Think outside of the (cake) box
Whilst your physical shop might be your biggest income generator, it’s also worth considering other different routes to market.
Not only can they supplement your earnings, they could also appeal to a totally different customer dynamic.
So, are you ready to think outside of the box?
Food delivery services
Having food delivered to your home via the likes of Deliveroo and JustEat has become the norm – and it’s not just Saturday night takeaways! Lots of the bakery ‘big boys’ and jumping on the delivery bandwagon after realising its lucrative potential. Greggs, for example, believes there is a £170million opportunity for it through delivery – with £70million of this coming from delivery in the evening – over the next five years. What’s more, its average basket size through delivery is three times that of walk-in sales. And there’s no reason why smaller, independent bakeries can’t take advantage too.
‘Post’ production
If you make the best brownies in the land, make sure everyone in the land can access them!
Next day delivery and in some cases, same day delivery, means that you can now ship your bakes to customers all over the UK.
Cake Box, which focuses on egg-free celebration cakes, has seen online sales flourish with 84% growth in 2020/21, so could your business be the next postal sensation?
Packaging is key, and traybakes and brownies work best because they fit in letterbox size boxes for easy delivery.
In addition to your regular selections, offer bakes themed to specific calendar events such as Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Halloween and Christmas, which can be bought as gifts or enjoyed by the customer themself.
Subscription services
Incentivise customers to ‘subscribe and save’ by signing up to a regular delivery service on a rolling monthly or bi-monthly basis.
It’s predicted that Brits spend more than £2billion every year on the overall subscription market, and food products make a large percentage of this.
Customers love the excitement and convenience of getting their favourite bakes on repeat. You could also offer seasonal tasting boxes which offer the element of surprise.
Gift subscriptions are an added element and you should email a gift voucher that can be printed and emailed to the recipient.
Also think about offering specialist boxes, such as gluten-free or vegan.
‘Bake at home’
Make your customers be the star of the show by giving them everything they need to bake their own showstopper.
From brownies to cupcakes, to seasonally themed creations, the sky’s the limit when it comes to ‘bake at home’ boxes.
As well as the ingredients, also consider including biscuit cutters, muffin cases and cake stands, as well as key utensils and moulds.
You could also make them age-specific with variations for children, teens and adults.
Find articles like this and other trending topics in our publication The Whisk.
