How to Plan a Profitable Bake Sale

My journey in business began with a bake sale.

It was right before Valentine’s Day, and I wanted to run a fundraiser for humanitarian aid in Paraguay. I had spent 18 months there as a missionary, and when I came home I carried a deep desire to help the people I had grown to love.

So I decided to bake cookies and sell them.

Photos and flyers from my very first bake sale in 2015

I didn’t have a commercial kitchen.
I didn’t have fancy tools.
I barely even had space.

I was working out of a dorm kitchen from the 60s—complete with a tiny gas oven, about two square feet of counter space, and no dishwasher.

But I had determination, and that was enough to start.

My experience with baking in large quantities was… limited, to say the least.

My flyers and graphics were completely amateur.

My pricing strategy? Basically nonexistent. Cookies ranged from $1.50 each to $6 for a full box.

But somehow, it worked.

I baked 400 cookies and generated about $600 in revenue, which came out to roughly $375 in profit after expenses. I sent every dollar to Paraguay to purchase hygiene supplies for families in need.

The day before pickup, I stayed up all night long baking and decorating because I had completely underestimated how long it would take to make that many cookies.

And remember—at the time I was also a full-time college student with a part-time job.

Looking back, it was chaos.

But it was also the beginning.

Me about to stay up all night to finish baking my valentine cookie orders.

If you’ve ever run a bake sale, you’re probably smiling right now because you’ve been there too.

We lose money on the first ones.
We run ourselves into the ground.
We underestimate how long everything takes.

But we try anyway.

And that first attempt becomes the springboard for everything that comes after—if we’re willing to learn from it and keep going.

It’s been over 10 years since I ran that first sale, “A Valentine for Paraguay,” and in that time I’ve learned a thing or two about baking, marketing, pricing, and running profitable sales.

Last Mother’s Day, I decided to do something different.

Instead of mass-producing simple treats, I leaned into what makes my baking unique—palette knife buttercream flowers.

I created cake sampler boxes with three different flavors, each slice decorated with a different buttercream flower design.

Instead of baking hundreds of cookies…

I made just 12 boxes.

And I sold them for $45 each.

The result was $540 in revenue, and after expenses the net profit came out to just about $470.

Fewer orders.
Less stress.
More profit.

And that’s the secret to a successful bake sale:

👉 Mass-produce something simple

or

👉 Create a higher-end item you can price higher

Both strategies work.

You just need a plan.

Creating Your Bake Sale Plan

That’s exactly what the Bake Sale Blueprint helps you do.

It walks you step-by-step through planning your sale, choosing the right products, and pricing everything correctly so you actually make a profit—without the overwhelm.

What’s Included in the Bake Sale Blueprint

Inside this 23-page resource, I walk you through the entire process of planning a profitable bake sale from start to finish.

You’ll get:

• A quick and easy treat price calculator
• A complete order form template
• A simple photo editing tutorial
• Copy-and-paste customer message templates
• A marketing strategy planner
• Packaging and box links
• And more

By the end of the workbook, your entire sale will be planned, priced, and ready to launch.

No guesswork.
No last-minute all-nighters.

Just a clear plan for running a bake sale that actually pays off.

If you want your next holiday sale to be your most profitable and stress-free yet, this is the guide for you.

Ready to bake smarter this season?

Download The Bake Sale Blueprint here.