How To Start Your Own Cake Business – How to start baking at home? You’re at the start of an exciting journey – our 10-step guide will help you get there.
From learning how to bake at home in the UK, to selling cakes at home, here’s what you need to know.
How To Start Your Own Cake Business
When you start a home baking business, you must tell HMRC that you are self-employed, so they know that you must pay tax through the self-assessment system. If you want to cook at home, you should do it even if you have a part-time job or something.
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Defining yourself as a sole trader – the simplest business structure – is to tell HMRC what you need to do to register your business. If you want to set it up as a limited company instead, the process is a bit more complicated. See our step-by-step guide to setting up a limited company for more information.
Butterwick Bakeries, a Midland-based bakery, shares its story of starting a bakery in this video:
First, if you’re new to food hygiene, consider getting a food hygiene certificate, Level 2 Hygiene Certificate. This is a good way to understand the rules you must follow.
Home businesses also undergo a food hygiene inspection, where you receive a hygiene rating of one to five. Once you have registered your business, the local authority will arrange a home visit.
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In general, your kitchen and facilities should be clean and in good condition. You should practice good food hygiene in your kitchen, including cleaning and controlling contamination and pests. However, your home cooking business does not compare to a large commercial establishment such as a restaurant.
Ideally, you’d need a separate refrigerator for your personal food, but if that’s not possible, you’ll need to determine which food is appropriate for your business and make sure it’s free of contamination.
Keep pets away from kitchens and food preparation areas. Children are not allowed in the kitchen while cooking.
Finally, remember to follow food label guidelines and Natasha’s Law when it comes to allergen information.
Set Up On Your Own Cake Business
The Food Standards Agency has a number of tools you can use for home baking, including the Safer Food Package, which is based on the Safety Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles.
There is also a guide to health and safety in restaurants, catering and catering businesses which may be useful for your cake business.
Another rule of thumb when starting a cake business is to register your home with your local council’s environmental protection agency at least 28 days before you start trading. It costs you nothing and you cannot unsubscribe. Someone will come to your house and find where you are cooking. Use the food registration tool to contact your local authority.
Keep in mind that the rules we’ve listed in this article are just a guide. If you are unsure about anything, it is best to ask your local environmental authority for advice.
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Business insurance is essential when starting a bakery business. Public liability insurance and product liability insurance (often sold together) can cover you if a member of the public makes a claim for injury or damage.
For example, if someone gets sick after eating one of your cakes, or if you knock over an expensive vase while delivering the cake to a customer’s home, a lawsuit could be filed.
If a home bakery has employees, it has stock insurance and equipment insurance, as well as employers’ liability insurance. Visit our home bakers insurance page to get started.
If your property is rented, you must obtain permission from your landlord to operate your business. However, the law says that a landlord cannot unreasonably withhold or delay a permit. If you own a home, you may need to get permission from your mortgage lender to start a home cooking business.
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There are so many bakery businesses out there that you need to think about how to differentiate yourself. You can specialize in vegetarian or gluten-free cakes, for example focusing on children’s birthday cakes or wedding cakes.
Since cakes are difficult to transport, you need to know your local market well, as most customers need to be close by for delivery or pick-up.
Your website should include important information such as what you do, where you are, and how people can order, and include plenty of photos.
A Google Business Profile is an important part of any local advertising strategy. This means they will appear on Google Search and Google Maps when people search for cake businesses in their area. If customers can’t visit your home to buy your cakes, you can hide your home address in your listing and act as a local delivery company.
How To Start A Successful Cake Business
Create a Twitter account, Facebook page and Instagram account for your business and keep it updated with posts and photos.
Connecting with other people on social media is important, so take a few minutes each day to like and comment on other people’s posts and follow relevant accounts.
Another idea is to record video tutorials and cooking tips and post them on YouTube or TikTok. Or why not publish your recipes as a chef and share them on Instagram? This is a great way to promote yourself as a baker while creating a new revenue channel for your business.
Even if you start a baking business at home, it’s good to get out there and tell people about your business and build a local reputation.
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Consider visiting the store at local food events, including food markets and festivals. To promote your cake business, you can offer free samples to people, sell cakes, give out leaflets and flyers.
Since you are self-employed, you need to track your income and business expenses so that you can enter this information when you file your tax return.
Our guide to taxable expenses can help you figure out which expenses you can deduct. Remember to keep your receipts as HMRC may ask for proof of your expenses.
You’ll also want to use a budget calculator and choose the best business bank account to keep your personal finances separate.
Do You Have What It Takes To Start Your Own Business?
People need to find your amazing cakes, so it’s important to think about marketing strategies. Consider other ways to market your cakes to local events and use social media to reach potential customers.
For example, if you’re in the business of wedding cakes, you could advertise in a wedding dress shop or partner with a local wedding venue.
If you make a vegan pie, you can get permission to post a flyer at a local vegetarian restaurant or write a guest post for a popular vegetarian blog.
You can also try Google Pay Per Click (PPC) ads or Facebook ads, but narrow down your audience to a local area so that your ads only appear to people in your delivery zone.
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Download our free business plan template to outline everything from your startup idea and funding to your marketing strategy and growth plans.
Harpreet Kaur is the owner of Oh So Yum Dessert Parlor and shares her tips for growing your business.
If you don’t want to start a cake business, there are many creative home business ideas you can start. Why not consider:
Have more questions about starting a home baking business? Ask them in the comments below.
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As the UK’s largest business insurance provider, we protect more businesses than anyone else. Why not take a look now and create a quick, customized home cooking insurance policy?
Sam has over 10 years of experience in financial services. It covers complex topics from IR35 to ISA and identifies emerging trends that audiences want to know about. Sam worked as a senior copywriter at Simply Business for five years.
This content is provided for general information and should not be construed as advice. Always seek professional advice. Read our full review
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Hi, I am Erick Norman. A blogger specialist in Kitchen Design.