Baking is a creative art skill that needs passion and a touch of innovation for customized cakes.
The modern-day person graces all occasions with a cake. If there is something that a baker appreciates is customer challenges. Some have the weirdest idea, while others copy what they see on the internet and want you to crack it.
It is only possible to have the right equipment, personnel, and skills for relevance in the market.
A workable marketing strategy for a baker is the quality of your work. It’s the best marketing tool since a cake is shared by many and more so friends.
People want to work with the best; when they like it, you are sure of referrals. Social media is also a good platform; your customers will post your work and tag your page.
That is evidence of exemplary work based on customer reviews. What should you have as a modern baker?
Importance and Benefits of Large Scale Purchases
Undoubtedly, the practice of bulk buying is essential because of the benefits it has. Besides the fact that it helps people save by cutting costs, it also reduces packaging waste. Additionally, large-scale purchasing helps to decrease transportation expenditure. That’s because buying plenty limits the number of times you need to go to the stores.
Ultimately, it’s good for the environment as there’s less waste and less emitted carbon from frequent transportation. Thus, it creates a more efficient system of running things in your establishment. That’s because you can purchase supplies once and not have to worry about it for a while. Subsequently, we’ll discuss the unique benefits to homes and dining establishments.
1. Kitchen tools
2. Creative skills
Your work is all in the kitchen. Constant production of tasty and delicious cakes from your oven makes your customers yearn for more and more bits from your kitchen.
The right tools dictate the kind of work. If you need a smooth fondant cake, a fondant roller is a must-have.
For handmade cakes, you also require decorative equipment. The equipment necessary begins from preparation to cooking to decoration. Here are the essential kitchen tools for you
- Mixer
- Automatic oven
- Weighing scale
- Baking set
- Fondant mixer
- Fondant knife
The list is endless; you can’t purchase everything in one go; you need to have them on a need-to-need basis.
When pricing your cake, you also include the equipment to make profits. The advantage, they are durables that are once-off.
Like any creative industry, you need to have a high level of creativity to become relevant in the modern market.
Being a combination of art and science makes you a student any time you work on a customer’s cakes?
The many flavor and cake designs, both complex and straightforward, make the work easy and manageable. You have to think beyond the box to make sure you crack all the recipes with ease.
3. Interpersonal skills
How do you talk to your customers? Are you open to correction and easy to work with? Do you manage your orders on time?
In case of any delay, how do you relay the information and react to their disappointment?
What you do should dictate whether the customer leaves or stays?
If they leave them, your public relation is top-notch, and you need to only work on your strengths.
You can only get this from negative reviews from customers.
The most relevant interpersonal skills include
- Attention to detail
- Curiosity
- Dedication and a high level of patience
- Good communication skills
- Great organization skills
4. Sanitation facilities
Space is crucial for every baker. Can you manage short orders for complex cake designs? That’s what differentiates a primary baker from an intermediate baker and a professional baker.
With the bit of kitchen space, can you organize yourself and still give the best in yourself? Hygiene is crucial for any baker; without it, you may have to go through expensive legal suits in the corridors of justice for something you could easily avoid.
The most basic sanitation facility a professional baker should consider is a clean and constant flow of water.
It’s the essential ingredient, for it dictates your level of hygiene. The purity of water is vital to avoid risking the lives of your customers.
That is a factor to consider when choosing a house or a commercial premise. It should be in an area with several water bodies that provide wide coverage for that constant supply.
5. Make-work easy kitchen appliances
You will understand the power of your kitchen appliances when you have many orders that require urgent delivery.
If you are to go manual, you aren’t ready to be a professional baker in the modern pastry market.
Investment is your strength as you work with the oven. If you are to keep things warm or make the reagents rise.
Do you have the right kitchen equipment? Here is a list of some of the kitchen appliances you should consider
- Electric kettle for warming water
- Microwave for quick warming of ingredients and dough
- Refrigerator and freezer for cooling purposes
- Blender for mixing ingredients
6. Knowledge and baking skills
You have the skills but are you’re relevant in the modern cake market? Can you differentiate a back forest cake and a white forest cake from a chocolate cake?
That’s the point your baking skills are on trial. It doesn’t matter where you get the knowledge, whether you get it from a renowned baker or self-training from technological sites.
A baker should always be a student if they have to get the best for their customers; otherwise, competition will throw you out.
It’s evident being a baker is not all about the oven. It is a broad journey that involves your relations, knowledge base in cracking different recipes, and your passion and zeal to learn and become the best in the market.
Arm yourself with the right skills and equipment that will make your work easy and manageable. What you need also depends on the situation at hand.
You can’t have everything all at once as you expand; also, broaden your expertise through capacity building and investing in the more extensive equipment to accommodate the demand.