macaroons. I would love to see these in a shop and would buy loads. Lots more potential as well for different flavours and themes.

[bebe234 10]

Good idea. The quality will add to the taste and general experience that your customers have.

 

There seems to be a few cupcake businesses around- Fancy being the obvious, but I've noticed a couple of other businesses appear last year, as well as internet only.

 

I would do some Mystery Shopping to get a feel for the other offers, then position yourself accordingly. For example, if you have a small budget, don't dive into opening a shop. Can you sell via the web, or via other retail outlets? Who's your target market- can you do a tasting session aimed at these people?

 

I'm no expert on cupcakes, but does that have to be the only part of your offer? Muffins, large cakes, pop-cakes (??look like cupcakes on lollipop sticks??) I've seen all these things around.

 

Ask yourself and everyone you meet the question "what would encourage you to buy from me? What flavours would you like? What's missing from my offer?" Questions like this, and don't ask leading ones- let people give you their opinion.

 

Above all, make sure you can afford to fail. Not in a negative way, but a protective way. Can you survive the first year with little/ no money? If not, then maybe now is not the time, or you need to re-adjust your strategy.

 

Here endeth the sermon! (sorry) Good Luck whatever your decision

 

yeah i can do muffins,cookies and whoopie pues as well.

thanks for the great advice xx

[oooh_hello 10]

Hi Bebe

 

My partner started off with truffles at prices that undercut everyone else but found that she needed to charge more (with product qualitiy increases too) to sell more.

Just think about your customer base, if theyre the sort that think 'I can get 50 cupcakes from costco for £2.29' then youre looking at the wrong market.

Fancies sell at the prices they do, but have reduced the quality of their products in order to expand, by trading off their past quality and slowly people are learning theyre being cheated.

 

Personally I cant wait for the 'overpriced bun with too much icing on' fad to fade.

 

Ben

[paulabear 10]

What about going to small local sandwich shops and give a promotional sample. Leave your card leaflet etc. Take photos of your different designs I suggest this because when I worked in a local sandwich shop my boss tried to get an independent baker for such things eg wedding cakes. Cupcakes are quite sort after for this as a option to a traditional wedding cake. Just an idea and hope you get it off the ground sounds delicious.

[Tony 10]

Perhaps ask the question of Rachel Bridge (Sunday Times Enterprise Editor) since she has opinions about the cupcake business?

 

http://www.google.co.uk/search?aq=f&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=Rachel+Bridge+%E2%80%93+Enterprise+Editor

 

But who is the market? 49% of people (men) don't get cupcakes. The moment may have passed, has the fad gone stale, is demand is going sour?

 

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article7081420.ece

 

There’s also something unsettling at the heart of cupcake culture. A recent visit to one of the many cupcake bakeries in London saw it packed with women in their thirties, cooing over the cutesy, calorie-jammed treats as if they were newborn babies, which for many is part of the problem. “What frustrates me is the way cupcakes have been so completely embraced by otherwise sensible adult women,” says the food blogger Sophie Jordan. “Glitter, heart-shaped sprinkles, pink frosting: these are the most infantilised baked goods imaginable.” It seems the fact that cupcakes now represent a lifestyle choice, rather than just a nice bit of cake, is causing some serious bad feeling, with one dissenter describing those who like them as “the kind of women who speak in baby voices to their partner”.

 

The gourmet equivalent of mutton dressed as lamb, cupcakes are, after all, essentially just tarted-up fairy cakes. They might be smothered in sprinkles and have enough icing for an entire kids’ tea party, but underneath it all, one thing remains: an overhyped fairy cake, just like the ones your mum taught you to make, aged four. And it’s not just the food bloggers and cooks who’ve had it up to their (slightly rotten) back teeth with cupcakes — you can now buy anti-cupcake mugs, T-shirts and even knickers. The AntiCupcake Company, based in San Francisco (slogan: “Down with the cupcake; up with the cheesecake”), has also jumped on the bandwagon, peddling mini cheesecakes.