Question about Potential Cake Baker

alfdallas21

ok ladies here's the deets (i.e. - details) regarding a bakery I had a consultation with last week:PRO #1) amazing cake presentations & conceptsPRO #2) their cakes taste & smell off the chain!! (super PLUS in my book)PRO #3) they are an AA vendorPRO #4) they are less than 10 mins away from my homeCON #1) their price is the highest out of all quotes rcvd.CON# 2) they seem somewhat unprofessional CON# 3) see #2 so from all of the bakeries I've been to so far (5 in all), this particular bakery has provided what I want in the cake for my DH surprise b-day HOWEVER the price quoted is out of my budget PLUS they weren't very professional (it was like "oh you one of US so we don't have to be professional with you;we'll just talk slang and K.I.M.")...now I knew they were an AA vendor prior to my consultation appt but I did not think I was going to love the taste samples and their presentation as much as I did, so my questions are:should I even bother with them (because of the unprofessionalism presented)?if I choose them as the cake vendor, should I attempt to negotiate their quote down?if I negotiate their quote down, how do I go about doing it??

tamishae77

I cannot deal with unprofessionalism.  But that's just me.  If the cake was that good, maybe you can work with them, but that is a huge problem for me, especially if they are expensive.  But if you really like them and want to go with them I think you should attempt to negotiate price.  I would suggest simply telling them how much you like they're cake and would like to support their business, however, you expected to spend x amount of dollars on your wedding cake and then ask them if they are willing to offer you a discount.  If not, I would not go with them. 

alfdallas21

see that's what I was thinking too but I wasn't "set"...just needed to hear it from someone else who isn't close to the situation like l am...thank you for your honest input - I needed to hear it! so the search continues in finding the right bakery...LOL! 

alfdallas21

BTW - I do have another consultation tomorrow with another baker so I'm keeping an open mind and hope to get this off my "to do" list so I can concentrate on the invitations and favors next...

the cat

Ok. Do u really wanna contract these people, pay your hard earned money, only for the cake to be late? Or worse not be made at all? NOT saying that will happen but unprofessionalism seems to manifest itself in many ways at the WRONG time! And then they expensive to boot. I'm sure u can find what you're looking for elsewhere. I'd rather have someone ultra professional that will give me something 'just about' what I'm looking for than to have someone with mad skillz have me wondering if my stuff gonna be right and on time! Happy searching!

alfdallas21

hey cat...yeah I came to my senses after tamishae77's response because I was sorta leaning toward the KR (kick rocks) attitude about this particular bakery but needed to get y'alls opinion to help me out...as you can imagine there are several other bakeries to try out in Dallas but I'm getting frustrated at the same time and was thinking about "settling"...I know, I know, what a horrible thought but hayle I'm tired of driving around talking about this damn cake...LOL!  I have an appt tomorrow with a baker and then there are two more bakeries I will visit Monday...after that I should be able to make my decision so that I can move on to other stuff regarding his surprise b-day party...

aquarius125

ALF -  I agree with pp's. As far as the cake tasting are concerned are there any big bridal shows in ur area that way you could sample cakes without driving all over the world. I know how you feel we went to one baker and I was all ready to settle with her but you got to keep your options open. If you find someone who you like and their price is a little steep inform them of their competition. Another baker on their level that is in watch how the price falls. Ask around and get recs. HTH and GL

tamishae77

Best of luck to you.  I know how you feel about wanting to scratch things off of your to do list.  I hope things work out better with the other cake baker.  Keep us informed of the outcome.

Spim7

I think you should see if there are any reviews you can find on them to see if their unprofessionalism carries over to things like showing up late to deliver the cake, not following through on the quality of cake design, taste etc. when completing an order, how they relate to other vendors at your ceremony location etc. If they have great reviews and maybe just had a one day lapse of professionalism and their quality is truly better than other cake vendors maybe paying a little more is worth it. I'd definitely try and negotiate their price down into your budget range. Be honest with them. Let them know that you like their product but can't afford it and you've found other cake vendors that are willing to work in your budget. Alot of vendors are willing to negotiate they want to make the sale and keep not lose business.