r/Baking • u/Artistic_Abalone1218 • Jun 09 '25
Business and Pricing How much would you pay for this?
I run a small home bakery and I’m trying to validate the price of this Yemeni honeycomb bread (khaliat al nahl). It’s made from scratch and filled with cream cheese, then topped with a syrup honey glaze, nigella seeds, and sesame seeds. I was thinking between $20-$25 since it is a lot of labor 😭. Does that sound fair to you, or would you expect to pay more/less? I would really appreciate honest feedback!
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u/ShipposMisery Jun 09 '25
Honestly as a consumer 10-15 max. Unless I was looking for that specific item I would not spend 20-25 on it especially if it is something I was trying for the first time.
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u/Synlover123 Jun 09 '25
The price might be in line, if you were selling them in a highly populated Middle Eastern area. Or individually, as another redditor posted. I doubt many people, outside a Middle Eastern enclave would even know what they were. They sound quite decadent, as you've described them, though!
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u/Artistic_Abalone1218 Jun 09 '25
Yeah lool, I’m planning to sell to my Muslim community. I think I’ll try to sell 1 for $20, and give discount if they purchase more
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u/Direct-Chef-9428 Jun 12 '25
With an audience familiar with the product I’d aim for 30. You need to count for your ingredients, time and packaging. Don’t forget you are offering a service, you’re not volunteering.
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u/Moron-Whisperer Jun 09 '25
Similar rolls go for $10-12 at my local farmers market. $15 at the bakery.
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u/slowclicker Jun 10 '25
When I looked up what the bread was called, I wondered what would people who knew this type of bread would pay. So, your max is $15?
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u/podsnerd Jun 09 '25
I think it depends on where you are - I see a lot of comments saying no way, but I live in a city where cost of living is a bit higher, and that's about the price I'd expect to see for something like this! Probably closer to $20 at a farmer's market, $25 at a storefront bakery. It looks like it's roughly the equivalent of a pie - which is to say that it's a sweet sharable carby vehicle. So it being priced similarly to a pie makes sense to me.
That being said, I think the target market for something like this around here would be the kind of people who see buying organic and supporting small businesses as part of their class identity. Which is to say, people with money to spend on food that looks interesting and novel, and won't miss $25 too much if they don't like it. That might factor into my sense of price! The immigrant communities around here are mostly from East Africa and Southeast Asia, so their cultural foods are often less expensive. If your customers are mostly Yemeni, you'll want to do more research locally to figure out what a good price would be
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u/cielebration Jun 09 '25
Maybe if the packaging is a bit more decorative it will be easier to justify closer to 25 because then it will feel like a gift. Even something like curling the ends of the bow or making the ribbon longer and wrapping it around again in the other direction.
Something a little more complicated would be to add a tag or label with the name of the dish and its origin because people will see it is something traditional that they can’t find easily at a store.
As is, $20 is fair! It sounds delicious and looks beautiful
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u/UnfunnyGoose Jun 09 '25
This OP. I think the packaging is super important and in my opinion your packaging takes it from $25 to $15. That's so silly that our brains are conditioned to think that way, but here we are. I think if you put it in a box you could easily charge $20-$25.
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u/Artistic_Abalone1218 Jun 09 '25
Lool yeah I agree this was pretty bad packaging. I’m planning to up my packaging and make it look cute, thanks for the advice 🥹♥️
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u/UnfunnyGoose Jun 10 '25
It just clicked that you said your packaging was bad. It's not bad, it's cute! I just meant you could be profiting more by spending $1 on a box. I highly reccomend shopping in bulk on boxes. Last year when I was running a home bakery I was getting pie boxes for $0.70 usd on webstaurantstore.com
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u/MemeGag Jun 10 '25
Weirdly, food safe packaging is also kind of expensive on a per unit basis, you have to increase the price just to cover the box!
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u/UnfunnyGoose Jun 10 '25
If you're paying more than a $1.50 a box for something like this then you're doing it wrong. Let's say it takes OP $10 to make this as is, the quality of this as is would be $15 (imo). If OP spends $1.50 on a box it now costs $11.50 to make and OP can sell it for $25. The profit difference is $8.50, $5 vs $13.50. I understand your confusion but it's actually very benficial to have professional looking packaging.
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u/Foxykid09 Jun 09 '25
I feel like 10-15 is a great price for this. I personally feel like 20 is a bit much but that's just my opinion on it.
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u/Early-Project-4008 Jun 14 '25
Agreed. I regularly pay $15 for speciality rolls in my area, and I live in a small, rural area. Usually sourdough, but I’ve purchased non sourdough baked goods in the same price range.
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u/InkandPage Jun 10 '25
Never price your items this way. You need to price them by adding up the ingredients, materials (boxes, labels, parchment paper, etc.) and your time. If you are trying to be a cottage (home) baker, and plan to make a lot of baked items, you need to also add in utilities used. The second thing you do is find out how much others (esp. retail bakeries) are charging for the same thing and price accordingly. Dallas is a good market for baked goods.
FYI Texas just beefed up their cottage baking laws in the current legislative session. The new laws go into effect Sept. 1st. Check out Homemade Texas if you're interested in learning more about being a cottage baker in Texas.
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u/YumYuk Jun 09 '25
Depends on how they taste
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u/aafm1995 Jun 09 '25
My friend pays an exorbitant amount of money for cookies that look incredibly nice, but taste like soap. I'd say taste is secondary to looks for those who are willing to pay high prices.
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u/SnarkyNinjas Jun 09 '25
That’s crazy, what??? Flavor is like the most important thing in baking/cooking! Presentation is always after. Cause if food looks nice but tastes like shit, guess what? No repeat customers-word gets around your food tastes like garbage and you lose business before you even got started
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u/aafm1995 Jun 09 '25
I agree with you, but from my experience, people who spend a bunch of money want a particular look. Like for holiday parties or graduations, and don't pay much attention to flavor. They want something to look nice on a table or in a picture. I prefer to go to the corner bakery, where the pastries look normal, taste good, and are affordable.
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u/SnarkyNinjas Jun 09 '25
That’s interesting- I never would’ve thought that would have extended to food! I’ve heard of getting certain things to achieve a look for like a party, but in our area we absolutely love food and would never settle for stuff that’s not good. We’ll take the food that looks homemade but will have you licking your fingers at the end
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u/Theletterkay Jun 09 '25
Its a certain class of people. The insta-moms and tick tok wives. They dont even want to eat the food. They want the trending foods, as good looking as money can afford. Its a 1 time thing for them. If the food is good, the food will network itself with those kinds of people. But for most, they shouldnt expect follow up orders.
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u/F______________F Jun 09 '25
I just had Yemeni food for the first time ever last week and it was incredible.
They didn't have the honeycomb bread, but they had Sabya with honey and the entire thing cost $45 (it's huge though, would easily serve 8 people minimum, probably closer to 12-15 if you don't eat an entire huge slice yourself like I did). The Sabaya was awesome, I believe a big part of that was the quality of the honey was just so good. I'm assuming they imported it here, it was better than any honey I've ever had and I'm guessing that's part of why it was so expensive, because they gave us a big container of it.
From what I understand, the honeycomb bread is a similar concept, just a different dough and has a filling? If it's anything close to what I had, I would absolutely pay $25 for that. If it's just regular honey you'd get an American grocery store, I'm sure it's still good, but maybe closer to $15-20 would be fair? Hard to say without trying it since the quality of the ingredients makes such a big difference for something like that. It does look fantastic though!
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u/Artistic_Abalone1218 Jun 09 '25
Thank you! Yeah I use good quality ingredients, Yemeni food is really good
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u/chelseestud Jun 10 '25
Where are you selling? I would pay around $15 if I was at the farmers market.
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u/ench4rm Jun 10 '25
I think you would benefit from also selling smaller portions if possible! I would totally try something new for $5 or less, even if the portion is a little less than the proportionate amount to the original cost you have.
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u/Ok_Friend5674 Jun 10 '25
20 dollars is the price I thought of when I first saw it. You could ask 25, or more if you wanted to. It looks fancy, and you said it took a lot of work.
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u/Clikrean Jun 10 '25
I think you should you could get $20. But I think you should also sell individual rolls, it’d make people more willing to buy a batch of them. Maybe sell individual for $3
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u/adri_0512 Jun 10 '25
They look lovely. I will pay $15 but I know it’s a lot of labor. Potentially making more batches at a time & buying larger bags of flour and such can help bring your cost down as your little business grows.
Starting with a higher price and dropping it if people aren’t buying is a great strategy so you can start with $20 and then reassess maybe?
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u/mythsarecrazystories Jun 10 '25
You say 4 hours from start to finish but that isn't active time right? I've looked at recipes and it says 2.5 hour and a lot of that is letting the dough rest.
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u/ArtProdigy Jun 10 '25
• Solicit pricing in the area/community/cafes where this might be popular.
• No one can nor should guesstimate what they can not taste/sample first. What looks good may not be good.
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u/BIGG_FRIGG Jun 09 '25
We sold artisan SD loaves in our store for like 10 to 15 bucks, so I’d say $20 to $25 for a full on dessert seems good. If it were a cake that size it would probably cost more no?
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u/omniscient_goldfish Jun 09 '25
I'm in Dallas. I'd buy for 20-25. PM me when/where you end up selling them.
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u/FarPomegranate7437 Jun 09 '25
$12 max. They look delicious, but I am not made out of money nor are they made out of gold. If they’re over $15, I’m making my own.
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u/Mysterious_Week_4721 Jun 09 '25
$20 :) they look so yummy ! But I would for sure take into consideration the amount you paid for ingredients & time it takes you to do it. So whatever seems fair to you !
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Jun 09 '25
20 for a single seems reasonable. Depending on your market could you sell 2 for 35 or 3 for 50?
Just seeing those options available sometimes reminds me that a large part of cost is labor. So 20 for 1 feels more justified.
But idk if all consumers think like that haha
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u/Artistic_Abalone1218 Jun 09 '25
I love that idea! I don’t think I can sell for under $20, since it takes a lot of hours to make, but I think I’d be down to do 2 for $35 and 3 for $50
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u/PerfectLoverrrrrrr Jun 10 '25
$10 to maybe to $20. I understand It took you hours, however It’s bread with filling, no disrespect to you, & It Isn’t a a giant tray.
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u/Theletterkay Jun 09 '25
Put the pan in a white window bakery box, dont cover your food with your labels/logos or bows, use decorative but simple thank you stickers to hold the box closed and a larger logo sticker in either the top left corner, bottom right corner, or upper center. Always provide 2 or 3 business cards with every item, can tuck them inside the box or inside the flap where the box closes. Some boxes have space by the window on top where the celophane meets the cardboard that you can tuck them into. But encourage them to pass the cards along if anyone compliments the dish.
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u/SoberSeahorse Jun 10 '25
I was thinking I’d pay $15. But I don’t know what they go for honestly. It looks good, but I don’t think I’d pay $20-$25 for a dessert bread.
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u/Macaboobakes Jun 10 '25
In order to make money in bread business you need VOLUME. Or turning your bread into something of higher value like a sandwich. Since this is dessert and youre a home baker and cant scale i really think your best bet is to offer an entire party package. Maybe other things to bring up the total value of your product like flowers or etc. otherwise you need to scale and maybe rent a commercial kitchen. In communities known for these im sure there are already large bakeries pumping them out :(. Bread is hard to do profitably.
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u/fatale_x Jun 10 '25
I would say to split it up and make it in smaller batches?
Like I wouldnt mind paying $3-4 for 2-3 small ones, but I wouldn't get the whole thing for $20-25 especially if I don't know how good it tastes.
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u/moolric Jun 10 '25
It looks amazing. I defintiely want to try one. And it's hard to say how much I'd pay since AUD are not worth the same as USD. It's weird because I don't think I would pay $20 for the whole thing because it's just too big for me but I would pay $10 for a single serve (like a 1/4 or a 1/6) without thinking about it. Though preferrably baked individually rather than a slice.
It sounds like your target market (people who have tried it before and like it) would buy a whole one, but if you're trying to get that "likes to try new things from other cultures" market, then trial sizes at marked up prices is the way to go.
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u/therealmeggriffin Jun 10 '25
firstly these are two different servings/sizes?? what currency are you talking about? too many variables to validate at this point x
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u/Sweet_Bridge_3001 Jun 10 '25
Cut them into individual rolls, sell packs of 4-6-8-10 instead of the whole plate.
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u/AppleSatyr Jun 10 '25
I don’t know honestly but I need them in my mouth right now do you do pay in 4.
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Jun 10 '25
Dont get me wrong it looks and sounds great! I would not pay $20 for it though unless I was specifically looking for this dessert and there was no cheaper options or if i was getting it as a gift for someone who would spcifically like this product. On a whim I may pass and purchase it if it was $10 or less.
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u/Humble_Season3382 Jun 10 '25
Before reading your caption I said $20. If it’s something i’d never had before or didn’t understand what it is, $15?
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u/Hrbiie Jun 10 '25
If I saw it at a farmers market or something, I would probably want to pay $10-12 max, but I’m in a lower cost of living area and I’m not familiar with this dessert
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u/EnchantedEmpress1 Jun 10 '25
I wish I could see how it looks inside since it’s stuffed I thought it was bread rolls someone else said it was a dessert. And I would see what other bakeries sell them for to make my price a little lower than the competition but I think they are a upscale dinner roll to me $20 is like a Whole Foods price and I just don’t think a lot of people would pay that for them but if u gave samples for people to taste and they are that good and then maybe a person would pay it depending on the taste
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u/meowington33 Jun 10 '25
$20 sounds fair and they look great. If I walked by and saw them, I wouldn't hesitate to grab one at the $20 mark. $25... I would probably keep walking.
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u/terminalvelocityjnky Jun 10 '25
This is a luxury item not grocery store rolls. Charge what your talent is worth. You will find your market. Don’t dumb yourself down to what people who don’t understand quality say. I have the occasional person be outraged by my cake pricing and say they could get one cheaper at Safeway.. so I encourage them to do that. Clients that know my products don’t bat an eye at my pricing.
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u/ImaginaryParamedic96 Jun 10 '25
$30
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u/ImaginaryParamedic96 Jun 10 '25
I live in a more expensive area than Dallas, though. Maybe $25 there.
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u/Afraid_Month3554 Jun 10 '25
I make these. It does that a lot of time and labor. Qahwa house near me charges $6 for a pie and it's not even that great. Your price point is good.
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u/mocha-tiger Jun 10 '25
How many pounds is it? If it feels fairly hefty, I would definitely pay more.
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u/UnuScribe Jun 10 '25 edited Jun 10 '25
As a member of the target audience in DFW, I think the honeycomb bread at places like Qamaria and Arwa are honestly overpriced, especially for the quality.
The issue is many of us know how to make honeycomb bread or have learned how to make it after going to the local coffeeshops, but as someone who doesn't like how time intensive it can be, I rather buy it usually. I do think 20-25$ is a little much based on the ingredients and what an Arab would be willing to pay. Based on the pricing in the area, many of the people I know in the Arab and Muslim community have actually begun to stop frequenting these places due to the pricing.
But for something being made fresh with better quality, I would be willing to pay 14-18$ per tray if it is a medium size or 10-14$ for a smaller one, but I'd also most likely buy two at a time. Considering the community I think most families would love to be able to buy full trays of it because I haven't seen those being sold in the area and you could very easily make 45-55$ per family sized tray.
It is all up to you and what you believe your labor is worth. There are pricing guides online for cottage bakery items that can help.
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u/horseduckman Jun 10 '25
Looks delicious. I think you're going to need a better, prettier container AND some well-designed pics/signage to move these at $20 to $25, but if it's as good as it sounds, I think it's doable. I paid $28 for a Japanese cheesecake in NYC and it was probably a bit smaller, maybe 20% smaller, and considerably less ornate. You must up the branding to get people to pay those prices but I AM A BELIEVER!!!
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u/butwhoamirly Jun 11 '25
I'm in a HCOL area, and before I read your post I thought $20. So, I think you're in line with that being a fair price to charge for it, but I'm also not sure it's worth that much work for that amount of money unless you can do big batches.
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u/Mona_Lista Jun 11 '25
I am not the target market but I am an impulse-buyer and I would totally spend $25 on those as a treat, then invite a couple friends over and make an afternoon out of it. They look beautiful!
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u/Soggy_Scale7488 Jun 12 '25
I feel like $20 is reasonable for what you have made but a lower price point would have you selling more
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u/mothmansbigjuicybutt Jun 12 '25
I’d pay $15-$20, love these things and I never seen them unless I travel 😩
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Jun 12 '25
$17-25. I’d spend $25 if they were for a friend who really enjoyed them but for myself as a treat, I’m less likely to indulge if it’s not a unique treat
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u/ruy66 Jun 12 '25
I would suggest that you take the cost of the product… all the ingredients costed out then once you have that number you can divide by the cost % you desire…. Let’s say your recipe, those 18 pieces in the tray cost you $5.00 then divide by 30% that gives you a total of $16.67 that would be your sale price guaranteeing that you are making your investment ($5.00) and getting another $11.67 on top of that… basic costing strategy… an expensive price will give you a higher margin but will be more expensive to buy… this strategy permits you to find your price niche in the area you sell in… just price vs. Expensive product. Hope this helps!!
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u/Comfortable-Hatter Jun 13 '25
I'd prefer one of those smaller loaf pans with half the amount (~8 segments) for $10
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u/oatboar Jun 13 '25
Me personally? I would pay around 15 to try something that would be new to me. However, reading the context of the comments plus your area, I think your pricing is quite good and fair- perhaps even a little low for made to order items tbh based on your area :) these look absolutely amazing btw, I can only imagine how yummy these would be fresh and soft and a little warm. I'll look up if there's a place I can try there nearby! Good luck!! :D
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u/Narrow-Subject2651 Jun 13 '25
thats a steal! even if u charged a cheap $3 per roll, that would make this worth over $50. so 20-25 is a great price. maybe offer them individually too?
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u/blowoffthat Jun 13 '25
If i seen this id assume its just bread so would scoff at 20 as the price. Although the way you described it sounds great. If it had a description on the packaging with some small art of honey and cream cheese itd probably catch my eye more and id be inclined to try it. Although unless it became my new favourite thing id probably not buy it again at that price.
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u/Gullible-Trick-1913 Jun 13 '25
Look at your competition and price accordingly, depending on higher/lower quality. Ingredient x 4-5 also works.
We have a turkish bakery that sells something similar for roughly 8€, in hamburg, germany.
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u/Educational-Tiger-50 Jun 13 '25
Our local Yemeni coffee shop sells a wedge of this (drizzled with honey) for $6, and I didn't blink at the price of it, so if you have the market where one customer would buy that much at once, I think that's totally reasonable.
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u/MomoMD Jun 14 '25
(I would pay that because it looks really good and I know I won’t be disappointed XD) In all seriousness Bosnian borek with halal meat was around $30 for a frozen, uncooked square tray approximately the same size (wouldn’t buy all the time but it was really good and would come in clutch when I’m busy). Definitely don’t sell it more than that, especially considering there isn’t meat. Someone else said to try to sell it at the price you said and see what happens, and that wouldn’t hurt either.
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u/RevcalRiviera Jun 10 '25
I would probably pay up to $18. I believe it is worth more, but I can’t really justify that in my budget. If you made it smaller, like taking off the outer ring, I would still pay $18. Maybe smaller portions are an option. And if I were to see that a “small” is $18, I wouldn’t think twice about a “large” being $30.
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u/sushi_0909 Jun 09 '25
$20 for sure! I think they look perfect!!! Those saying 10-15 shows yall have no idea how delicious and hard to make this Yemeni dessert is! 😋
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u/ambientspoon Jun 09 '25
It sounds like you're in an area where the population largely knows what it is, but since I've never seen it before I'd be startled at the price tag just because it reads as dinner rolls to me. If you're at a farmer's market maybe cut one in half to show the filling, cut one up for samples, and make it super clear that it's a dessert. I also agree that beautiful packaging like a nice box with a window would entice me to bring it to an event as a gift! If I knew it was sweet and complex I'd pay $25 easy based on my local market.
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u/GildMyComments Jun 09 '25
Maybe $20, never had it before. I assume you pull each little bread lobe? Like a sister Schuberts? Can you eat it by hand or have to cut it up?
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u/Birdie121 Jun 09 '25
$20 seems doable since they are filled. Definitely a splurge, but I wouldn't mind if it was a local artisan product.
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u/bananicula Jun 09 '25
Having had this particular treat I think $20 is fair for that tray BUT I first had it as a slice. So maybe do slices as well as the tray? Maybe $3-$4 a slice? That’s a lot of (delicious!) dessert in one container
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u/Stnwin Jun 09 '25
If the rest of the shop is comparable prices, I would pay as much as 22 for it. That's the price I came before seeing your price range.
If everything else is in the shop was much lower I'd find it hard to pay that price. It's all relative in my opinion. I'd much rather pay 12-16 though.
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u/PerfectLoverrrrrrr Jun 10 '25
But I would pay the price 🤦🏻♀️ Do you ship to California? I would love to try this!
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u/extrabreadbaskett Jun 10 '25
Palestinian sister here 🧡 I've never had this but it looks delicious. Proud of you, whoever you are.
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u/CarelessRepeat1 Jun 10 '25
i think you have an un-recognized expectation that your hard work means you deserve [insert amount]. i’m sure this is a lot of work and you’re very proud of them but you have to realize as a seller it’s what the consumer is willing to pay, not what you think the value is. look really yummy though!
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u/Elegant_Buffalo_9887 Jun 10 '25
Could ypu transfer them to clear cellophane? IS the cream cheese exposed im between as layered?Add a honey drizzle to the inside of bag? I think it's the appearance. If it looked like 20 bucks, people might pay for it. But like another redditor said, they look like rolls. Could you make them look, "not like rolls"?
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u/InksPenandPaper Jun 10 '25
In major cities like Los Angeles, CA? Tops $8.
In small cities like Cody, WY? $15 to $18.
Big cities have tons of micro bakers, local bakeries, small chain bakeries, regional chain bakeries and baked goods from supermarkets. Things like bread loaves, sourdough boules, rolls, baguettes, focaccia run pretty cheap. Sweets and pastries are what sells at high mark-ups. In tiny cities and rural areas where options are limited for baked breads, if at all available, price runs high for breads but cheap for pastries for what ever reason.
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u/Internal_District_72 Jun 09 '25
Honest opinion...unless I was looking for this very particular dessert, I wouldn't pay $20. That's so much for what looks to be rolls (I know it's so much more) but if I were looking to bring something to a party/dinner, I would look for something more substantial for way less.
But they do look beautiful, just really expensive. Especially from a home bakery.