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Consulting fees

post #1 of 10
5/20/07 at 8:23am
Thread Starter 
my husband and i are professionnal pastry chefs since 2000 ,specialized in french pastries.We owned our own store and sold it recently. We have been asked to help a new business to get started ,teaching recipies and showing cooking tips and technics ,also managing the store and employees training.
We need to know on witch basis to calcul what amount to charge for the consulting and also for the cooking lessons for someone that do not have any experience ,just the passion of it.
Thank you for your advices
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post #2 of 10
5/20/07 at 9:20am
Questions, questions...Are you training the people who bought your store from you? Are you and your husband now retired? Will you be managing the new business? How long do you expect to be in this managing/training period?

It sounds to me like someone wants to re-create your bakery and have you train them to do it. Your time and expertise is determined by what your students will pay.
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post #3 of 10
5/20/07 at 11:36am
Thread Starter 
Thank you for your answer...Actually those people are not the one that baught the store,and they want to use our experience to open their own store in another city.The problem is that they want to hire us to teach and advise them ,but we absolutly do not have any idea of how much to ask for this training/consulting.It would really be starting from scratch for them and we understand that there is a lot of work to provide.Do you have any experience in this matter?What do you think would be fair to ask?
Thank you
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post #4 of 10
5/20/07 at 5:16pm
Unless these people are very close friends or family, decline the "opportunity." You cannot teach them in months what it took you years to learn. It's in another city, so unless you move there, you'll have the expense of dual residences to maintain. You sold your store to get out of the business. Now, you want to re-create it? It doesn't make sense.
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post #5 of 10
5/20/07 at 5:33pm

Where are you located?

You can charge on an hourly basis, weekly or monthly or even a flat fee.
15 K for a job, 2500 a week etc...

If you are in a metro area averages may be:
65 - 100 per hour


If you are in a rural area averages may be:
25-45 per hour

You could contract for a % or profit share or stock.

Tell me more about what you are doing and where.

fyi
Make sure your proposal is in writing, all invoicing is done in a timely mannor and you are compensated in a timely manner.
Make sure you are contracted in a legally binding manner. (A hand shake is not enough.)

Remember, you are professionals, not friends or buddies.
Consulting is a business, one that can be most benificial to a new business. Instead of going out of business in a year or six months or loose tremendus amounts of money on common mistakes, they have the benifit of your years of learning and could create a successful long term bakery!
bake first, ask questions later.
Oooh food, my favorite!


Professor Pastry Artswww.collin.edu
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post #6 of 10
5/20/07 at 5:46pm
PS, Congratulations on selling your business!!!!
That is quite an accomplishment.
bake first, ask questions later.
Oooh food, my favorite!


Professor Pastry Artswww.collin.edu
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post #7 of 10
5/21/07 at 11:04pm
1) have everything down in writing as stated before.

2)elaborate on the conditions, how long, on call 24/7? location


i have first hand experience (both good and bad)
PM me.
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post #8 of 10
5/22/07 at 9:58am
Thread Starter 
Thank you Michele for your kind words.We are currently living in north carolina.We are still debating concerning flat fee or hourly...These personns really want to open their business ,but maybe do not realize the amount of work to put into it...So it might take longer..How long usually a consulting is?
Thank you again
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post #9 of 10
5/22/07 at 9:58am
Thread Starter 
Thank you Michele for your kind words.We are currently living in north carolina.We are still debating concerning flat fee or hourly...These personns really want to open their business ,but maybe do not realize the amount of work to put into it...So it might take longer..How long usually a consulting is?
Thank you again
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post #10 of 10
6/4/07 at 10:51am
I agree with everything that has been posted, and understand that you may not want to be tied to a business till the new owners feel they can manage on their own..what could that take? months? years?

I would make the contract, TIME SENSITIVE...sort of renewable every 90 days? or every 6 months?? so you also have a "way out" of a situation that may end up working you to death!

Oh..and make sure that you stipulate..no calls after hours or on your days off..lol

Congrats on your new situation!

and the fees that you were quoted, sound good...most consultants charge over 100 dollars an hour.

you may be able to contact your local SCORE and get some advice on this..
Food may bring us together, but a CAKE makes it a PARTY!!
myspace.com/risquebusinesseroticcakes
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