I get asked multiple times a day about the products I use and the suppliers I have and as I’ve spent years refining what I like and don’t like, why not save people time and share the information?
Let's kick off with cake boxes - oodles of suppliers out there and oodles of different types and quality of cake boxes to choose from.
As most cakes these days are pretty tall, the usual cake boxes don't cut the grade anymore so cake boxes need to be tall, firm and easy to construct.
I had been buying a few tall cake boxes here and there around Sydney but I have several issues with them:
The price - can range from $8 to $15 a box - I started to give my clients the choice of a cake box to be included in their order for $10 and most were happy to take the cake without it - given the pricing.
The quality - I remember buying a dozen boxes from one place and the cardboard was so flimsy, even constructed they had a slight lean and threatened to touch my cake (omg!!!). The tabs would tear even in trying to put it together and boxes can't hold the weight of a cake, but at least stay together and upright when put together is a good start! These would lean ......
Size does matter - yes just like in life, size does matter and little cake boxes are no good for this ear of client demanding double and triple barrel cakes with chocolate sails and unicorn horns etc - I need boxes with height dam it! And I don't want to have to engineer the lid to be on side ways to accommodate the height of the cake...
The Ikea of it - this is the best way to describe it - as they come flat packed, you have to put them together. When you have 50 million things to do and a large order, the last thing you want to do is spend large amounts of time putting cake boxes together... and need instructions!!! One company I bought a set of boxes from, you needed an engineering degree to work out how to fold the lid correctly, at the 15th step I gave up and sticky tapped the lid on top... how professional - NOT!
And finally, the colour - nobody want to have their $400 given to them in a beige or baby shit brown box! (And i don't mean a trendy brown paper look, I mean, it's printed that colour!) Keep it simple and give us white - so we can put our labels and ribbons and brand it our own...
So, I recently met the gorgeous and talented Sandra from The Cake Pod in Brisbane. I was ranting about the above and saying I no longer buy cake boxes as I am technically challenged and cake boxes suck - boy is she a nice lady to listen to that considering I was basically bagging products like hers..... she decided to turn my frown upside down and sent me some samples to challenge me.....
A box arrives and I decided to challenge Sandra buy opening it up on camera - trying to prove firstly how much I suck at putting together cake boxes but secondly to see if her boxes lived up to her promise of being super easy, super quick to construct and there sturdy...
Sandra, you win. Proof was in the pudding and I am now your loyal cake box bitch.....
These boxes are nice and firm, you can feel it - the cardboard is laminated for food safety too - so even if you get a bit of chocolate on them when you are putting things inside, it wipes straight off and doesn't leave an oil stain! Perfect for buttercream cakes too.
They have simple slide tabs to keep them together, the lids take literally seconds to put together and they look good, professional and strong... and WHITE!!! With my business logo sticker on them and a big ribbon, the clients love it!
So a bit more information - as you say, but I am in Melbourne or Sydney etc? She ships! Cheap as chips for shipping - so buy up and save.
So how do you find them?
Website - www.thecakepod.com.au
Facebook - www.facebook.com/thecakepod
Instagram - www.instagram.com/thecakepod/
Tell Sandra, I said hi!
Enjoy!