"Tapper" > wrote in message
news:rUxuf.35227$az4.23917@trndny03...
> Hello all!
>
> I had a client cancel an order for 85 carrot cakes (thank goodness for
> deposits$$$!), so they are now sitting in freezer storage looking for a
> home. I'd like to offer them online but I've never shipped cakes, I
> always
> deliver. Does anyone have experience shipping frosted cakes? I'd like
> suggestions for packaging etc. I can ship them frozen but do mail
> carriers
> actually pay attention to "This End Up"?
>
> Thanks in advance
> --Pat
>

If you want to ship it frozen and have it arrive frozen, it's going to be
pretty costly. Shipping will probably have to be next day air. Then you need
packaging that will stand up to shipment and be insulated enough to hold in
the cold and handle the dry ice you're probably going to want to use.
Styrofoam coolers work well for that sort of thing. Even with all of that,
there's a good chance the frosting will thaw, so you're going to need to
figure out some way to package it so that the frosting will still be okay
when it's unwrapped, no matter which way the box is tipped.

As far as "this side up," I wouldn't bet on it.

Unless your cakes are world-class famous, you may have some problems getting
people to pay enough to cover shipping. The other alternative would be to
design some sort of packaging that would protect the frosting so that even
when it's thawed, it will look good on arrival.

But if you don't go with the insulated packaging and next-day shipping, are
these cakes going to be able to withstand whatever temperature fluctuations
they endure? There could be a couple cycles of freezing and thawing and
warmer temps in warehouses, trucks, etc. on the delivery route. If they
weren't frosted, it wouldn't be as much of a problem, but if customers get
cakes with the frosting all mushed up and they've paid a lot for the cake
and shipping, they aren't going to be all that happy.

You might want to consider a local sale or maybe a donation to some good
cause and just reap the good publicity you get from that.