Is This Bespoke Bakery Right To Automatically Decline Orders For These Reasons?

I admire small business owners very much. It takes a tremendous amount of work and dedication to make it on your own, especially in a highly competitive field like cake baking and decorating.

Most folks in the business aim to please, but one Texas bakery recently made a video of a very beautiful cake, and in the description listed certain orders that they will automatically refuse every time.

1 “I want it to look exactly like this”
2 “I pay when I collect” - This is a big no no! Imagine we bake the cake, and decorate the cake for HOURS but the client doesn’t show up!
3, “Can you do a cake like this but for cheaper than she’s charging?”

As someone who is also involved in creative fields of work, I have to wholeheartedly agree with #1. Even if I could perfectly replicate someone else's work, why would I want to? Not only is it unethical (and possibly liable, depending on the field) it's boring and it doesn't let my art shine.

#2 is just something that every small business owner must do to protect themselves. Maybe not a full payment in advance, but a deposit to ensure that your supplies are covered is essential. It also greatly reduces the amount of buyers that flake out on the purchase.

#3 is probably more controversial. As a buyer, I want to be able to find the best deal available. But that gets tricky and borderline offensive when it comes to creative work. You are demonstrating that you don't value the work, talent, and time of the creator when you ask this way. I'm not saying to not shop around- just have some tact when you do it. This demand also shows that this business respects its fellow creators enough to not undercut them, or at least not to obviously do so.